Business - Case Template 4

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE
ICT Two Pass Review
First Pass Business Case
Neighbourhood Workers Allowance Scheme:

Supporting Those Who Support Us All
Department of Government Services Delivery
7th November 2014
Signed: _________________________
Date: _________________________
<<Print Name>>
Chief Information Officer
Signed: _________________________
Date: _________________________
<<Print Name>>
Chief Financial Officer
Signed: _________________________
Date: _________________________
<<Print Name>>
Business Area/Program Lead
Supporting Agencies
n/a
Estimated cost
$XX million over n years
Estimated ICT cost
$XX million over n years
Risk assessment
Medium
Authority for the Proposal
Minister for Department of Government Services Delivery
Purpose
This First Pass Business Case supports the Cabinet

submission on options to address limitations within the current
ICT solution supporting delivery of the Neighbourhood
Workers Allowance Scheme (NWAS).
This document details the costs, benefits and risks associated
with various solution options, as well as additional information
in support of the preferred way forward.
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1.
2.
3.
Executive Summary 5
1.1
Summary of Options................................................................................................5
1.2
Financial Summary..................................................................................................6
Current Situation.............................................................................................................7
2.1
Policy/Agency Context.............................................................................................7
2.2
Current Technical Environment................................................................................9
2.3
Business Problem....................................................................................................9
2.4
Stakeholder Impact................................................................................................10
2.5
Current Risks......................................................................................................... 10
Proposed Response......................................................................................................10
3.1
Strategic Alignment................................................................................................12
3.2
Technical Environment...........................................................................................13
3.3
Business Environment...........................................................................................13
3.4
Benefits.................................................................................................................. 13
4.
Proposal Summary........................................................................................................14
5.
Solution Options............................................................................................................ 16
5.1
6.
Design Criteria.......................................................................................................16
5.1.1
Functionality....................................................................................................16
5.1.2
General Requirements....................................................................................17
5.2
Identified Options...................................................................................................17
5.3
Options Analysis.....................................................................................................21
Option Details................................................................................................................ 25
6.1
Option One Details - Base Case Do Nothing.......................................................25
6.1.1
Description......................................................................................................25
6.1.2
Stakeholder Impact.........................................................................................25
6.1.3
Cost................................................................................................................ 25
6.1.4
Benefits........................................................................................................... 25
6.1.5
Cost-Benefit Analysis......................................................................................25
6.1.6
Risk................................................................................................................. 25
6.1.7
Schedule......................................................................................................... 26
6.2
Option Two Details - ICT Development and Implementation..................................26
6.2.1
Description......................................................................................................26
6.2.2
6.2.3
Cost................................................................................................................ 26
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6.2.4
Benefits........................................................................................................... 26
6.2.5
6.2.6
Risk................................................................................................................. 26
6.2.7
Schedule......................................................................................................... 26
6.3
Option Three Details Strategic Transformation....................................................26
6.3.1
Description......................................................................................................26
6.3.2
6.3.3
Cost................................................................................................................ 26
6.3.4
Benefits........................................................................................................... 26
6.3.5
6.3.6
Risk................................................................................................................. 26
6.3.7
Schedule......................................................................................................... 26
6.4
Option Three Details Devolved Scheme Management........................................26
6.4.1
Description......................................................................................................26
6.4.2
6.4.3
Cost................................................................................................................ 26
6.4.4
Benefits........................................................................................................... 26
6.4.5
6.4.6
Risk................................................................................................................. 26
6.4.7
Schedule......................................................................................................... 26
7.
Implementation Approach..............................................................................................27
8.
Organisational Capability..............................................................................................28
9.
Work to Second Pass....................................................................................................28
10.
Supporting Documentation........................................................................................30
10.1
Project Management Plan......................................................................................30
10.2
Risk Management Plan..........................................................................................30
10.3
Risk Register.......................................................................................................... 30
10.4
Benefits Management Plan....................................................................................30
10.5
Solution (Architecture) Design................................................................................30
10.6
Requirements Specification (Business Process Model).........................................30
10.7
P3M3 Capability Improvement Plan.....................................................................30
10.8
Quality Plan............................................................................................................ 30
10.9
Procurement Strategy............................................................................................30
10.10
Governance Plan................................................................................................30
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Note: This document is an example First Pass Business Case.

