The PPSO SIG Autumn 2005 Conference…

Making the Business Case – Real! John Zachar Principal consultant CITI Limited

What is a Project Business Case? The Project Business Case is a one-off, start-up document used by senior management to assess the justification of a proposed project, as the basis for comparison of a number of projects competing for limited funds, or to assess the options for a project that has already received funding. If approved, it confirms senior management support and/or resourcing for a recommended course of action [selected option – JZ]. Department of Premier and Cabinet, Tasmania For further details, refer to

Why create a business case?  gain approval to proceed with one or more projects;  obtain resourcing for a project or projects through internal departmental processes, or the Budget Committee process; or  where resourcing is already available, to document what the project can accomplish for the funding and how, e.g. a project as a result of a ministerial direction.

Typical contents 1.Executive Summary 2.Introduction/Background 3.Overview 3.1.Project Title 3.2.Vision 3.3.Organisational Objective 4.The Business Case 4.1.Purpose of the Business Case 4.2.Sponsor 4.3.Intended Audience 5.Situational Assessment and Problem Statement 6.Critical Assumptions and Constraints 7.Analysis of Options 7.1.Identification of Options 7.2.Comparison of Options 7.3.Recommended Option 8.Benefit/Cost/Risk Analysis 8.1.Benefits & Dis-benefits 8.2.Costs 8.3.Stakeholder Analysis 8.4.Key Issues 8.5.Identified Risks & Minimisation Costs 8.6.Summary of Benefit/Cost/Risk Analysis 9.Implementation Strategy 9.1.Target Outcomes/Benefits 9.2.Outputs 9.3.Stakeholders 9.4.Related Projects 9.5.Organisational Impact 9.6.Work Plan 9.7.Resources 9.8.Project Management Framework 10.Glossary and Appendices Appendix A - Benefit Analysis Appendix B - Risk Analysis Summary: CoBRA

Business case process Problem Objective CSFs DeliverablesBenefits Risks ACRIs  Iterative 

Problem The real problem – not symptoms of the problem! The problem spawns the requirements. If at any stage of the project, the requirements need to be changed, then the problem is changing / has changed / was poorly captured to begin with! How the problem is documented dramatically affects how it will be resolved.

CSFs What are those factors that are absolutely critical to the success of the project? Bear in mind – these factors are: not important not crucial not imperative THEY ARE CRITICAL!

Objective S M A R T Desireability Do-ability

Deliverables  Tangibility  If I deliver these deliverables (things)

Benefits  Tangible  Intangible  Real benefits, not wishful thinking  Not over egged to attract the funding  Realisable (SMART)

ACRIs  Assumptions  Constraints  Risks  Issues

John Zachar Principal consultant CITI Limited Lovat Bank, 37 Silver Street, Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, MK16 0EJ