How to write a business caseIntroduction to Project Management
Key takeaways
A business case helps decision-makers judge whether an investment is worth the time, money and risk.
- State the reason for the activity and ensure it aligns with organisational strategy.
- Compare realistic options, including doing nothing, and clearly justify the preferred choice.
- Separate project costs and timescales from ongoing operational costs and benefit realisation timescales.
- Define benefits in measurable terms and distinguish outcomes from benefits so performance can be tracked.Instructor-led
- Include known dis-benefits and major risks, plus mitigations, to avoid one-sided decisions.
- Use an investment appraisal, such as net benefits and break-even timing, to test viability.
IntroductionReviews
This article explains how to write a business case. It includes 2 business case examples and a free business case template for you to download .
You’re probably reading this article because you want to know how to write a business case. Perhaps your organisation is embarking on a major project to develop a new product. Or, perhaps you’re thinking of moving house so your family can enjoy a better life. In either case, you write a Contact usbusiness case to ensure the investment is worthwhile.
In this article we’ll give you 2 business case examples, provide you with a simple business case template for you to use, and explain how to write a business case.
course provides you with an overview of projects, the project life cycle and core project management terminology. No prior knowledge is needed.
This training course is ideal for people wanting a core understanding of projects and project management, but don’t require more in-depth knowledge available on a longer course."},"aggregateRating":{"@type":"AggregateRating","ratingValue":"4.8","reviewCount":"227"},"location":{"@type":"VirtualLocation","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management"},"image":["https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/training-courses/res/logos/knowledge-train-logo.svg"],"offers":{"@type":"Offer","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management","price":"499.00","priceCurrency":"GBP","availability":"http://schema.org/InStock","validFrom":"2026-08-03"},"performer":{"@type":"Person","name":"Susan Tuttle"},"organizer":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Knowledge Train","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management"}}.
Personal business case
You may also use a business case to justify an investment you make in your personal life. For example, when you’re thinking of moving home to another area. You and your spouse will need to understand the costs of moving, the timescales and risks involved, and weigh these up against the benefits to be gained e.g. saving time traveling to your office, or your children able to go to a better school.
Why have a business case?11 Sep - 11 Sep
Projects should not just start on a whim or because of vanity – although a lot of money has been wasted over the years on such projectsIntroduction to Project Management course (Online).
For business organisations, justification for a project usually takes a commercial form i.e. evaluating how much money could be made from the investment. For example, investing money in developing a new software app to bring first to market, might be deemed to bring certain monetary benefits (in terms of sales) which exceeds the costs of investment. £499
For government organisations, justification is probably not a commercial one, but could be based upon giving value for money to achieve certain benefits. For example, a public health campaign extolling the benefits of flu-vaccinations for elderly people, might be judged as giving greater value for money than having no campaign, and instead relying on treating patients in hospital once they have contracted the virus.
With so many competing claims being made on scarce funds, organisations need the assurance that the decision they are taking is the right one. After all, there will not be enough funds to pay for all the ideas for projects which are floating around the organisation.£799
Who uses a business case?
Business cases can be used by many different levels of management within an organisation. Not only are they used to justify the investment in an individual project, but also they are typically used by a Enrol nowportfolio management office to help it decide which projects will contribute to the organisation’s strategic goals. That way, they can filter out the bad ideas for projects, and only fund projects which will contribute to strategic goals.
A business case is also often used by a project sponsor or project executive to help it decide if they should invest in a specific project.
In all cases, the business case must be written and approved prior to any major commitment of resources.
What form does a business case take?{"@context":"http://schema.org","@type":"EducationEvent","name":"Introduction to Project Management course","startDate":"2026-09-11","endDate":"2026-09-11","description":"Introduction to Project Management course","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management","eventStatus":"EventScheduled","eventAttendanceMode":"OnlineEventAttendanceMode","audience":{"@type":"Audience","name":"
course provides you with an overview of projects, the project life cycle and core project management terminology. No prior knowledge is needed.
Business case examples{"@context":"http://schema.org","@type":"Course","name":"Introduction to Project Management course","description":"Introduction to Project Management course","image":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/training-courses/res/logos/knowledge-train-logo.svg","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management","provider":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Knowledge Train","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management"}},"courseCode":"IPMC","coursePrerequisites":"None.","educationalCredentialAwarded":"Introduction to Project Management certification","audience":{"@type":"Audience","name":"
Introduction to Project Management
course provides you with an overview of projects, the project life cycle and core project management terminology. No prior knowledge is needed.
