Why a Project Business Case is Critical to Strategic Success
- Richard Keenlyside
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
TL;DR
A robust project business case secures funding, aligns stakeholders, mitigates risk, and ensures every project supports strategic goals. Without it, organisations risk wasted investment, missed ROI, and failed transformation initiatives.
Introduction
In today’s competitive and cost-conscious environment, businesses must ensure that every investment delivers measurable value. At the heart of this accountability lies the Project Business Case, a foundational document that not only justifies the investment but also shapes the roadmap for successful delivery.
Richard Keenlyside, a globally recognised Fractional CIO and Transformation Director with over 30 years of experience across retail, manufacturing, professional services, and private equity sectors, firmly believes that a well-constructed business case is not optional; it’s mission-critical.
What Is a Project Business Case?
A Project Business Case is a structured proposal that evaluates the why, what, how, and who of a project. It includes financial forecasts, risk assessments, strategic alignment, delivery plans and resource models. Essentially, it’s your project’s passport to approval, funding, and organisational commitment.
Why Is a Business Case So Important?
1. Secures Strategic Buy-In and Funding
Projects that lack a compelling business case often fail to get off the ground, or worse, they limp forward without leadership support. A strong business case translates strategy into action, giving senior stakeholders confidence in the project’s purpose and value.
2. Supports Financial Accountability
With many organisations operating under tighter fiscal constraints, projects must demonstrate tangible return on investment. The business case includes financial modelling such as cost-benefit analysis, net present value (NPV), and total cost of ownership (TCO), creating transparency around expected ROI.
3. Enables Governance and Risk Management
The business case outlines risk assumptions, mitigation strategies, and governance frameworks. This makes it easier to implement programme assurance processes and recovery plans, areas where Richard has delivered quantifiable results, often saving £2M+ in failed project costs.
4. Ensures Strategic Alignment
Too many organisations waste resources on initiatives that do not align with overarching strategic goals. A well-structured business case acts as a safeguard, ensuring each project supports the broader enterprise objectives, from cloud migration to data governance.
5. Clarifies Scope, Deliverables and Success Criteria
Scope creep is one of the most common reasons for project failure. A business case defines what the project will and will not do. This sets clear expectations, milestones, and accountability from day one.
Real-World Impacts: From Paper to Performance
Across his various roles, Richard Keenlyside has delivered hundreds of successful initiatives where the business case played a crucial role. At a Retail Apparel business, he created a global ERP roadmap and implementation plan that saved £2.5M per annum in operating costs. At a utility organisation, a business case for RPA resulted in 75,000 hours of annual time savings and a reduction of over 50 FTEs.
What Should a Good Project Business Case Include?
Common Business Case Pitfalls to Avoid
Overstated benefits – Often driven by enthusiasm rather than evidence.
Underestimated costs – A common cause of budget overruns.
Lack of stakeholder engagement – Leads to approval delays and delivery resistance.
No benefits realisation plan – Making it hard to prove success post-implementation.
FAQs
What’s the difference between a business case and a project plan?
A business case justifies why the project should happen. A project plan explains how the project will be accomplished.
Who owns the project business case?
Ownership typically resides with the project sponsor, supported by a PMO or transformation office.
Can a project continue without a business case?
Technically, yes. But doing so risks financial mismanagement, poor governance, and strategic misalignment.
Conclusion: Strategy Without a Business Case is Just Guesswork
Without a robust business case, organisations risk making poor investment decisions, pursuing initiatives with unclear value, or facing stakeholder resistance. It is the single most important document in a project's lifecycle. For CEOs, CFOs, and CIOs, it’s not just about launching a project; it’s about launching the right one.
Book a Consultation
Need support crafting a business case that wins board approval and delivers ROI? Richard Keenlyside brings decades of experience in strategic leadership, ERP implementation, M&A integration and digital transformation.
Book a strategic consultation today. Turn insight into investment. Secure project funding. Achieve measurable success.
Richard Keenlyside's Author Bio
Richard Keenlyside is a Global CIO, PE&MA Advisor, Endava TAC and a former IT Director for J Sainsbury’s PLC. Call me on +44(0) 1642 040 268 or email richard@rjk.info. With over 1000+ subscribers, join my newsletter today: https://www.rjk.info/.
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