Business Case

This article treats the subject Business Case within project management. The definitions of Business Case are discussed. Business Case Scope creep is the definition that describes the continuous change in scope during a project phase. Scope creep can happen both in relation to project and product scope. Product scope creep can happen both naturally and when a stakeholder demands a new feature of the product. Project scope creep can happen when a project team is taken a new working direction with a project - both intentionally and unintentionally. Natural changes will happen in project all the time, and a project rarely delivers exactly what was asked for on day one of the project. The key to avoid scope creep is to handle these changes carefully, so this article also discusses tools to avoid scope creep. The key words in avoiding scope creep are transparency, good planning and overview. Suggestions on how to handle scope creep are also given, if this is unavoidable.

The Business case is defined by Murray,(2009) as a document that presents the optimum mix of information used to judge whether a project is desirable, viable and achievable, and therefore worthwhile investing in.

Big Idea

The purpose of the business case is to establish a basis for judging whether the project is and remains desirable, viable and achievable as a means to support decision making in its continued investment.

Application

A Business case can be used to determine whether a project justifies to be invested in. It is a static process which should be maintained through the project and it should continuously be updated with current information on costs, risks and benefits.

Below is the figure of the development path of a business case from PRINCE2.

It is seen that after each step there is a milestone of verifying and/or confirming to make sure that the Business Case is up to date, and that it is first after the final delivery stage that the Business Case stops being updated and used.

Limitations

Any opportunity is likely to be offset by an element of risk. Therefore in order to make the judgement of ’business justification’, the Project Board needs to understand not only the benefits and the project costs, but the set of risks that may either reduce/enhance the benefits or reduce/increase the cost.

The Business Case should include a summary of the aggregated risks (and it is suggested that this is in the form of a summary risk profile) and highlight the major risks that will have an effect on the business objectives and benefits (therefore covering both the project delivery and the ongoing operations and maintenance). For example, the risks for the office relocation could include unforeseen moving costs (e.g. asbestos removal) or impact on business continuity (e.g. loss of key staff unwilling to relocate).

Annotated Bibliography

Further reading about the template for making a Business case: http://www.projectmanagementdocs.com/project-initiation-templates/business-case.html#axzz4XoPzbU80

Murray, Andy & Co. (2009), Managing successful projects with PRINCE2, 5th edition, p. 21-28, United Kingdom, TSO.

Annotation: The book has a seven page chapter about Business Case, and describes in details how to develop it.

Maylor, H. (2010). Project Management, Pearson Education ltd, 4th edition, p.184-191, GB, ISBN: 9780273704324

Annotation: The development of a Business Case is explaned in seven pages with different examples and descriptions.