The Project Business Case

Tips for a strong business case

  • Ensure that your vision is compelling.
  • Ensure you have evidence that supports the need for your project.
  • Clearly identify the anticipated benefitsand ensure they are measurable
  • Consider how you will approach the project. (How many stages will be appropriate? How long will it take? What do you have to achieve to show you have made progress?)
  • Clearly show how you will communicate with others about the project
  • Assess and review risk
  • Cost your project
  • Consider the characteristics and dynamics of your project team
  • Reflect on the process

Project Business Case Template

1. Your organisation
Name and address
2. Your project and its team
Project Title
Project Manager / Name / Job title / Telephone and E-mail address
Project Support Team
List any other people who will be involved in managing, developing and implementing the project / Name / Job title / Role in project
3. What is your ‘high level’ vision for the project?
How will things change for your organisation in the future?
4. What is the main purpose of the project?
5. Why is the project needed?
Describe the evidence that you have to back this up
6. Stakeholders/Partners
Who will be affected by or has a vested interest in this project?
Internal or external? / What will be the effect or what is their interest?
7. What is the main measurable impactyou hope to achieve?
8. How do you intend to structure the project?
Think here about how many stages the project will comprise - for example, will you commence with a pilot phase? What is the specific purpose of each phase?At whom will each phase be aimed?
(add more rows as required)
Project stage / Purpose / Target audience
9. Project duration(add more rows as required)
Project stage / Start date / End date
10. Measuring progress
Indicate the milestones (key objectives or activities) that must completed to indicate progress
Project stage / Milestone / Target completion date
11. Evaluation
How will you evaluate each stage of the project?
Project stage / Evaluation methodology
12. Communications plan
How will you communicate with others about the project? Include all stages of the project in this section, from gaining agreement for the project, through its planning, development, implementation and dissemination
Purpose of message / Target audience / Method / Frequency of contact / How will you evaluate the impact of the message?
13. Impact – Measurement and Evaluation
What are the potential impacts of the project?
Describe exactly how you intend to measure AND evaluate them
Impact/Digital Dividend / Describe how you will measure AND evaluate this
14. List the estimated costs of the project
Description / £’s
TOTAL