The Department of Finance and Deregulation (Finance) has issued the example to assist agencies to
interpret the ICT Business Case Guide. Finance has designed the example to have broad
applicability.
The example is entirely fictional
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Use the Executive Summary to provide an immediate high level summary of the options considered
including the expected costs for the option and a recommendation about the value of further
investigation into the option.
1.
1.1
Executive Summary
Summary of Options
The table below summarises the four practical options considered, initial cost estimates,
strengths, weaknesses and recommendation to Government.
Table 1 - Summary of Options
Option One Do Nothing
Total Cost: $XXm
Option Lifespan - Undefined
Strengths
Minimal additional funding to
maintain current status quo.
Weaknesses
No capacity to increase number
of, or participation rate of,
Neighbourhood Workers
Recommendation Preferred/Not preferred

Not preferred
Option included for comparison
No incentive to correct the

current slide in Neighbourhood
Worker numbers
Option Two ICT Development and Implementation
Total Cost: $XXm
Option Lifespan 10 Years
Strengths
Weaknesses
Provides improvement in
payment processing bottleneck
Many key business issues not

addressed
Minimises short term

expenditure
Does not address underlying

structural issues
Limited degree of future
flexibility
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Not Preferred - while delivering
part of the benefit, does not
meet the Departments
requirement for internal
transformation and renewal,
leaving a significant process
burden on Departmental staff

ICT Two Pass Review
Option Three Strategic Transformation

Total Cost: $XXm
Option Lifespan: 15 Years
Strengths
Addresses the underlying
issues
Weaknesses
Complexity of implementation
Provides for improved payment

processing and enables the
shift to the online service
delivery channel
This is the preferred option as it

provides the maximum benefit
and longest lifespan.
Option Four Devolved scheme management

Total Cost: $XXm
Option Lifespan: 5 Years
Strengths
Minimises short term
expenditure
Minimal additional funding
required
1.2
Weaknesses
Place a high burden on the

sector
Larger number of payment
processors increases risk of
payment processing fraud
Not Preferred - places too high

a burden on the community
sector and introduces significant
fraud risk around payment
claims and processing
Financial Summary
Table 2 - Financial Summary

Year One
(000)
Option One
NPV: $Ym
Year Two
(000)
Year Three
(000)
Capital
Operational
Total
Option Two
NPV: $Ym
Capital
Operational
Total
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Year Four
(000)
Total
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Option
Three
Capital
NPV: $Ym
Operational
Total
Option
Four
Capital
NPV: $Ym
Operational
Total
2.
2.1
Current Situation
Policy/Agency Context
The Department of Government Services Delivery (DGSD) develops policy and implements
programs that contribute to building Australias future. The Department is responsible for
providing services that contribute to nation building and provide ongoing economic and
social benefits that will develop over many decades. In particular, the Departments support
of community based Neighbourhood Worker activities plays an important role in Australias
national development, economic prosperity, and social cohesion.
The Australian Government has in place a number of policies and initiatives for placing
Neighbourhood Workers both nationally and overseas. These programs, whilst benefiting
communities across the world, are also expanding the numbers of Neighbourhood Workers
required, and places an increasing administrative burden on the Governments and
Neighbourhood Worker organisations resources.
The Proposal Context sets out the problem that the Proposal is responding to, or the opportunity. Use
graphs, reference material, images tell the story of the current situation.
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Over time the number of registered Neighbourhood Workers available to service this growing
demand has decreased:
Figure 1 - Neighbourhood Worker Rates
A key policy response to the declining numbers of registered Neighbourhood Workers is the
proposed extension of the current NWAS, to be developed, implemented and operated by
the Department.
A Departmental review the Simpson Review, conducted to assess the Departments
capacity and readiness to implement an extended scheme has found that the Departments
operating model has evolved incrementally over the last decades to address changing
trends, policies and circumstances. In responding to changes in the makeup of the
Neighbourhood Worker sector, the Department has made incremental changes to critical
business operations.
This has resulted in distributed operations which function semi-autonomously and are
nationally inconsistent. As a result, the Departments current business operating model has
high labour costs, lacks agility and is experiencing significant stress in a changing
environment.
In order to effectively manage the implementation and delivery of the NWAS, the Department
seeks to transform its Neighbourhood Worker services, placing the needs of the
Neighbourhood Worker community at the centre of a revised service delivery model,
collecting more data electronically, and enabling earlier and more sophisticated processing
of allowance payments.
The move to greater use of electronic channels is also in line with client expectations for how
they would like to interact with the Department. It is also intended to be in alignment with the
Australian Governments reform agenda outlined in Ahead of the Game: Blueprint for
Reform of Australian Government Administration and recognises the governments service
delivery principles articulated in Delivering Australian Government Services: Access and
Distribution Strategy.
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2.2
Current Technical Environment
For ICT Enabled Business Cases - Describe the current situation not only from a business
perspective but also from a current technical perspective. High level environment and architecture
diagrams can be helpful, but keep in mind the audience for the document when thinking about the
degree of technical detail to include.
2.3
Business Problem
Neighbourhood Workers play a vital role in delivering assistance to disadvantaged groups,

