How to write a business case Preferences

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This article explains how to write a business case. It includes 2 business case examples and a free business case template for you to Read more about these purposesdownload .[email protected]Accept

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 business case +44 (0)207 148 5985Deny to ensure the investment is worthwhile.Courses

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.PROJECT MANAGEMENTView preferences

What is a business case?Learn the fundamentals of the PRINCE2 Agile method.

A business case is the justification for some activity (e.g. a project) undertaken by your organisation. It weighs up the timescales, costs and risks of doing the activity against the benefits to be gained. Think of it as weighing up the pros and cons and then taking a sensible decision.Practitioner

A business case forms an essential component of the curriculum of the Includes Foundation & Practitioner combined option. best project management coursesAI Project Governance Framework (AIPGF) .Foundation The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.

Personal business caseLearn the fundamentals of the governance framework.

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.Practitioner

Why have a business case?Includes Foundation & Practitioner combined option.

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 Better Business Cases projects™Preferences.Foundation

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.Learn the fundamentals of Better Business cases.

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.Practitioner

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.Includes Foundation & Practitioner combined option.Preferences

Who uses a business case?P3O

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 ® portfolio managementFoundation 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.Learn the fundamentals of the P3O project management office.

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.Practitioner

In all cases, the business case must be written and approved prior to any major commitment of resources.Includes Foundation & Practitioner combined option.

What form does a business case take?Workshops

Business cases can take many forms – digital or analogue. The tools you use to create one are also many and varied. Common business tools such as Microsoft Office might be used. Rather than being a document or slide deck however, it could equally be in the form of an email.Introduction to Project Management The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.

Equally, a business case could be written by hand on a whiteboard or flipchart, or on the back of a cigarette packet!1-day workshop to learn the basics of project management.

What you should always remember is that a business case does not have to be a huge long document. In fact, it should be as short as possible, and only include the most important information. That way it cuts out the noise and provides decision-makers with just the right information to enable them to take sensible decisions.Project Management Essentials

For those of you interested in 2-day workshop to learn how to manage projects without getting certified. project managementWriting Business Cases , the project management methodology known as Half-day workshop to learn to write robust business cases.StatisticsPRINCE2AI in Project Management focuses its decision-making on a project on having a viable business case.Learn how to use AI tools in everyday project work.

Business case examplesARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

We will now give you 2 business case examples. The first example is one which you might find useful for taking decisions in your personal life. The 2nd business case example is more business focused project.BCS AIStatistics

Business case example 1: Moving homeFoundation

Suppose you and your spouse are considering moving to a new home. You will need to weigh up the pros and cons of moving. This is done using a business case. You might not call it that, but that’s what it is. Let’s look at an example.Learn the fundamentals of artificial intellegence.

ReasonAI Project Governance Framework (AIPGF)

As you can see from the example, the first thing to be clear about in a business case is the reason for doing the project or activity. In this example, the couple has answered the question Foundation Why?Learn the fundamentals of the governance framework. In fact, there are two problems here – the local school and John’s long commute.Practitioner

Options consideredIncludes Foundation & Practitioner combined option.

A business case should weigh up the competing options which have been considered. After all, there is usually more than one option. Perhaps an alternative option would have been for John to change his job to one nearer their current house. However, this wouldn’t solve the issue with the school.WorkshopsThe technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.

BenefitsAI in Project Management

The benefits of a project or activity are the positive things you’re going to get back in return for your investment of time and money. In this case, the kids will get a better education, and John will save time each day.Learn how to use AI tools in everyday project work.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.

TimescalesAGILE

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Includes Foundation & Practitioner combined option.

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Let’s now look at this example business case.Modelling Business Processes

Executive summaryGain practitioner certificate in modelling business processes.

This sample business case contains an executive summary. This section briefly describes the selected option and the key benefits it will bring.Business Analysis Practices

ReasonsGain practitioner certificate in business analysis practices.

The reasons for the project are clearly spelled out when describing the 3 current problems which the company faces.Requirements Engineering

OptionsGain practitioner certificate in requirements engineering.

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.Business Analysis International Diploma

BenefitsAll 4 courses bundled into this Diploma certification package.

The 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?AgileBA

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 – Agile Business Analysis

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!Foundation training

TimescalesLearn the fundamentals of Agile Business Analysis.

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).Practitioner

Costs4-day course including Foundation.

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.PMI

Risks®

One major risk has been identified in this example, but on your project, there could be many risks.PMI-PBA

Investment appraisalSelf-paced course to prepare you for the exam (exam not included).

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.Business Analysis Learning Library (BALL)™

The 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.CHANGE MANAGEMENT

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.APMG Change Management

Business case templateFoundation

This simple Learn the fundamentals of enterprise change management.business case templatePractitioner is free to download.Includes Foundation & Practitioner combined option.