Timescales<
li>It’s also important to understand how long the investment of resources will take. This is so that the organisation (or family in this case) knows when the resources will be freed up to work on other <span>The key characteristics of all projectsprojects> or activities. >There are usually 2 timescales to consider. First, the timescale of the project or activity – in this case 3 months to find a new house and move there. Second, the time over which the benefits shall be realized. In this case it’s 5 years until the kids leave school.< span>Common project management terminologyThe costs of doing the project or activity is the next important bit of information. On this project, the costs of moving to a new house will be £5,000. These are the project costs. >However, the couple will spend an additional £2,000/year for every year over which the business case is calculated. For a project in an organisation, this is usually referred to as the operational costs of maintaining and operating the projects outputs e.g. an IT system. At this point, the couple knows the total costs over the timescales when the benefits shall be realized. li>For any activity or project, it’s also important to understand the major risks involved. Risks are the uncertain things which may or may not happen during the period of the investment. There is only one risk identified here, which is the risk that the couple might lose touch with friends who live close to them right now.< >The next section is where the costs and timescales and risks are weighed up. For this project, it’s a simple decision for the couple to decide if it’s worth spending money over the next 5 years to give their kids better schooling and to save John 2 hours a day commuting. >For an organisation to decide if an investment is worthwhile, however, there are several different ways in which it can decide about the investment.< li>Often in organisations there are rules defined to help business analysts or <span>The main phases of a project (project life cycle)project managers> write what’s called an investment appraisal. In the next example, we’ll look at one example known as net benefits. li>Imagine a heating repair services company that uses a paper-based set of forms filled in by an engineer during site visits. The spare parts required to fix the heater are recorded on a form which is given to staff to process back in the office. They then order the parts, and schedule a follow-up visit for the engineer to fix the heater.<li>Costs<
>Risks<
span>What makes a good project managerInvestment appraisal
>Business case example 2: Handheld device project<
span>How to apply the critical path techniqueLet’s now look at this example business case.
>Executive summary
>This sample business case contains an executive summary. This section briefly describes the selected option and the key benefits it will bring.<
li>Reasons<
span>What to include in a project planThe reasons for the project are clearly spelled out when describing the 3 current problems which the company faces.
>Options
>In this example, there are 2 options (other than do nothing) which have been examined. Each option is summarized and the reason why option 3 is the preferred option has been stated.<
li>Benefits<
span>How to track progress to keep your project on trackThe expected benefits of reduced overheads are clearly stated. Benefits should be measurable and quantifiable. That means that the benefits can be measured later. But what about the reduced errors, rescheduled appointments and customer contract cancellations? Aren’t they benefits?
>Well, these are in fact something else – they’re called outcomes. Outcomes are the results of the changes which come about by using the new handheld devices. The ways you measure the improvements resulting from these outcomes are known as benefits.
>Dis-benefits<
li>This example also contains a dis-benefit which is that the back-office staff morale will be lower due to reduced overtime payments. A dis-benefit, if you’re wondering, is a negative consequence of a project. It’s not the same as a risk which implies something uncertain. A dis-benefit is something which you know will happen because of the project and it has negative consequences for the organisation. It’s the opposite of a benefit!<
span>Effective reportingTimescales
>Just as we saw in the previous example, the business case contains 2 timescales – the project timescales (i.e. the time it will take to complete the project) and the benefits realization timescales (i.e. the time over which benefits are expected to be realized).
>Costs<
li>Again, there are 2 costs – project costs and the ongoing operational costs over the benefits realization timescale. When the decision is taken whether to invest in this project, the total costs (i.e. project costs and ongoing operational costs) are weighed against the expected benefits over the same time period.<
span>Effective change managementRisks
>One major risk has been identified in this example, but on your project, there could be many risks.
>Investment appraisal<
li>The final section is the investment appraisal. The investment technique used in this example is called net benefits. As you can see from the table, the project and operational costs are recorded for each year of the investment.<
span>How to manage risksThe project lasts 1 year which is why the project costs are zero after year 1. Of course, the benefits won’t be realized until the solution is in place and the company starts to use the handheld devices.
>The net benefits are simply the total benefits minus the total costs. This shows that the company will start to get a return on its investment sometime towards the end of year 2. This knowledge is vital if the decision-makers are to take a sensible decision about whether to invest in the project.
>Business case template<
li>This simple <span>How to continuously improve your project management practices.business case template> is free to download.
>Summary
>","learningResourceType":"presentation","teaches":"A business case is the most important document on any project. That’s because it justifies the investment.<
h3>CurriculumIt helps an organisation be clear about why a project is needed, and what the results of the investment will be. This is crucial because no organisation has unlimited funds to spend on an unlimited number of projects. Therefore, a business case gives confidence to senior managers when deciding to invest in one project rather than another.
3>However, as you have seen in this article, a business case is something which you can find useful when taking major decisions in your own personal life. Remember – a business case doesn’t need to be a lengthy document. It could easily be a few notes scribbled on the back of something or even sent in an email.<
h4>Introduction to Project ManagementWhatever form your business case takes, remember one thing – it will help you or your organisation take sensible decisions about committing time and resources to a project or activity.