and the current strained system of administration is causing many Neighbourhood Workers
to withdraw their services, or to decrease the number of hours that they contribute. The
combined effect of fewer Neighbourhood Workers and remaining Neighbourhood Workers
working less generates a significant shortfall in the required capacity of the sector.
The value and importance of the Neighbourhood Worker sector continues to grow when
considered in the context of Government funded services not reaching needy citizens.
As an incentive to attract more Neighbourhood Workers, and to retain existing
Neighbourhood Workers, the Government is proposing to introduce a new allowance for
registered Neighbourhood Workers. This is expected to address one cause of the current
decline but of itself would reinforce the current diffused operating model of the Department,
and will stretch the existing systems beyond their capacity to deliver services.
Of key concern is the Departments capacity to effectively integrate the payment processing
component of the scheme. A failure in this area will diminish the credibility of the scheme
overall, possibly further exacerbating the rate at which Neighbourhood Workers withdraw.
This combined approach is necessary to address a number of factors that complicate the
identification, reporting, verification and payment processing aspects of the scheme:
DGSDs processes, ICT systems and organisational structure are centred on

payment claims themselves, and are often not geared to recognise the broader range
of information and support services a Neighbourhood Worker may find helpful,
regardless of whether their claim is accepted.
In general, DGSDs outgoing correspondence with clients focuses on explaining

DGSDs decision-making rationale and how the scheme rules have been applied to
the clients case, rather than focusing on the clients needs and options.
The current ICT systems supporting previous Neighbourhood Worker allowance

payments were implemented in 2004 as an interim set of mostly standalone tools to
facilitate a largely manual processing environment. These systems are now at
end-of-life.
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DGSDs processes, ICT systems and organisational structure are in many cases
siloed. This places a heavy reliance on staff to manually identify potential crossagency issues, and then resolve them through carefully coordinated manual action
across multiple business groups, at high cost.
2.4
Stakeholder Impact
The Department has conducted a survey to gauge the impact of the current situation on key
stakeholder groups. In summary, the current issues with processing times and the
complexity of engaging with the process are key contributors to the decline in
Neighbourhood Worker numbers over the last few years.
A copy of the survey findings in provided at Attachment N.
2.5
Current Risks
The key risks of not proceeding with improvements to NWAS are:
Unsuccessful delivery of the extended Neighbourhood Worker allowance payment

scheme,
Financial performance reporting inaccuracies,
Restriction of Governments ability to contribute to an effective and functional
Neighbourhood Worker sector,
Continued staff turnover and TOIL costs and associated impact on staff morale,
High and increasing costs of system support and maintenance,
Continued reliance on specialised skill sets,
Failure of DGSD to deliver on key accountabilities to Government, and
Negative public perception of DGSD and the Australian Government.
3.
Proposed Response
Having identified the Why of the Business Case, the Proposed Response starts to articulate the
What is being proposed to be done in response.
This is about identifying the desired end state or destination, rather
than the detail of How to get there.
In order to resolve these business issues, and to respond to the feedback from DGSDs
client base, DGSD has formulated a Blueprint for the desired future operation of the
Neighbourhood Workers Allowance Scheme. This Blueprint was constructed over the period
September 2009 through November 2009, via a series of workshops. The Blueprint reflects
extensive input from clients, staff and executives of DGSD.
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The Blueprint calls for:
Neighbourhood Worker Allowance Payment products that utilise a full range of

channels which are easy to access and understood by clients;
Integrated systems that are easy to use that provide staff with the tools needed to
optimise the client experience and outcomes, reducing dependence on DGSD and
third party support;
Streamlined and improved coordination of service delivery and more effective
support to Neighbourhood Worker; and
Systems with integrated client information that support more efficient processing and
decision making.
In response to the blueprint outlined above, DGSD proposes a Transformation Program.

Consider the inclusion of a proposed ICT architecture diagram to demonstrate the technical
dimension of the proposal.
Four enabling capabilities underpin these strategic objectives:

eBusiness expanding the range of Neighbourhood Worker products online, supported by
an online client account on a redesigned website, an electronic document management
system and other infrastructure changes. The eBusiness strategy directly addresses current
limitations in the Departments website and limited deployment of self-service tools, as well
as the extensive data entry costs for payment claims lodged by paper and the general
absence of communication between the Department and Neighbourhood Worker.
Service Centres establishing modern and fully integrated Service Centres with highly
skilled staff and support tools, to support Neighbourhood Workers staying in the e-channel
and ensuring where possible clients no longer need to use the highest cost counter service.
This would see the Department consolidate its current call centre activities into three Service
Centres, providing 24/7 multi-channel support and services to clients nationally. The service
centre strategy directly resolves the inconsistency clients experience through the current
operating model.
Risk Analysis establish strong analytical capabilities to define risk profiles that will drive
the risk tiering of caseloads and underpin the Departments capacity to make decisions
about where work is done, where claims assessment rigour is applied, and where
automation can be used to reduce the cost of processing.
Service Delivery Partners increasing use of Service Delivery Partners to assist with low
volume client contact and online lodgement including data entry for clients who are unable to
use the e-channel. The Service Delivery Partner strategy provides a supporting means to
convert paper claims into the required electronic format, helping the Department lower data
entry costs.
This will transition the NWAS function to a state in which:
Processes are centred on meeting Neighbourhood Worker needs, rather than

processing claims;
Neighbourhood Workers are able to submit a claim without needing to understand
and distinguish between the various entitlement processes and regimes;
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The process of submitting a claim is simple and straightforward for the