SummaryPROGRAMME MANAGEMENT

A business case is the most important document on any project. That’s because it justifies the investment.MSP

It 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.®

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.Foundation

Whatever 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.Learn the fundamentals of programme management.

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 Practitioner business analyst courseIncludes Foundation & Practitioner combined option..INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (IT)

Business case FAQs

Who approves a business case?

Usually on a project, the project sponsor (the person or people who are committing the funds) will approve a business case. Before approving it, they need to have confidence that the problems have been addressed and the right solution has been selected, that the benefits are achievable and realistic, when the investment will pay off, and how big will the return on investment be.

What makes a good business case?

As you have seen in this article, there’s several important bits of information which goes into a business case. Don’t spend unnecessary time though adding information which isn’t required. Your project sponsor will have to read your business case before they approve it, and you don’t want to make their job any harder than it already is!

There are several things you can use to check whether your business case is adequate or not. Here’s a checklist of 13 questions to ask yourself before you submit your business case to your sponsor for approval:EXPLORE SUBJECTS

1. Are the reasons for the project consistent with the corporate, Select your preferred subject.portfolio or PROJECT MANAGEMENT QUALIFICATIONS & WORKSHOPSprogramme managementSelect your preferred qualification or workshop. strategies?
2. Is the PRINCE2 COURSESproject planSelect your preferred training course below: aligned with the business case? (e.g. are the costs and timescales in the project plan correctly reflected in the business case?)
3. Are the benefits clearly identified and justified?APM COURSES
4. Is it clear how the benefits will be realized?Select your preferred training course below:
5. Is it clearly defined what will judged a successful outcome?
6. Is the preferred business option clearly stated, along with the reasons why?AGILE PROJECT MANAGEMENT COURSES
7. If the project requires external procurement, is the preferred sourcing option stated, and why?Select your preferred training course below:
8. Is it clearly stated how any necessary funding will be obtained?
9. Does the business case include non-financial, as well as financial criteria?PRINCE2 AGILE COURSES
10. Does the business case include operations and maintenance costs and risks?Select your preferred training course below:
11. Does the business case include project costs and risks?
12. Does the business case conform to organisational accounting standards (e.g. break-even analysis and cash-flow conventions)?BETTER BUSINESS CASES COURSES
13. Are the major risks faced by the project explicitly stated, together with any proposed responses?Select your preferred training course below:

How do you write a good business case?

A good business case must contain certain key information including:P3O COURSES

• The reasons for doing the project;Select your preferred training course below:
• The business options which have been considered, including the base business options of do nothing, so something, or do something else;
• Project and operational costs;WORKSHOPS
• Project and operational timescales;Select your preferred workshop below:
• Benefits, expressed in measurable terms;
• Investment appraisal (or cost benefit analysis);AGILE QUALIFICATIONS
• Major risks and their mitigation plans;Select your preferred qualification.

How long is a business case?

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.AGILE PROJECT MANAGEMENT COURSES

What’s included in a business case?Select your preferred training course below:

The following are the most important items to put into a business case:

• Executive summary – summarizes the key points;PRINCE2 AGILE COURSES
• The reasons for the project (answers the question ‘Why are we doing this?’);Select your preferred training course below:
• The options considered – e.g. do nothing, do something, or do something else – (answers the question ‘What’s the best option?’);
• The expected benefits – in measurable terms – (answers the question ‘What’s the return?’);SCRUM COURSES
• Costs – both project and operational – (answers the question ‘How much will it cost?’);Select your preferred training course below:
• Timescales – for the project and for realizing benefits – (answers the question ‘How long will it take?’);
• Investment appraisal – weigh up costs, times, risks against benefits – (answers the question ‘Is it worth it?’);AGILE BUSINESS ANALYSIS COURSES
• Major risks – (answers the question ‘What if?’).Select your preferred training course below:

What is a business case template?

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.BUSINESS ANALYSIS QUALIFICATIONS

You can download an example Select your preferred qualification.business case template here .BCS BUSINESS ANALYSIS COURSES

What is the purpose of a business case?Select your preferred training course below:

The purpose of a business case is simple – it’s used to justify an investment in an activity. Typically, in an organisation this activity is a project. It helps give confidence to management that their investment is worthwhile and will realize benefits for the organisation.

Who owns a business case?AGILE BUSINESS ANALYSIS COURSES

A business case is owned by the person who is funding the project. The name of this role is different across organisations, but commonly this role is known as a project sponsor, or project executive.Select your preferred training course below:

By owning the business case, it means this person is accountable for ensuring that any investment decisions which are taken based upon the information within the business case are worthwhile.