For executives with ambitious transformation targets, multiple ongoing initiatives and the need to convert execution capability into tangible results.
Only about 12% of business transformations achieve their original ambition, and 58% exceed their budget1,2. Without a structured steering function, transformations are twice as likely to suffer major cost overruns and three times more likely to underdeliver on strategic objectives – with delays alone inflating costs up to 170% of the original investment3.
Transformation does not fail for lack of ambition. Targets, initiatives, ownership and reporting exist in most companies.
What is usually missing is the steering system that connects them. One that translates executive priorities into coordinated execution and makes value visible while it is still possible to act.
The result is a familiar pattern in the boardroom:
This is the execution gap.
A TMO steers whether the transformation realizes its value by connecting C-level ambition with functional execution. It does not replace functional accountability, it makes it deliverable, through a defined network of counterparts in every function: a Function PMO, an HR Business Partner, and a Financial Controller.
The Vindelici TMO Excellence Approach rests on three pillars, each necessary, none sufficient on its own.
1 Mandate & governance. A clear C-level mandate defines decision rights, scope, escalation paths, steering committees, review cycles, and a transparent RACI structure.
2 Initiative logic. Every initiative is governed by one consistent standard: a business case, financial plan, owner, milestone plan, and overall progress status. Existing initiatives are reviewed for maturity and execution risk; additional opportunities are identified through targeted analysis.
3 Value logic. Every initiative is tied to a defined financial or workforce target (e.g. EBIT contribution, revenue growth, FTE impact) and tracked against three reference points: a business case target, current forecast, and value realized to date. One-time costs and investments are tracked separately, so return on investment stays visible.
Our framework is established in five phases within three to six months: defining the mandate and scope, establishing the steering model, building a prioritized initiative portfolio, enabling digital tracking, and training stakeholders, so the organization can run continuous improvement independently.
Tracking runs on a single source of truth. Where existing reporting or Power BI systems already serve this purpose, they are leveraged. Where they do not, the Vindelici FAST tool provides it: designed to leverage existing Microsoft 365 environments, meaning no new vendor, no procurement cycle, no IT security review, and data stays within the organization’s own tenant. Initiatives are maintained where the knowledge sits and flow bottom-up into three connected views: initiative, function, and executive level. As no two transformations are alike, FAST adapts easily to each organization with as many additional views and formats as needed, customized reports export straight into Excel or PowerPoint, and role-based access that shows every user exactly what falls within their responsibility.
Value-backed, not activity-based. As every initiative carries a measurable financial and operational logic and is tracked against target, forecast, and value realized to date, progress is now judged by the value that has landed, not by the activity reported.
Built with you, not for you. Vindelici brings the transformation expertise and sets the structure up together with your team, not in management slides. Therefore the structure stays where it belongs: inside the business, not with its advisors.
Vindelici FAST as your single source of truth: FAST and easy to implement, without additional systems, and fully built around your transformation needs. Easy to adapt, so your organization can run it continuously.
Read the full whitepaper for the complete framework: our governance model across strategic, tactical and operational levels, in-depth insights into what initiatives need to be assigned with, the five hardness levels each initiative matures through, the FAST setup in detail, and seven honest questions that reveal whether your transformation is already leaking value.
Sources
[1] Bain & Company (2024). 88% of business transformations fail to achieve their original ambitions.
[2] SAP Signavio & Oxford Economics (2025). The estimation game: What do business transformations really cost?
[3] BCG Platinion (2026). Why 70% of transformations miss the mark and how to fix them.