Neighbourhood Worker;
Routine processing steps are automated, allowing staff to focus on exception based
claims assessment, and client relationships, particularly clients with complex, high
priority needs;
All relevant staff have quick and convenient access to tools that allow them to
effectively manage client relationships; and
Comprehensive management information on the operation of the scheme is readily
available.
Overall the result of the transformation program will be a Department that is capable of and
committed to engaging with, understanding and meeting the needs of the Neighbourhood
Worker community, supporting the provision of the Neighbourhood Worker allowance,
thereby providing genuine incentive for an increase in Neighbourhood Worker numbers, the
longer retention of current Neighbourhood Workers and an increase in the overall amount of
Neighbourhood Workers provided.
Consider how the proposal aligns with the strategic goals of the organisation, and take the opportunity
to identify how the proposal fits with whole-of-government policies, like the Data Centre Strategy, the
Open Source Software Policy, Cloud Computing Strategy, the Australian Government Architecture, the
Cyber Security Policy etc.
Information on these and other Whole-of Government policies is available from the Finance Website.
3.1
Strategic Alignment
This project is a key contributor to DGSDs long-term strategy. Key extracts from DGSDs
strategy are shown in table below:
Table 3 - Strategic Alignment
Source
Stated Strategy
DGSD 2013-14 Portfolio Budget Statements
Assist eligible Neighbourhood Workers to

receive their correct entitlements through
effective advice and efficient claims
determinations and review.
Outcome 1
Maintain and enhance the financial wellbeing
and participation of Neighbourhood Workers
through access to allowance payments and
other support services, including advice and
information about entitlements.
DGSD 2013-14 Portfolio Budget Statements
Outcome 2
Maintain and enhance the wellbeing and
quality of life of communities through
Neighbourhood Worker provided services.
Integrate Neighbourhood Worker retention as

a key consideration in compensation policy
and decision making.
Develop an integrated approach to support
the Neighbourhood Worker community.
Promote Neighbourhood Worker retention as
a priority for Neighbourhood Worker.
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DGSD Strategic Plan 2010-2015
Client-Centric Program Design.

Shared capability in Neighbourhood Worker
Scheme Management
DGSD ICT Strategic Plan 2010-2015
Providing smarter systems with connectedup client information.

Modern ICT architecture for agility and
flexibility.
Planning and development of new payment
processing systems for NWAS.
3.2
Technical Environment
For ICT Enabled Business Cases - Describe the proposed future state from a technical perspective.
High level environment and architecture diagrams can be helpful, but keep in mind the audience for
the document when thinking about the degree of technical detail to include.
3.3
Business Environment
The NWAS Program will dramatically change the Departments operating model and delivers
upon a powerful vision for the future of Australias neighbourhood services infrastructure:
Simpler, targeted and more accessible payment processing assuring integrity and
delivered at lower cost.
Services will be more agile able to adjust rapidly to changing neighbourhood and
policy needs.
3.4
Benefits
The key benefits of making the necessary improvements to NWAS are:
People The provision of a business system that effectively supports the

Neighbourhood Worker community and DGSD staff in the development, maintenance
and delivery of the scheme is expected to:
o Improve management of people resources in both DGSD and community
organisations;
o Reduce staff Time off in Lieu (TOIL);
o Improved staff morale and job satisfaction within the Neighbourhood Worker
community and DGSD; and
o Improve Neighbourhood Worker and staff retention.
The Department Actively meet DGSD key accountabilities and objectives for the
effective management of the scheme and the responsible management of
government finances:
o Reducing time to deliver changes to the scheme;
o Reducing risk to the timely delivery of the allowance payments; and
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o
Ongoing accurate and effective management of the scheme.
System Capacity for flexible response to issues and emerging needs through a
solution developed to core business requirements providing:
o Flexible architecture to respond to evolving business requirement;
o Reduction in time, effort and cost to implement relatively minor changes;
o Reduction in the ongoing support and maintenance costs for the solution; and
o Reduced reliance on specialised skill sets to maintain the solution.
It is recognised that the initially identified benefits outlined above, and in particular the
performance indicators associated with them will need further elaboration and analysis to
identify both current performance levels and appropriate target performance levels. This
work is identified as a key component of the Work to Second Pass.
Consider providing a single page summary of the proposal in the form of an Investment Logic Map or
similar.
4.
Proposal Summary
The identified problems, proposed solutions and expected benefits of the proposal are
summarised in the following Investment Logic Map:
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Figure 2 Investment Logic Map

