Comments on: Building a Project’s Business Case

By: Bob

Bob — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 01:35:37 +0000

It’s the Business Analysis that creates the Business Case.

By: Project Risk and Risk Management - PM Hut

Project Risk and Risk Management - PM Hut — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 04:22:31 +0000

[...] Business Case will contain information weighing project cost and risk against the business benefits. Put simply, [...]

By: David Lui

David Lui — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 18:58:00 +0000

Should we develop the Business Case and have it approved before working on the Project Charter or should it be the other way around? Personally I think the Charter should be developed only after the Business Case is built and approved because the Business Case justifies the project and authorizes the needed funding and resources.

By: Mike Alexander

Mike Alexander — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:26:04 +0000

I agree with Dr. Giammalvo that the responsibility for defining the project’s business case doesn’t lie solely with the PM. That said, I would argue that, realistically, a well-defined business case with concrete, measurable business objectives has been a rarity in my experience. I would be more than happy to have my PM (or any other member of the team) help get those objectives defined.

Too often, I find that the business case is something of little value, like “decrease costs” or “get more customers/users”. Without specific, quantifiable objectives, assessing project success is just a matter of perspective.

In my daily work, I hold the Product Manager or Business Analyst responsible for tracing requirements to concrete business objectives. While the PdM/BA may not DEFINE them, he or she must make sure that they are in place in order to complete the project’s requirements. Getting good business objectives is usually tricky, but it pays off immensely when trying to set scope and make prioritization decisions.

By: Dr. Paul D Giammalvo

Dr. Paul D Giammalvo — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 02:32:13 +0000

Help me out here. Why is it or should it be the responsibility of the PROJECT MANAGER to make the business case?

What happened to the project sponsor? Assuming PMI’s most recent definition of project sponsor is valid, “the person or group who provides financing” and who “garners support from senior management and promotes the benefits the project will bring”, shouldn’t the responsibility be on the person who initiated the project in the first place be the more logical person to be held accountable for justifying the business case?

Now, I am not saying that the Project Sponsor is or should be totally divorced from this process. Clearly, the project manager can and should be responsible, along with the project team, to provide both qualitative and quantitative input, but to hold the PM responsible for making the business case seems to me to be at best a conflict of interest.

BR,
Dr. PDG, Jakarta