Can AI help me write a business case?

A business case is one of those documents that sits between you and the thing you actually want to do.

You know what you want. You know why it makes sense. But turning that into a structured argument with costs, benefits, risks, and a clear recommendation — the kind of document that gets a yes from a room full of sceptical people — takes time and a particular kind of discipline.

AI is very good at this. Here’s why.

A business case has a predictable structure. That plays to AI’s strengths. You provide the substance — the specific numbers, the context, the recommendation. AI provides the structure, the language, and the challenge.

The prompt that builds the first draft

“I need to write a business case for [describe what you want to do — buy new software, hire someone, change a process, make an investment].

Here is the context: [describe the situation, the problem it solves, and any numbers you have — costs, time savings, revenue impact].

Please write a first draft business case covering:

1. Executive summary — one paragraph

2. The problem or opportunity

3. The proposed solution

4. Costs — one-off and ongoing

5. Benefits — quantified where possible

6. Risks and how they’d be managed

7. Recommendation and next steps

Write it for a senior leadership audience who will be sceptical about cost. Keep it to one page.”

The prompt that stress-tests it

Once you have a draft, run this:

“Read this business case and act as the most sceptical person in the room. Give me the five strongest objections someone could raise — the ones that would actually land with a senior leadership team. Then suggest how I should address each one.”

Fix the weaknesses before you’re in the room.

The prompt that sharpens the numbers

“Look at the benefits section of this business case. The numbers feel thin. Help me think through what I might be missing — what other quantifiable benefits could I include, and how would I calculate them?”

One hour with these three prompts will produce a business case that would previously have taken a day. Not a perfect one — you’ll still need to apply your judgment and your knowledge of the organisation. But a solid, well-structured first draft that’s ready to be shaped rather than written from scratch.

— Anna