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5.
Solution Options
Design Criteria
5.1
Include where possible the high level requirements that any viable solution will be expected to deliver
against. These will be examined in greater detail in Second Pass.
5.1.1
Functionality
DGSD is to develop and maintain an online Neighbourhood Worker registration

system and allowance payment system as the technical underpinning to a
broader organisational transformation program. The technical solution will be
dictated by the following:
5.1.1.1
Neighbourhood Worker Registration
The primary channel for Neighbourhood Worker registration will be online. Paper
lodgement will be supported however this channel will not be encouraged. The
information collected as part of the registration process includes:
a. Tax File Number (TFN) or alternative identifier (subject to consultation
with stakeholders and consideration of the Privacy Act 1988);
b. Name;
c. Date of birth;
d. Address;
e. Community Organisation Affiliation);
f. Valid email address;
g. Phone details; and
h. Nature of Neighbourhood Worker;
On successful completion of registration, the registrant is to be emailed an
automated confirmation that the application has been received. Before the
application is approved it will be reviewed. Once approved, the applicant will be
issued with an approved Neighbourhood Worker registration number and an
automated email will be sent confirming successful registration.
5.1.1.2
Payment processing
It is a requirement that allowance claims will be lodged and processed

electronically. This includes:
Lodgement of an allowance claim;

Verification of claim;
Processing of valid claim payments; and
Investigation and resolution of invalid claims.
5.1.1.3
Deregistration
DGSD will deregister Neighbourhood Workers according to policy and legislative

requirements. The process will depend on the level of automation allowed. For
example, in some circumstances the process will be largely automated, that is
the Neighbourhood Worker may be automatically deregistered. This may occur
in situations where the Neighbourhood Worker applies to cancel their
registration. In other circumstances a manual deregistration process is required
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where DGSD must decide whether the Neighbourhood Worker should be

deregistered. This is because DGSD is required to afford Neighbourhood Workers
procedural fairness before deciding whether they should be deregistered. This
will follow DGSDs revised and updated business process.
5.1.2
5.1.2.1
Usability, flexibility, scalability, interoperability
Data standards will include AS4590 for names and addresses.
5.1.2.6
Policy, strategic, standards and architectural compliance requirements
Australian Government Architecture.
5.1.2.5
Reliability, availability and maintainability
The online registration system will be supported during normal business

hours. Availability and reliability will be according to DGSD online systems
standard business practice.
5.1.2.4
Performance
The performance requirements will depend on the number of manual steps

in the detailed process.
5.1.2.3
Security and privacy
Must protect Neighbourhood Workers information in accordance with the

National Privacy Principles Legislation.
5.1.2.2
General Requirements
Major external interfaces and interdependencies
Policy dependencies the design must allow for the policy and legislative
process.
There are a number of ways to present the options considered tables such as the one below are
useful as they provide a brief description and a high level evaluation of the merits of each. Provide a
similar level of detail for all options considered.
5.2
Identified Options
This section explores possible options and refines these to four practical options which could
be undertaken to make the necessary improvements in the systems underpinning NWAS to
address the key business problems indentified.
The following ICT options were identified based on market analysis, industry experience and
consultation within DGSD and the Neighbourhood Worker Community.
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Table 4 - Options
Option 1 Base Case Do Nothing
Description
Costs
Continue to use existing processes and systems.

The base case is included for comparison to the
current cost base and does not address any of
the limitations or risks.
Existing maintenance and support costs continue

and grow over time.
Risks
Barriers
Benefits of extended Neighbourhood Worker

support scheme may not be realised,
Negative impact on Government, Ministerial and
Departmental reputation,
Continued and increasing high staff turnover,
further compounding risks to quality and
accuracy through loss of core knowledge and
capability,
Existing implementation will continue to become
more complex and costly to maintain,
Failure of NWAS to meet Community,
Government and DGSDs evolving
requirements,
Lack of responsiveness to the needs of
Neighbourhood Worker, Community Groups,
Agencies and Government due to loss of skilled
resources in DGSD and system inflexibility.
Future reforms or adjustments to the scheme

cannot be readily implemented.
Strengths
Weaknesses
Minimal additional funding to maintain status quo
Current issues and risks continue,

Continued high cost of ongoing maintenance,
Does not readily support changes to meet
future government reforms,
Business and technical issues will continue to
grow,
Continued difficulties to retain system
knowledge and experience,
Unable to provide the required level of
reporting from the system, with reliance on
data extracts and manual manipulation of
data, compounding performance issues as
increased reporting requirements drive further
manual extracts and manipulation
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Option 2 ICT Development and Implementation

