If you have been asked to write a business case, here are 5 key considerations to keep front of mind:

1. Tell a compelling story. A business case is more than just facts and figures, it’s a document that explains why the business should fund the project. It should clearly outline the specific challenges and pain points while connecting them to the opportunities and solution the project aims to address.
2. Keep it concise. Given the audience and approvers of a business case, the content should be succinct. We are big fans of the 2-page business case. The assumptions and details that sit behind the numbers should live in the appendix.
3. Include the right sections. Having the right sections will help tell the story in a powerful way. We recommend the following flow:
   1. Context (background and why we are here)
   2. Current position (pain points and bottlenecks)
   3. Proposed solution (what the project brings)
   4. Costs (CAPEX and OPEX)
   5. Benefits (quantitative and qualitative)
   6. Estimated timelines (alignment with your transformation roadmap)
   7. Resources (realistic team requirements)
4. Supplement it with detail. Your business case should be supplemented with a detailed excel document, which is in a format familiar to your Finance department (they may want to make changes to your calculations or assumptions). We find it helpful to summarise the Net Present Value, Payback and Return on Investment upfront for different periods (e.g. 3, 5 or 10 years) to prevent people from having to calculate this manually.
5. Make it measurable. The benefits should be incorporated into your adoption workstream (success measures) and the correct reporting set up to ensure the benefits outlined are met.

Is your business struggling to prioritise where to invest? Are you embarking on projects without a clear view of the opportunity? At Change Management Group we help guide organisations toward embarking on the right projects. Contact us here to learn more.