In late 2014, the Treasury invited the chair of the International BBC Standards Board to evaluate the use of the Better Business Case and five-case model approach to support investment decision making.
A copy of the report was published here in November 2015. The main findings from the evaluation were that:
- compared to the evaluation conducted in 2013, there has been a significant improvement in the application of BBC to support investment decisions
- the strategic, economic and management sections of business cases are being produced to the required level of quality however further improvement is required in respect of many commercial and financial cases, and
- our business case maturity will improve as we better align it to policy development and strategy.
The report included a number of recommendations for further improvement to the business case framework and its application, which the Treasury is currently responding to, or has already implemented.
Our responses have included:
- recently updating our business case guidance, to simplify and bring it up to date with changes to the investment management system
- launching a series of more interactive reviews and workshops that draw on expertise from across the Corporate Centre, known as clinics, and
- helped embed the launch of other guidance materials, including updated Procurement & Construction guidance, as well as new CBA tools to support stronger cost-benefit analysis.
A full list of our responses to the recommendations included in the report is included in the New Zealand Better Business Case Evaluation Report: Summary of the Report and the Treasury's Response document available below.