Description
Costs
Re-engineer some business processes to support

implementation of a new ICT solution that uses
an integrated off-the-shelf framework for most
core functions, but uses other custom-built and
off-the-shelf systems for some ancillary and
specialist functions.
Do not undertake wholesale process
improvement or organisational re-design.
Risks
Barriers
Strengths
Weaknesses
Option 3 Strategic Transformation

Description
Costs
Transform Departmental operations through the

implementation of a comprehensive blueprint of
strategic changes aimed at making major
improvements to the integrity and efficiency of
Australias Neighbourhood Worker allowance
scheme. The three strategic changes are:
Existing maintenance and support costs continue

during implantation period,
Client Services Transformation - to use risk

management and technology to deliver major
integrity, efficiency and client service
responsiveness and consistency in decision
accuracy.
Scheme Simplification and Deregulation to significantly simplify the complexity of

the Neighbourhood Worker allowance
system to make it easier for clients to
understand and to reduce program
implementation costs
Business Services Transformation - to

adopt a shared service model for
corporate business support services to
reduce costs, and to consolidate and
strengthen risk management capability
within the Department.
Costs for design, development, testing,

implementation and training including
ICT area direct development,

implementation and training,
ICT increased maintenance,
Business area specification, testing and
training, and
Community sector training.
Cost for additional development and test

environment.
Risks
Barriers
Enhancements introduce errors and additional
Current complexity of system and data structures

introduces long timeframes for development and
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issues due to current system complexity,

Failure of NWAS to meet Government and DGSD
requirements,
Failure to meet Neighbourhood Worker
community requirements which could result in
loss of Neighbourhood Worker,
testing of refresh,
DGSD focus on implementation may divert focus
from provisions of community support.
Sector stakeholders may not agree prioritisation
of functionality for implementation.
Significant COTS product customisation may be

required to meet all business requirements, and
Cost of NWAS to DGSD increases beyond the
agreed budget.
Strengths
Weaknesses
Improvements in system usage during peak

usage times,
Based on the current NWAS implementation, the

custom coding component of development incurs
a significant amount of time and effort,
System flexibility to effectively respond to

emerging government reporting requirements
Increased ability to meet service objectives and
targets,
This option makes the assumption that the initial

business requirements have not deviated and
therefore the original design remains applicable.
Decreases in system complexities such as the

underlying data structures,
Minimal disturbance to system business
processes, workflow and personnel training,
Decreased work effort requirements of DGSD
personnel during payment claim assessment and
processing,
Increases in job satisfaction and ability to perform
data analytics, as opposed to quality assurance
procedures,
Increases in DGSD and Neighbourhood Worker
community interoperability and user acceptance,
and
Reduce the need to manually enter and extract
data from the system and avoid the unnecessary
use of competing systems
Option 4 Devolved scheme management
Description
Costs
Transfer the responsibility for management of the

scheme to registered community organisations
that manage Neighbourhood Worker.
Organisations will be allocated a proportion of the
administered funds and be responsible for the
collection, validation and payment processing to
the Neighbourhood Worker.
Risks
Barriers
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Strengths
Weaknesses
The options detailed above were reviewed and assessed against the following criteria:
1. The chosen solution must be focused primarily on meeting the needs of DGSD
clients.
2. Ability to provide DGSD staff with a whole of client view, across all relevant
segments and business functions, including comprehensive relationship
management information.
3. Support for the flexible management of tasks and activities across a complex
organisational structure.
4. Support for the application of multiple complex rule sets to a claim.
5. Support automatic generation and storage of claim documents based on
user-configurable templates.
6. Able to provide acceptable response times while processing up to 1500 claims per
day.
7. Fit to Whole-of-Government (WofG) ICT policies.
8. Consistent and user-friendly interface, to minimise training and facilitate cross-skilling
of staff.
9. Flexibility to modify systems in response to changes in Government policy.
10. Interoperable with DGSDs legacy systems and with modern Web-based systems.
Having provided a high level view, an assessment of each option against the criteria
should be included a table format can be useful in this regard. The level of detail provided should be
sufficient to support the recommendation made.
5.3
Options Analysis
The following table details the assessment of these options.
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ICT Two Pass Review
Table 5 - Options Analysis

Requirement
Option 1 Do Nothing
Option 2 ICT Development

and Implementation
Option 3 Strategic
Transformation
Option 4 Devolved
Scheme Management
Benefits
Achieves none of the

expected benefits
Achieves part of the

efficiency benefit
Achieves most if not all of

the expected benefits
Achieves few of the benefits
Total costs (over 5 years)
$XX million Opex (based on

continuation of current
expenditure)
$XX million Capex

$XX million Opex
$XX million Capex
$XX million per year

Administered

Administered Funds

Administered
$XX million Opex

Administered
Implementation costs
Nil (relative to current

business as usual any
increased funding applied to
BAU will deliver some
process improvement)
$XX million over two years
$XX million over three years
$XX million over three years
Ongoing costs (per year)
$XX million
$XX million
$XX million
$XX million
Net Present Value (NPV)
$0 million
$XX million
$XX million
$XX million
Implementation timeframe
N/A
12 24 months
36 months
12 - 36 months
Fit to Requirement 1
Low
Medium
High
Medium
Low
Medium
High
Low
Client-centric
Whole of client view
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ICT Two Pass Review