4>Remember, if you want to learn more about developing a business case, and learn many of the techniques useful for assessing business problems, consider attending a classroom <p>This Introduction to Project Management covers the following topics:business analyst course>.<
Project plans
Managing changes< or li>Managing risks< strategies?li>Improving your project management practices. - ","about":"Introduction to Project Management course","abstract":"< aligned with the business case? (e.g. are the costs and timescales in the project plan correctly reflected in the business case?)p>1-day Introduction to Project Management course focusing on practical elements of how to manage projects
- ","copyrightHolder":"Knowledge Train","keywords":["","",""],"offers":{"@type":"Offer","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management","price":"499","priceCurrency":"GBP","availability":"http://schema.org/InStock","category":"Paid","validFrom":"2026-08-03"},"hasCourseInstance":[{"@type":"CourseInstance","name":"Introduction to Project Management course","description":"Introduction to Project Management course","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management","image":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/training-courses/res/logos/knowledge-train-logo.svg","courseMode":"Online","maximumAttendeeCapacity":"16","performer":{"@type":"Person","name":"Susan Tuttle"},"location":{"@type":"VirtualLocation","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management"},"offers":{"@type":"Offer","url":"http
- s://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management","price":"499.00","priceCurrency":"GBP","availability":"http://schema.org/InStock","validFrom":"2026-08-03"},"courseSchedule":{"@type":"Schedule","startDate":"2026-08-14","endDate":"2026-08-14","repeatCount":1,"repeatFrequency":"Daily"}},{"@type":"CourseInstance","name":"Introduction to Project Management course","description":"Introduction to Project Management course","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management","image":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/training-courses/res/logos/knowledge-train-logo.svg","courseMode":"Online","maximumAttendeeCapacity":"16","performer":{"@type":"Person","name":"Susan Tuttle"},"location":{"@type":"VirtualLocation","url":"https://www.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management"},"offers":{"@type":"Offer","url":"https://wIs it clear how the benefits will be realized?ww.knowledgetrain.co.uk/project-management/project-management-short-course/introduction-to-project-management","price":"499.00","priceCurrency":"GBP","availability":"http://schema.org/InStock","validFrom":"2026-08-03"},"courseSchedule":{"@type":"Schedule","startDate":"2026-09-11","endDate":"2026-09-11","repeatCount":1,"repeatFrequency":"Daily"}}]}
- Is it clearly defined what will judged a successful outcome?
- Is the preferred business option clearly stated, along with the reasons why?Need training for your team?
- If the project requires external procurement, is the preferred sourcing option stated, and why?Easily enrol multiple courses online in a single checkout, or
- Is it clearly stated how any necessary funding will be obtained?request a bespoke quote
- Does the business case include non-financial, as well as financial criteria? for tailored group training.
- Does the business case include operations and maintenance costs and risks?
- Does the business case include project costs and risks?
- Does the business case conform to organisational accounting standards (e.g. break-even analysis and cash-flow conventions)?
- Are the major risks faced by the project explicitly stated, together with any proposed responses?This introductory course gave me a clear, jargon-free overview of what project management involves and how projects are structured.
How do you write a good business case?Emily S., Team Leader
A good business case must contain certain key information including:Overview
- The reasons for doing the project; Get a clear, jargon-free introduction to how projects work, the role of the project manager, and the tools you can use to plan and deliver successful projects.
- The business options which have been considered, including the base business options of do nothing, so something, or do something else; What you will gain
- Project and operational costs;Understand what makes a piece of work a “project”
- Project and operational timescales;Learn the main phases of the project life cycle
- Benefits, expressed in measurable terms;Get familiar with common project management terminology
- Investment appraisal (or cost benefit analysis);Practise simple tools for planning, estimating, and tracking work
- Major risks and their mitigation plans;Know how to manage risks, changes, and stakeholder expectations
How long is a business case? Who this course is for
A good business should be long enough that it contains all the information needed for the decision-makers to take an informed decision about whether to invest in the project. That means, remove any waffle, and only include information which helps decision-making.People who are new to projects or project management
What’s included in a business case?Team members who contribute to projects in any industry
The following are the most important items to put into a business case:Professionals affected by projects who want to understand the basics
- Executive summary – summarizes the key points;Anyone considering a longer project management qualification later
- The reasons for the project (answers the question ‘Why are we doing this?’);Benefits
- The options considered – e.g. do nothing, do something, or do something else – (answers the question ‘What’s the best option?’); Build core project skills
- The expected benefits – in measurable terms – (answers the question ‘What’s the return?’);
- Costs – both project and operational – (answers the question ‘How much will it cost?’); Gain a solid grounding in key concepts, roles, and techniques used on real projects.
- Timescales – for the project and for realizing benefits – (answers the question ‘How long will it take?’); Learn practical tools
- Investment appraisal – weigh up costs, times, risks against benefits – (answers the question ‘Is it worth it?’);
- Major risks – (answers the question ‘What if?’). Practise simple, reusable tools such as work breakdown structures, schedules, and risk lists.
What is a business case template? Increase your confidence
A business case template serves as a starting point when writing a business case. It is reusable and can be used across all your projects. Depending upon its needs, your organisation may have different business case templates, each one used for different scales of projects.
You can download an example Leave the course ready to participate in projects and speak the language of project managers.business case template here