If observed intricately, you will notice that there are times, when projects fail to meet their planned objectives without any evident reason. This definitely irks curiosity to find out what the possible reason could be behind the failure. Whether it is the workflow that failed or the strategies used? Though these contribute heavily to the success of a project, they might not always be the reason behind the failure of a plan. At times, teams adopting the best of the strategies and tools fail to meet the objectives as well. So what might be the problem, you might ask. For that, we would like to bring to your attention the concept of a ‘business case.’
Having a good business case can be the deal breaker to completing a successful project. In this guide, we have attempted to tell you everything that you need to know about business cases, and how you could perfect making one. Let’s get started.
Table of Contents
Understanding Business Cases
To begin with, it is important to understand what a business case is. Imagine you are starting on a new project, you would first need to start by understanding what it is, what purpose it serves, how you will complete it, and so on. Basically, you would need a plan before you start executing it. A business case is similar to that. It is a compilation of all the factors that make the project what it is. In short, a business case is an outline of the what, when, why, how, and who for a project. With all this information, it serves as a basis for whether a project is worth continuing and if it is beneficial for a company or not. It is, as you may have understood, developed in the early stages of a project.
A business case is not to be confused with a business proposal which is a list of reasons for the need for a project, while the former is much detailed and has to be approved by key stakeholders and the project sponsors before it is even initiated.
The need for Business Cases
The next question that you might have in your mind is —why exactly do we need a business case? Well, to answer that, there is more than one reason. We have listed a few main reasons why creating a business case can be of immense help to you:
Assessment of opportunities and issues
Assessment of benefits
Assessment of risk
Assessment of budget, costs, and investment appraisal
Assessment of timescale
Assessment of the impact the project will have on other operations
Assessment of technical aspects and solutions
Assessment of organizational capability for project execution
In other words, a business case helps in understanding the project in detail and outlining every major part of it.
Creating a Business Case
Finally, let us get started on how to create a business case. Before you begin, make sure you understand the main purpose of a business case is to communicate information about the project. Therefore, it should be written with the prospective audience in mind.
Also, it should not be overloaded with unnecessary information. Only information that can help with decision-making should be included. Therefore, here are a few things that you should keep in mind while creating a business case:
Keep it brief and informative
Avoid jargons and conjectures
State future visions
Keep it interesting, concise, and clear
Maintain style and readability throughout
Clearly state the benefits the project will bring in
Though the project sponsor is responsible for creating a business case, all the members of the team should also actively contribute and participate. Experts from other fields and departments should also be included in the construction of a business plan. All the individuals contributing to the business case must have a thorough and complete understanding of the project, its goals, and benefits.
To get started with creating a business case, you should complete the following steps:
Research the market, alternatives, and competitors
Analyze, compare, and settle on your methods and approaches
Compile all gathered information and showcase your goals, options, and strategies
Finally, document all your gathered data
Contents of a Business Case
A business case must contain the following content:
Executive summary
Finance
Products and services
Marketing strategies
Competitor analysis
Project Definition
Project Organization
Writing a successful Business Case
To write a successful business plan, here is what you need to do:
Identifying the problem
Every project has an ultimate goal for which it was created in the first place. This goal may be to solve a problem or to create a new opportunity. Whichever it may be, the first step for creating a successful business case is to identify that goal. Along with that, you should describe it, locate its source, and also mention how long it will take to address it. While it may seem simple, it is an important and research-oriented factor that should be studied and analyzed well for accurate results.
Identifying alternative solutions
Now that you have recognized the problem, the next step would be to recognize all the solutions as well. However, to realize the best possible solution, you first need to understand which solutions are available, to begin with. Instead of being overwhelmed by the scale of the task, here is what you can do to easily identify and arrange all the solutions:
List all the available alternative solutions
Note down the benefits of each solution
Don’t forget to estimate a budget for each plan
Determine the level of feasibility for each solution
Consider the problems and risks for each solution
Compile all these data in your business case
Recommend a suitable solution
So you have found out all the available solutions, next is to determine which is the best possible approach. An organization can’t try all the alternative solutions. Therefore, your business case should be able to give an insight on which solution is the best.
But to do that, you would first need to rank the solutions in a particular manner. To do that, you can use the following ranking methods:
Scoring the solutions form 1-10 based on their budget and benefits
Score based on importance and focus
Scoring methods that cover all the elements of the solutions
Describe the preferred approach
Now that you have all your alternative solutions ranked and on the table, it is time for pitching in. You have to convince your stakeholders that you are aware of the best possible solution and that your choice is correct. Of all the solutions that you have listed, find out the most appropriate solution and elaborate on it. The measures you took in the previous step will be your materials of evidence.
Way Forward – Creating perfect Business Cases
So, that is all you need to know for creating a successful business case. They are an important piece of document that helps you get a better and in-depth idea about your projects. Yet, with all types of information that it carries, it is still a concise and to-the-point document.
Though it may seem overwhelming to create a business case, with this guide, you will be able to create a good business case that will help you achieve your project objectives with ease.
