Course Overview

Making the Business Case

The course can run in either of two ways. As a public course, it is presented using a realistic running case study. For an in-house audience, it can be used as a workshop to focus on and develop the outlines of a real business case, using the participants’ own projects as a basis for the practical exercises. Because of the amount of ground covered in a short time, the course provides an intensive training experience.

A comprehensive manual, including references for further reading, is supplied as part of the course.

SFIA Mapping

This course supports skill BUAN, level 5.

Course Content

1. What is a business case?
   • The drivers of business change
   • When business cases are needed
   • Framework for constructing a business case
2. Understanding the audience
   • The concept of stakeholder analysis
   • Generic project stakeholders
   • Identifying stakeholders
   • Stakeholder management strategies
   • Exercise – stakeholder analysis
3. Assessing feasibility
   • Aspects of feasibility – business, technical and financial elements
   • Using PESTLE analyses to assess feasibility
   • Force-field analysis
   • Exercise – feasibility analysis
4. Defining the benefits
   • Tangible and intangible benefits
   • Immediate and longer-term benefits
   • Identifying the benefits
   • Quantifying benefits
   • Presenting intangible benefits
   • Exercise – identifying the benefits
5. Defining the costs
   • Tangible and intangible costs
   • Once-off and recurring costs
   • Identifying the costs
   • Quantifying the costs
   • Dealing with intangible cost
   • Exercise – identifying the costs
6. Impacts and risks
   • Identifying non-cost impacts
   • Identifying risks
   • Devising risk management strategies
   • Exercise – impacts and risks
7. Assessing the financial case
   • Payback calculations
   • The time value of money
   • Discounted cash-flow/net present value
   • Internal rate of return
   • Exercise – financial case development
8. The shape of business communication
   • Four A's of design
   • Four C's of quality control
   • Barriers to effective communication
9. Presenting the business case (1) – report writing
   • Focusing on the audience
   • Structure of the document
   • The importance of the management summary
   • Details and appendices
   • Appearance of the document
10. The elements of good writing
    • Paragraphs
    • Sentences and clauses
    • Punctuation
    • Readability
    • The benefits of brevity and précis
    • Difficult words
11. Presenting the business case (2) – presentation skills
    • What makes an effective presentation?
    • Focusing on the audience
    • Structure of a presentation
    • Presenting the issues
    • Visual aids
    • Presentation techniques
12. Presenting the business case (3) – practical exercises
    • Summarising a report
    • Presenting the business case