Low
Low
High
Medium
Low
Medium
High
Low
Low
Medium
High
Low
Low
High
High
High
Low
High
High
Low
Fit to Requirement 8 Usability
Low
High
High
Medium
Low
Medium
High
Medium
Low
Medium
Medium
Low
Implementation risk
N/A
High
High
Extreme
Conclusion
Least Preferred Option
2nd Ranked Option
Preferred Option
3rd Ranked Option
Flexible task & activity

management
Apply multiple complex rule
sets
Flexible document generation
and storage
Process up to 150 claims per
day
Fit to Government ICT policies
Flexibility
Interoperability
The recommended option based on this assessment is Option 3 - Strategic Transformation of the NWAS.
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ICT Two Pass Review
Example Net Present Value (NPV) Analysis for Preferred Option:
Table 6 NPV Analysis

Financial Year
Internal (Agency) Costs [A]
1000
500
500
250
External (user) Costs [B]
500
250
125
Internal (Agency) Benefits [C]
250
250
250
External (User) Benefits [D]
500
1500
1500
-1500
1125
1500
-1363.6
845.2
1024.5
Net Value Flows [E = C+D-A-B]

Discounted Value Flows
(10% discount rate for this project)
NPV (Sum of discounted value flows)
+506.1
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ICT Two Pass Review
6.
Option Details
6.1
Option One Details - Base Case Do Nothing
6.1.1
Description
6.1.2
Stakeholder Impact
6.1.3
Cost
6.1.4
Benefits
6.1.5
Cost-Benefit Analysis
6.1.6
Risk
The most significant P3 hazards for the NWAS program are Program Management, Benefits
Management and Risk Management. Relevant treatment measures are outlined below.
Specific mitigation strategies to address risks to implementation arising from DGSDs areas
of lower organisational capability will be detailed in the Second Pass Business Case.
6.1.6.1
Capability Improvement Plan risk treatments
A copy of the DepartmentsP3M3 - Capability Improvement Plan (CIP) is provided at

Supporting Documentation 10.7. As noted at paragraph 1.14 of the CIP, DGSD has
committed to achieving its target level of three for each sub-model over the next two years.
As the assessment shows, the Departments Program Management capability requires
particular attention. As noted in paragraph 2.11 of the attached CIP, DGSD aims to achieve a
rating of two in this area over the next year, by progressively establishing program
management offices for each of its programs, and to achieve a rating of three by the end of
the second year with all programs using centrally-mandated governance, management and
reporting framework.
6.1.6.2
Project-specific risk treatments
Of specific relevance to the transformation program are the low maturity levels for both
benefits and risk management.
In addition to the capability improvement initiatives identified in the CIP, the NWAS program
will engage of contractors to accelerate development of:
Benefits Identification and Realisation Plan;
Benefits Matrix;
Risk Management Strategy; and
Risk Register.
These artefacts will identify benefits that are specific, measurable, and time-bound, and each
benefit will be assigned an owner. Risk management will be undertaken in accordance with
AS/NZS ISO 31000:2009. The initial contracts will provide for effective skills transfer, as part
of the strategy outlined in paragraph 3.26 of the attached CIP to develop and enhance, as a
high priority, in-house expertise in risk management.
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ICT Two Pass Review
6.1.7
Schedule
6.2
Option Two Details - ICT Development and

Implementation
6.2.1
Description
6.2.2
Stakeholder Impact
6.2.3
Cost
6.2.4
Benefits
6.2.5
6.2.6
Risk
6.2.7
Schedule
6.3
Option Three Details Strategic Transformation
6.3.1
Description
6.3.2
Stakeholder Impact
6.3.3
Cost
6.3.4
Benefits
6.3.5
6.3.6
Risk
6.3.7
Schedule
6.4
Option Three Details Devolved Scheme

