The Business Case Manager creates and maintains a strong business case to justify the necessary investment in a project. This determines whether the project is, and remains, desirable, viable, and achievable.
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Business Case Manager HEOBusiness Case Manager SEO
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Role summary
Typical role responsibilities
| Responsibility | Detail |
|---|---|
| Business case writing | Coordinates the planning, development, and production of business cases by drafting specific sections and ensuring alignment with organisational and Treasury requirements. Uses insights from similar projects to guide business case preparation. |
| Business case support | Provides guidance and advice to project teams on the requirements and development of business cases using organisational templates and the HMT 5 case model. |
| Business case governance | Outlines the governance route and prepares supporting documents for submission to the appropriate boards. Ensures that all actions have an assigned owner and are completed. |
| Seeing the bigger picture | Ensures that all relevant organisational factors for change are included within a comprehensive business case. |
| Configuration management | Develops techniques to maintain the business case's validity throughout the project's lifecycle. |
| Benefits | Coordinates with stakeholders to identify, define, and quantify benefits. |
| Stakeholder management | Manages interactions with key stakeholders to support business case production and ensures their involvement in requirements management. |
| Digital and data | Using digital tools applies data analytics to develop robust business cases, assess project viability and track benefits realisation. |
Entry route
Project delivery professional
Suitable for individuals with experience in project support, PMO, or project or portfolio support functions.
Non-project delivery professional
Suitable for individuals with relevant skills from a non-project environment, such as a background in strategy, governance, or a specialist area like economics, commercial, or legal, contributing to business case development.
Technical competencies
Help with competency levels
None: No knowledge and no experience.
Awareness: Basic knowledge and limited or no experience. You understand how it can be applied. You can describe the benefits and importance. You may have applied it in a low complexity project under supervision or assisted others in delivering it.
Working: Working knowledge and practical experience. You have a good understanding of this competence. You have applied this independently in low complexity projects and/or under supervision in more complex projects.
Practitioner: Detailed knowledge and significant experience. You have a deep understanding of this competence. You have applied this independently in medium and/or highly complex projects. You advise and may supervise others in the delivery of this competence. You can adapt your approach to meet the requirements of the project.
Expert: Expert knowledge and experience. You are considered an expert within government and in the wider profession. You have applied this competence in multiple complex projects. You have been responsible for developing unique variations to suit specific situations. You champion capability development in this area.
| Competency area | Level |
|---|---|
Budgeting and cost management
The ability to estimate costs, produce a budget and control forecasts and actual spend against budget.
|
Working |
Risk and issue management
The ability to systematically identify and monitor risks and issues, planning how to mitigate or respond to those risks and issues and implementing the responses.
|
Awareness |
Business change and implementation
The ability to integrate the solution into operations ensuring that activities are planned and completed to enable the business to implement the change and realise the benefits.
|
Awareness |
Governance
The ability to clearly define roles, responsibilities and accountabilities and establish controls and approval routes appropriate to each stage of the work to monitor progress and compliance.
|
Working |
Stakeholder engagement
The ability to systematically identify, analyse and communicate with stakeholders, using appropriate channels, to ensure all those impacted by the change are engaged, taking account of their levels of influence and particular interests.
|
Working |
Business case development
The ability to prepare, develop, commission and update business cases to justify the initiation and continuation of projects in terms of benefits, value for money and risk.
|
Working |
Benefits management
The ability to identify, value, plan and track benefits to justify investment and ensure the expected outcomes and social value are realised.
|
Working |
Knowledge management
The ability to identify, share and promote best practices and lessons learned to create a culture of learning and good practice that supports continuous improvement to optimise project delivery.
|
Working |
Digital and data
The ability to effectively leverage digital tools and data analytics for better project delivery outcomes. Combining an understanding of digital technologies with the ability to manage, interpret and utilise data to make informed decisions, improve efficiency and achieve outcomes and benefits.
|
Working |
Sustainability
The ability to incorporate environmental and social considerations into the strategic objectives of the work and to effectively identify, assess and manage these throughout the lifecycle, seeking to maximise benefits and mitigate negative impacts.
|
Working |
Behavioural competencies
Help with competency levels
None: No knowledge and no experience.
Awareness: Basic knowledge and limited or no experience. You understand how it can be applied. You can describe the benefits and importance. You may have applied it in a low complexity project under supervision or assisted others in delivering it.
Working: Working knowledge and practical experience. You have a good understanding of this competence. You have applied this independently in low complexity projects and/or under supervision in more complex projects.
Practitioner: Detailed knowledge and significant experience. You have a deep understanding of this competence. You have applied this independently in medium and/or highly complex projects. You advise and may supervise others in the delivery of this competence. You can adapt your approach to meet the requirements of the project.
Expert: Expert knowledge and experience. You are considered an expert within government and in the wider profession. You have applied this competence in multiple complex projects. You have been responsible for developing unique variations to suit specific situations. You champion capability development in this area.
| Competency area | Level |
|---|---|
Visible leadership
The ability to engage, motivate and coach others. To act as a role model and inspire and empower others. Aligned to the leadership Civil Service behaviour.
|
Awareness |
Credible action
The ability to promote the wider public good in all actions and to act in a morally, legally and socially appropriate manner at all times. Challenges unacceptable behaviour. Aligned to the leadership Civil Service behaviour.
|
Working |
Working with ambiguity
The ability to work in an environment of uncertainty and continual change. Able to feel comfortable making decisions and setting direction without having the full picture and re-focus as details emerge. Can apply knowledge and techniques to reduce ambiguity. Aligned to the making effective decisions Civil Service behaviour.
|
Awareness |
Collaboration
The ability to establish and develop productive relationships with internal and external stakeholders, bringing people together to benefit the project. Aligned to the working together Civil Service behaviour.
|
Working |
Influencing
The ability to influence, change and impact decisions with both internal and external stakeholders. Aligned to the communicating and influencing Civil Service behaviour.
|
Working |
Conflict resolution
The ability to recognise, anticipate and effectively deal with existing or potential conflicts at an individual, team or strategic level. Aligned to the working together and leadership Civil Service behaviours.
|
Working |
Inspiring others
The ability to create and present a compelling vision and set clear direction, that motivates others to work towards a common goal. Aligned to the leadership Civil Service behaviour.
|
Awareness |
Resilience
The ability to adapt to changing circumstances and adverse situations whilst remaining calm, reassuring others and maintaining performance. Aligned to the delivering at pace Civil Service behaviour.
|
Working |
Innovation
The ability to think of, research and apply new ideas and ways of doing things. Encourages and supports innovations from others, is willing to experiment and follow ideas through to implementation. Aligned to the changing and improving Civil Service behaviour.
|
Working |
Culture change
The ability to plan, lead and effect positive cultural change, securing commitment and buy-in, and promoting a positive long term vision. Recognises when broader culture change is necessary to deliver a project. Aligned to the seeing the big picture, and changing and improving Civil Service behaviours.
|
Awareness |
Typical qualifications and professional memberships
Job titles for recruitment
This role profile is for a business case manager at SEO grade. This is the typical job title for this role.
Hiring managers should refer to the standardised job titles framework for guidance on which titles to use for recruitment.