The business case is already outdated before kickoff. What should happen?
Stale investment rationaleRevalidate the decision using current costs, constraints, and benefits. Prior approval does not make an obsolete assumption true, and kickoff should not conceal a material change in viability.
What to do now
- Identify changed assumptions
- Refresh cost and benefit ranges
- Compare continuation with alternatives
- Obtain a renewed investment decision
When to escalate
Escalate when
Current evidence materially changes the original investment rationale.
Who decides
The accountable sponsor
Example
A supplier price increase prompts a smaller first release instead of silently absorbing a larger total commitment.
Mistake to avoid
Continuing solely because the project was approved last year.
Prevent a repeat
At each stage decision, check that the expected outcome, owner and justification remain valid.
Suggested ApprovedFlow setup
- Projects
- Documents
- Approvals
Keep the decision brief with the project and request a recorded sponsor decision before the next commitment. See the platform
Related cases
- A mandatory project has no financial return. How do we justify it?Incomplete investment criteria
- Our business case assumes savings that nobody can explain. Should we accept it?Unsupported benefit assumptions
- Our estimates use outdated rates. What should we update?Stale cost assumptions
- What should happen when a dependency is no longer needed?Stale dependency commitment