In the Spotlight: APM’s Benefits and Value SIG

Following on from the annual Association for Project Management Volunteer Achievement Awards, we speak with committee members from one of our Specific Interest Groups (SIGs) about what goes into running an award-winning group and how it benefits its many followers.

APM’s Benefits and Value SIG is dedicated to sharing insight, innovation and best practice on all aspects of value management and benefits realisation in the project profession. Formed in 2019 from the merger of the separate Benefits Management and Value Management SIGs, the group now has more than 3,000 followers, ranging from veteran specialists to project professionals who simply want to know more about these areas.

Like all APM SIGs, the Benefits and Value SIG is led by a committee of volunteers who are passionate not only about this specific facet of project management, but about helping the profession to deliver projects better.

This dedication was recognised at the recent APM Volunteer Achievement Awards, at which the SIG and its members were shortlisted in four out of six eligible categories, including two nominations in the Volunteer of the Year category. Committee members Kevin Parry and Dr Hugo Minney, ChPP, were jointly named winners of the Volunteer Innovation Award.

Sparking ideas
The Benefits and Value SIG prides itself on being a collaborative and caring community where creativity can thrive. As well as undertaking research and holding virtual events, the SIG also operates a thought leadership group and even informal drop-in sessions, which have helped to keep members feeling connected during the pandemic.

Kevin Parry explained: “We’ve created an environment that fosters innovation.

“We [the committee] all get on. There’s genuine chemistry among all the people in the SIG. Everyone also brings great professionalism to everything they do.”

The work the SIG undertakes is driven by a series of working groups that are structured around functions like research and thought leadership. People are able to transfer between groups, creating a fluid structure that allows people to participate in projects they have a particular interest in, or to which they think they can best contribute.

Hugo Minney, who co-chairs the SIG, said: “The working groups spark the ideas. People are thrown together from different backgrounds, contexts and different stages of their careers.

“Because there’s such diversity in each working group, they have a lot of innovative ideas.”

Initiatives and activities for which the Benefits and Value SIG was nominated at the Volunteer Achievement Awards include:

APM Volunteer Innovation - Kevin Parry and Hugo Minney (winners)
How human factors make all the difference in realising project benefits

In the Benefits and Value SIG’s Thought Leadership Group they like to push the boundaries of conventional thinking, with questions like “what is the underlying cause of why so many projects fail to realise the promised benefits and value for money?”. Kevin and Hugo partnered to take an innovative approach to researching this difficult and nuanced area, presenting the findings after almost a year of research.

APM Special Achievement - Merv Wyeth
Reinventing Webinars: Creating value through high quality online event design

Merv has been organising webinars on behalf of APM Benefits and Value SIG for 10 years. Since November 2017 he has designed and delivered two ground-breaking series: ‘Effective Benefits Management’ and, during the COVID-19 lockdown ‘Preparing for projects in a post-pandemic world’, a collaboration with Major Projects Association.

Volunteer of the Year – Claire Dellar
Giving back while battling the pandemic

Running vital NHS services responding to COVID-19 didn’t prevent Claire Dellar helping project professionals grow and learn in 2020. From conferences to webinars, e-Learning to templates, Claire has continuously supported APM’s members in their personal and professional development.

Education Volunteer of the Year – Hugo Minney
Lectures to share learning

In 2020, Dr Hugo Minney, ChPP, delivered three lectures to university Masters-level students on the subject of benefits and value management, on behalf of APM. These lectures were in addition to the student attendance at his many other talks, which combine practical experience with cutting edge advancement of the profession.

SIG of the Year
A creative and caring community

In the face of the COVID-19 lockdown, the Benefits and Value SIG developed working groups to engage active volunteers outside the formal committee, enabling them to focus on topics and activities that were of most interest.  Nearly a year of informal drop-in sessions supported members' mental health and wellbeing.

Be involved

APM has a wide variety of Specific Interest Groups that bring project professionals together to network, learn and share expertise. If you’d like to follow a particular SIG, you can find more information about what’s on offer here.

For more information on volunteering opportunities with APM, visit our volunteering page.