Management
6.4.1
Description
6.4.2
Stakeholder Impact
6.4.3
Cost
6.4.4
Benefits
6.4.5
6.4.6
Risk
6.4.7
Schedule
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ICT Two Pass Review
7.
Implementation Approach
Oversight for delivery of the program will sit with Executive Committee, who will appoint a
Senior Responsible Officer with responsibility for program management. The SRO will be
supported by the Program Management Office which has carriage of a raft of capability
improvement initiatives as outlined in the P3M3 - Capability Improvement Plan (CIP)
provided at Supporting Documentation 10.7.
The PMO will also coordinate the provision of external business assurance (provided by both
government and private sector quality assurance providers) at regular intervals through
program.
An important aspect of the programs governance arrangements is the establishment of an
external (to the program) reference group. This group will ensure there is commitment
across the highest levels of the public service and alignment between the Departments
reforms, reforms in other agencies as well the governments broad reform agenda.
The Neighbourhood Worker Council of Australia is the forum through which the Department
is working in partnership with the sector to ensure a collaborative approach.
Figure 3 Governance Body Structure
Having identified the problem to be solved and the options to be explored in response, this section of
the Business Case is about confirming the Agencies capability and capacity to deliver the solution.
The focus should be primarily on confirming the agencies capacity to deliver an effective Second Pass
Business Case.
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ICT Two Pass Review
8.
Organisational Capability
The Department completed a P3M3 self-assessment in April 2009. This self assessment
was subsequently validated by ACME Consulting an ACO accredited by APMG. The
validation was completed in July 2013, and the results are shown in the table below:
Table 7 P3M3 Assessment Result
P3M3 Process
Perspective
Portfolio
Management
Program
Management
Project
Management
Management Control
Benefits Management
Financial Management
Stakeholder Engagement
Organisational Governan
ce
Risk Management
Resource Management
Generic Attributes
Overall
A-
Levels at most recent validated assessment
B-
2011 target level in Capability Improvement Plan
9.
Work to Second Pass
Costs involved in developing this proposal to Second Pass are estimated at $XX million and
DGSD is seeking this amount in additional funding.
The diagram below shows the high-level schedule, and key work items required to deliver
the Second Pass Business Case.
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ICT Two Pass Review
Figure 4 - Schedule to Second Pass
To deliver the Second Pass Business Case in time for inclusion in the Budget cycle for
2009/10, the second pass schedule has been broken into two phases, the first of which
includes detailed analysis, approaches to market and development of the Second Pass
Business Case document. The second phase includes technical proof of concepts as a final
validation to the business case.
The expected costs to Second Pass are detailed in the table below.
Table 8 - Costs to Second Pass
Item
Phase One
Completion Aug 09
Indicative Cost ($ 000)
Project Manager
Financial Modeller
Business Analyst
Technical Writer/Project Admin
Architects (Solution & Data)
Developers
Business Users
SMEs
Market Approach
Phase 1 Total
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ICT Two Pass Review

Item
Phase Two
Completion Oct 09
Indicative Cost ($ 000)
Project Manager
Business Analyst
Technical Writer/Project Admin
Business User Involvement
Vendor/SMEs
Hardware (Test/Develop
Environ.)
Hardware Maintenance and
Support
Phase 2 Total
Work to Second Pass Total
10.Supporting Documentation
Refer to the ICT Two Pass Documentation Guide for descriptions of these.
10.1 Project Management Plan

10.2 Risk Management Plan
10.3 Risk Register
10.4 Benefits Management Plan
10.5 Solution (Architecture) Design
10.6 Requirements Specification (Business Process Model)
10.7 P3M3 Capability Improvement Plan
10.8 Quality Plan
10.9 Procurement Strategy
10.10Governance Plan
P a g e | 30

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FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

ICT Two Pass Review

First Pass Business Case

Neighbourhood Workers Allowance Scheme:

$XX million over n years

Estimated ICT cost

$XX million over n years

Authority for the Proposal

Minister for Department of Government Services Delivery

This First Pass Business Case supports the Cabinet

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

First Pass Business Case

Current Technical Environment................................................................................9

Option One Details - Base Case Do Nothing.......................................................25

Option Two Details - ICT Development and Implementation..................................26

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

First Pass Business Case

Option Three Details Strategic Transformation....................................................26

Option Three Details Devolved Scheme Management........................................26

Work to Second Pass....................................................................................................28

Project Management Plan......................................................................................30

Risk Management Plan..........................................................................................30

Benefits Management Plan....................................................................................30

Solution (Architecture) Design................................................................................30

Requirements Specification (Business Process Model).........................................30

P3M3 Capability Improvement Plan.....................................................................30

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

First Pass Business Case

Note: This document is an example First Pass Business Case.

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

First Pass Business Case

Recommendation Preferred/Not preferred

No incentive to correct the

Many key business issues not

Minimises short term

Does not address underlying

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

Recommendation Preferred/Not preferred

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

First Pass Business Case

Option Three Strategic Transformation

Recommendation Preferred/Not preferred

Provides for improved payment

This is the preferred option as it

Option Four Devolved scheme management

Recommendation Preferred/Not preferred

Place a high burden on the

Not Preferred - places too high

Table 2 - Financial Summary

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

First Pass Business Case

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE

FICTIONAL SAMPLE BUSINESS CASE