This book is the first in the "Value Search, Closing the Gap" series and describes a holistic process for achieving successful programs, projects, services and products. The Closing the Gap series relates to program and project leadership, stakeholder consensus-building, informed decision-making, setting clear & transparent strategic direction, performance enhancement and effective change management for achieving real performance gains. The Overview book introduces a training and coaching system which enables participants to: formulate strategy; identify, select and develop innovative options; implement winning, fast track solutions; enable business decisions by providing decision -makers with a sound basis for their choice; apply successful group problem-solving techniques across a range of applications in any organization; systematically ensure successful outcomes and improve return on investment. This book is intended to provide a relatively "quick read" to stimulate interest in learning how to achieve better outcomes for a variety of endeavours. Further information is available in the companion publications of the series. Closing the performance gap successfully is not just a "quick fix", but it is attained through a measured series of pre-emptive management actions that are conducted from the initiation of an undertaking and throughout its life cycle. Managing for best value is a lifestyle that should be embedded into the culture of an organization. Value assurance provides a time-saving, practical approach to ensuring successful development and improvement of programs, projects, products and services in any field. It is scalable to large, small, complex or simple undertakings. However its most significant application is to large and complex programs and projects. The Value Search series has an international flavour that provides a comprehensive, firm and timeless grounding in the basics of a number of program and project improvement approaches. The series does not advocate yet another specific methodology, but encapsulates clearly a number of best practices for application and integration across a broad range of situations from strategic planning, through development and implementation to optimization of existing services. The books are based on the authors' combined 65+ years of practical experience and integrate a number of best practice techniques and tools for effective management and assurance of outstanding and sustaining results.