Business Case in Practice – from goal to decision and implementation

Characteristics

In daily work, sometimes I start with a strategy, and sometimes the starting point is a specific situation: something isn't working, something needs improvement, a new idea appears, market pressure, or board expectations. Then a key question arises: how to translate goals and needs into sensible ventures that are truly worth implementing?

This course is aimed at people facing exactly this moment of transition – between the goal and action, between an idea and the decision to launch an initiative. For those who prepare, evaluate, or implement strategies, ventures, and projects and need a solid business justification for their actions.

A business case is treated here not as a formal document, but as a practical tool for organizing thinking. It helps to understand what problem we are really solving, what action options we have, what the consequences of the decision will be, and whether a given initiative makes sense from the organization's perspective.

The course takes a workshop form and is based on exercises, examples, and working on real situations known to the participants. Step by step, participants go through the process of preparing a business case – from identifying a problem or opportunity, through cost, benefit, and risk analysis, to formulating a recommendation supporting start / stop / continue decisions.

The goal of the course is to show how to prepare initiatives for implementation in a simple and organized way – so that decisions are conscious and projects actually support achieving goals instead of generating further doubts and chaos.

What you will improve thanks to the course

• You will organize the way of making decisions about initiatives: less "gut feeling" intuition, more criteria and transparency.
• You will learn to distinguish symptoms from causes and precisely define the business problem.
• You will build action variants (including "no action") and show the consequences of decisions in the language of business.
• You will calculate or sensibly estimate costs and benefits and interpret ROI without pretending to be a controlling department.
• You will structure risks and uncertainties of assumptions and prepare decision scenarios.
• You will prepare an executive summary and argumentation tailored to the board/decision committee.

Target group

People preparing, evaluating, or implementing strategies, initiatives, and projects: managers, leaders, PM/PMO, business analysts, specialists responsible for improvements and changes.

Prerequisites

No formal requirements. Basic orientation in the business realities of organizations and readiness to work on examples from one's own environment is welcome.

KNOWLEDGE:

The participant understands the role of a business case in an organization and decision-making processes (governance), knows the differences between a business case and a business plan, understands the components of a business case (executive summary, problem, options, recommendation, implementation plan), and basic analysis methods (SWOT, PESTEL, Porter's 5 Forces, MOST).

SKILLS:

The participant can identify a problem or opportunity, map options (including no action), estimate financial/non-financial costs and benefits, build decision scenarios, identify risks and uncertainties of assumptions, calculate and interpret ROI, and prepare a recommendation and executive summary tailored to decision-makers.

SOCIAL COMPETENCES:

The participant communicates decision argumentation in a clear way, based on data and assumptions, can respond to stakeholders' questions and doubts, and supports making start/stop/continue decisions based on transparent criteria.

VALIDATION:

Workshop work on cases (business case template: problem, options, costs/benefits/risks, recommendation) + discussion and feedback from the trainer.

1. The role of a business case in the organization

• What is a business case and what role it plays in decision-making
• Business case vs business plan – differences in purpose and application
• When a business case is needed (initiatives, projects, changes)
• Business case audience groups and their expectations

2. Identification of business problems and opportunities

• Defining business problems – symptoms vs root causes
• Problem source analysis
• Identification and mapping of business opportunities
• Impact of problems and opportunities on the organization
• Prioritization of initiatives – what is truly worth focusing on

3. Financial aspects of a business case

• Initiative costs: implementation, maintenance, indirect costs
• Financial and non-financial benefits
• Return on Investment (ROI) – how to calculate and interpret
• Financial risks and uncertainty of assumptions
• Situation development scenarios (decision variants)

4. Structure and key components of a business case

• Business case document structure
• Executive summary – how to prepare an effective decision summary
• Description of the problem and the proposed solution
• Alternatives (including no action)
• Business recommendation
• Implementation plan and high-level schedule

5. Business case in management of ventures and initiative portfolio

• The role of a business case in decision-making processes and governance
• Linking initiatives with organizational goals
• Portfolio management of strategic and operational initiatives
• Evaluation, selection, and prioritization of ventures
• Updating the business case during implementation
• Start / stop / continue decisions

6. Methods and techniques of business case analysis

• SWOT – identification of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats
• PESTEL – analysis of external factors affecting the initiative
• Porter’s Five Forces analysis – assessment of market attractiveness
• MOST – linking the initiative with the organization's direction of action
• Fitting the initiative to the organizational context

7. Building decision argumentation

• Logic of business argumentation – decision-maker's perspective
• Storytelling in business cases – how to talk about an initiative
• Working on data, facts, and assumptions
• Tailoring the message to the board and decision committees
• Answering questions and doubts

8. Summary and implementation in practice

• Best practices in preparation and management of business cases
• Integration of the business case with the organization's daily work
• Consistency between goals, initiatives, and implementation
• Tools and materials supporting further application of the approach