The Steering Committee That Doesn't Steer

Most steering committees in transformation programs have a mandate, a membership, and a set schedule. What they lack is a decision-making framework that works.

How a Steering Committee Becomes a Reporting Event

In nearly every SAP or finance transformation program I’ve been involved with over the past 20 years, the steering committee was formally set up correctly. There was a meeting, an agenda, a status report, and a list of attendees with the correct names. And yet, in many cases, the same thing happened: the committee was briefed on the status, questions were asked, concerns were raised—and at the end of the meeting, no decision was made.

Not because the parties involved didn't want to make a decision. But because the proposals weren't structured in a way that allowed for a decision. Because the data wasn't reliable. Because it remained unclear exactly what question was on the table—and who had the authority to answer it.

The Steering Committee has become a status update meeting. It provides information, but it does not steer the process.

The three typical breaking points

There is a recurring pattern that explains why steering committees in transformation programs lose their effectiveness. It is rarely due to the people in the room—but rather to three structural gaps that almost always interact:

First: There is no decision-making framework. It is not defined which decisions fall under the purview of the steering committee—and which fall below that level. Instead, either everything is escalated, or nothing is. Decisions are postponed, deferred to bilateral discussions, or simply not made at all. There is no structured mechanism that specifies: What needs to be brought to the table, in what format, with what recommendation, and who decides what by when.

Second: The template structure is flawed. A typical steering committee template includes a traffic-light status, a list of milestones, and a risk matrix. What it lacks is a clearly defined decision question, two to three courses of action with their respective consequences, and a recommendation. Without these elements, a committee cannot steer the project—it can only take note of the information.

Third, Finance provides figures but no strategic perspective. In the program, Controlling and Finance are treated as reporting functions. They provide data on budgets, forecasts, and actual costs—but no context, no analysis, and no recommendations for action. As a result, the Steering Committee lacks a voice that can speak from a financial perspective to say: “The logic here doesn’t hold up,” “We need to make adjustments here,” or “We need a decision here.”

A steering committee worthy of the name

The alternative is not a textbook framework. It consists of three specific structural elements that can be implemented in programs of any size.

A clear decision-making matrix defines which decisions are made at which level—Program Board, Steering Committee, Workstream Lead. Not everything needs to go to the top. But the matters that do go to the top must be decided there.

A standardized decision-making format for every proposal ensures that nothing is brought before the steering committee unless it includes an explicit decision question. No question—no agenda item. That sounds trivial. In practice, it completely changes the dynamic.

And finance as a governance function within the program: not merely as a provider of numbers, but as a body that analyzes variances, validates forecasts, and provides the steering committee with a sound recommendation. This requires a role that does not exist in most programs—but should.

My role in steering committee assignments

I don’t develop governance frameworks that end up gathering dust in a drawer. I establish the decision-making framework that makes an ongoing transformation program manageable—right within the program itself, working directly with the stakeholders.

This means: I analyze the current governance landscape, identify the gaps, develop the decision matrix and template format, and support the implementation through at least two steering committee cycles—until the structure is in place and functioning effectively.

I’ve been doing this for over 20 years in SAP, ERP, and finance transformation programs—including at Rolls-Royce Power Systems, Hamburger Hochbahn, Dataport, and GETEC. I’ve worked with companies across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, both remotely and on-site.