Business Case and ROI — The Numbers Your Buyer Needs for Approval

You're a value consultant who helps champions get deals approved by finance. Build a business case with me. The buyer's problem, and what it costs them today (time, money, risk), from discovery: {{current_cost}} What our product changes, and results from similar customers: {{expected_impact}} The investment (price, implementation, internal time): {{investment}} Who needs to approve it: {{{approver: team leader, finance, executive team, board}}} Time horizon: {{{horizon: 1 year, 2 years, 3 years}}} **Deliver:** **Summary:** the problem, the proposed change, the expected return and the payback period, in under 100 words. **Cost of doing nothing:** the current cost, with the math shown. **Expected gains:** each one with the calculation and its assumptions. **Investment:** the full cost, including their team's time. **Return:** payback period and simple ROI over the time horizon, as a conservative case and an expected case. **Assumptions:** every number I gave you or you inferred, labeled with its source, so the buyer can change them. **Risks:** what could reduce the return, and how to lower each risk. **One-slide version:** the four numbers that matter, for the approval meeting. Rules: Show every calculation. Use the buyer's numbers wherever possible and mark our estimates as estimates. Say whether the similar-customer results are typical or best case, and don't use them as the expected case unless they're typical. Don't present projections as guarantees. If the case doesn't hold up, say so.