Duration: 4 Days
Course Overview
To help intelligent decision-making when dealing with a business need – whether taking advantage of new opportunities, or solving a business problem – you need to develop a business case. A business case compares the different ways in which you could meet the business need, and then makes a recommendation to support the best option.
You will learn to analyse business needs to create a compelling business case that guides intelligent decision-making in your organisation. You will use tools and templates that can be taken away for immediate use back at work.
How can I attend my course?
COURSE OBJECTIVES
• Focus on business need, not on symptoms of need
• Clearly identify initiative scope from the start
• Identify, analyse, and manage key stakeholders and communication with them throughout the business case development process
• Understand the difference between business goals and business requirements
• Write clear problem statements and business requirements
• Develop and execute a communication plan
• Create a cash flow to measure potential initiative financial benefits, and the timing of those benefits
• Detect and prioritise potential risks
• Present the preferred option to the organisation
• Recognise the importance of communicating intangible benefits to the organisation
Course Content
What Is a Business Case?
• Key facts and definitions
• The business case versus a business plan
• When and why you should create a business case
• Basic structure of a business case
• The business case process
Stating the Problem or Opportunity
• Identifying problems and opportunities
• Developing a problem statement
• Identifying business goals
• Clarifying the scope: writing business requirements
– Business options
– Technical options
• Creating business metrics for business requirements
Comparing Costs and Benefits
• Investment appraisal using a cash flow forecast
• Common measures for project evaluation
– Return on Investment (ROI)
– Payback Period
– Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR)
• Creating a discount rate
– Measuring the time value of money with Net Present Value (NPV)
– Sensitivity analysis using NPV
– Using Internal Rate of Return (IRR)
Assessing Initiative Impact and Risk
• Differentiating between impact and risk
• Handling risk using sensitivity analysis
• Choosing a risk mitigation strategy
Estimating Costs
• Fundamental cost types
• Differing methods for estimating costs
• Using a cost estimation tool
Identifying and Classifying Benefits
• Benefits identification procedure
• Differentiating between tangible and intangible benefits
• Proving intangible benefits
Selecting the Best Solution
• Assessing Project Feasibility
– Business
– Technical
– Financial
• Limited selection criteria: the Boston Box
• Multiple selection criteria: employing a Weighted Rating Matrix
• Using a tiebreaker: Paired Comparison Matrix
Communicating the Business Case
• Writing the business case
– The pyramid structure of effective documents
– Persuasive writing
– Effective management briefing: Presentation structure
• Presenting the business case Description
Course Wrap-Up
At the end of the course, students will have an opportunity to discuss outcomes and complete an action plan