Business Insight Flashcards
What is a business case and what is its key purpose?
A presentation of the rationale and justification for initiating a project or task
Its key purpose is to gain buy-in from stakeholders
What must a TD professional do when creating a business case?
Gather data, define a rationale, and deliver supporting arguments
What does a business case include?
- definition of the situation
- the benefits
- the costs
- a timeline
- the impact on the organization (which helps in convince leaders to support the initiative)
Who is the primary audience for a business case?
Senior leadership team, though others benefit from it, as well
What are the 5 steps for creating a business case?
- Examine org’s strategic priorities and clearly define the situation, need, and opportunity in terms of priorities.
- Identify possible solutions and how TD can contribute to org priorities.
- Quantify benefits
- Forecast costs
- Incorporate financial, economic, and org data
- Determine risks/issues for each solution - Analyze and compare all solutions. Base analysis on predetermined criteria and document data and analysis.
- Best practice is to only present projects where value is positive - Select best solution and determine details.
- Define metrics that support influence on top and bottom lines
- Determine where most impact will occur
- Create approx. budget (no one expects exact numbers) - Describe implementation plan.
- Tap into network for data and examples that can be used as benchmarks
2 things to keep in mind when presenting to senior leaders
- Present info in a way that org’s financial leaders will understand
- Demonstrate TD’s impact/ROI, such as on org’s revenue and margin
To do these, focus on how the business case creates org value
Standard business case format (8)
- Executive summary
- Current situation
- Initiative description
- Environmental analysis or alternatives
- Business and operational impacts
- Preliminary risk assessment
- Cost/benefit analysis
- Implementation timeline and strategy
What is the relationship between a comm strategy and a business case?
A business case may be part of a broader communications strategy
Fundamentals of a TD communications strategy
- incorporate information about a program or initiative
- determine the audience
- identify methods available
- establish a timeline
What additional 2 things should a comm strategy include?
- An action plan
- economic, financial, and org data necessary for buy-in
What is a strategic planning?
the process of systematically organizing plans, a process in which leaders use past experience as a filter for future decisions
a strategic plan outlines the activities that aid the organization’s ability to achieve its goals
What two things does a TD strategic plan link?
The TD department goals to the overall org strategies
What elements are included in a strategic plan? (6)
TD vision
mission statement
value statements
strategic goals
objectives
action plans
TD vision
focuses on future goals
TD mission statement
defines purpose of TD, its reason for existing, and its direction
value statements
describes the value TD brings to the org or proposes to bring to the org
strategic goals
statements that define broad TD accomplishments based on the organization’s needs
objectives
statements that identify how to achieve the strategic goals by dividing them into sets of specific tasks
action plans
steps that address:
- how the strategic plan will be implemented
- who is involved
- completion timeline
- required resources
- how success will be measured
How does TD incorporate new learning programs into their strategic plan?
- link to existing programs and systems
- link to current and future business needs
How does TD balance org priorities and their own priorities in a strategic plan?
organizational priorities should be the focus of talent development, but they also think beyond these to include their knowledge of workplace, workforce, and population trends and their function’s future focus to demonstrate connection between business strategy and employee development
What does it mean to run the TD function like a business and what are the benefits of this?
demonstrating as much planning and fiscal responsibility as any other unit in the organization
By doing so, TD professionals gain credibility with organizational leaders and command more responsibility
Budget
Working plan that guides fiscal decisions
What is the larger 3-step financial accounting system?
- budget design and development
- budget execution (such as expense tracking, monitoring, and managing)
- reporting and reconciliation
What are budgets based on?
The business plan or funding the plan at previous spending levels
How is an expenditure justified
The business plan justifies expenditures
What are the 4 major steps in preparing and managing budgets?
Analysis and research
Planning
Budget review
Budget management
What is analyzed during the budget analysis and research?
- the past TD plan
- historical records
- baseline funds
- the previous year’s budget accuracy
- benchmark data
- the success rationale for previous projects
Who drives the budget process?
Finance, not TD
What is the key task in budget planning?
determining programs, projects, and activities for the upcoming year
What is included in the annual budget plan?
any existing programs and services that will continue to be provided as well as proposed new programs
During the planning process, from where does TD gather information?
TD professionals gather information from two directions:
- senior leaders, which may depend on the access they have to high-level organizational data
- needs assessment data and feedback from clients and participants
The plan should be clearly tied to what?
Business needs
What key activity takes place during budget review?
the budget is shared for review and approval with the TD professional’s immediate supervisor up to various senior levels
What is most important about this presentation and review process?
The proposed budget must be presented in a logical, concise manner that shows how projects and programs link directly to the organization’s success or it will be subject to cuts - no matter how critical the funding need is!
What key activity happens during budget management?
- track expenses
- document deviations from the budget
- perform periodic budget reviews
