Business Case - Why and How

To be clear, a business case is not a briefcase stuffed with cash (as my daughter explained to me when I asked her!). A business case is a vehicle you use to explain your ideas and put yourself in the shoes of decision makers to help them decide whether or not to provide you with the resources you require.

If you are an entrepreneur with a brilliant idea, a business leader who understands how to boost revenue, or a department head who is clear on how to enhance productivity; you must be looking for funding and resources to get you started.?A business case is the "scientific method" of the business world, providing evidence-based strategy and recommendations. It is the most important predictor of an initiative's success. Planning, costing, researching, and qualifying of the ideas are all integral parts of it.

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quote.loop=(Learning how to make a business case is an art, and it takes time and practice to master.)
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Here is a skeleton of a winning business case:

Executive Summary

Always start with an executive summary, a brief of what the reader should expect. It should include three main points:

• The problem you're trying to solve, or the opportunity you're tapping into.
• The benefit measured by the revenue or savings expected, in addition to any intangible ones.
• The link between your project and the organization's strategic objectives

?Significance and Impact

Next, you should further explain the business need, and its connection to the company's strategic goals. This is the main part of the business case, highlight the significance and impact?of your project within the organization's context. Remember: either a solution to a pain-point, or an opportunity to capitalize on.

?Solution Overview

The third part typically includes the solution description and the project overview. This needs to be categorically placed as:

• New or enhanced product
• New or enhanced service
• Efficiency initiative such as a new CRM or ERP systems.

It must fit one of those three broad categories. Here you explain the general features of the solution proposed and how it fits with the existing offerings.

?Implications on other business processes

In the fourth part of the business case, you explain the effects of your proposed solution on other business processes. For instance:

• Whether a new product will cannibalize the sales of an existing one.
• How would the market accept the new service you're proposing?
• Are their any internal user trainings needed?
• What is the organizational culture impact?

It's absolutely critical to emphasize the impact your solution will have on other departments, even if they are not directly involved in the project. You all need to explain the measures you are taking as part of your project to manage this impact on those departments.?

Time frame and milestones

It is time now to provide your high level project plan which includes the activities timeline, your core team members and the resources needed, all mapped around the main project deliverables.?

Risks

What could go wrong if the project was approved and execution is on it way? Make sure you keep all your biases at check by consulting with all involved. I pay special attention to the negative stakeholders, who perceive the project as a threat to them. Add all those comments or expectations which you have evaluated to be possible, or even probable!

Financials

At this point, I like to wrap-up with the financials; presumably only the CFO will be interested in them, but mostly because it would be good to wind them down on a positive note. Net Present Value, Internal Rate of Return, and Discounted Breakeven Point are the three most important statistics to remember.?

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Your goal, as counterintuitive as it may sound, is not to have the business plan approved. Your job is to assist the decision makers, those powerful authorities, in making an informed decision by providing them with all the data and information they may require. I'm sure if your recommendation is to reject your project, you'll earn something far more valuable than the project resources: their trust!