The business case is not the drab prologue to a budget request. It is (at least in theory) a solemn vow. It declares why a project exists, what it promises, and how it justifies the sacrifice of time, money, and human patience. But like most vows, it is made with great ceremony and then almost immediately forgotten.

Projects that began with noble intentions drift into fiasco not because they were conceived badly, but because their “vows” are treated as decorative. The business case, embalmed in a SharePoint vault, becomes a relic, consulted only in moments of panic, never as the governing principle it should be.

Vows at the Altar

At a wedding, the couple exchange vows; benefits (companionship, pooled Netflix subscriptions), costs (mortgages, tuition fees), and risks (in-laws, entropy). With foolish optimism, they say “I do.”

But vows that aren’t revisited degrade into wishful thinking. The same holds true for projects. Launch without revisiting the business case, and you’re not on a heroic journey, you’re staggering blindfolded toward divorce court. If you doubt the comparison, listen to relationship expert Esther Perel’s talk on Wedding Vows. 

A Living Instrument

The business case is not scripture carved in stone; it is a living instrument. Every adjustment (funding, headcount, equipment, facilities) must be interrogated against it:

• • Do we still get the promised benefits?

  • What new risks have we just invited in?

  • Are our resources sufficient, or are we mortgaging tomorrow?

  • What fresh damage have we done to time and cost?

If you can’t answer these, you’re not steering a project. You’re drifting.

How Projects Really Go Off Course

Most projects do not die spectacular deaths; they suffocate slowly. Two killers are most common:

1. 1. Negligence: Scope creep: the slow accretion of “just one more feature.” It’s managerial cowardice disguised as flexibility.

   2. Change Requests (CRs): These are the most lethal because they wear a halo of legitimacy. A single badly judged CR can destabilize the entire project. A dozen “minor” ones can bleed it to death.

Need proof? Look no further than the Berlin Brandenburg Airport fiasco, where “formal processes” produced chaos on a national stage.

The Discipline to Stay Aligned

Avoiding this drift requires a discipline most organizations lack:

• • Make the business case your liturgy. Begin and end every decision with it.

  • Define thresholds. Know what scale of deviation demands a pause, pivot, or termination.

  • Track cumulative impact. Scope creep kills by paper cuts. Count them.

  • Re-test assumptions. Markets move faster than steering committees.

  • Escalate ruthlessly. If the vow no longer holds, end the marriage.

For those who need their medicine with less sarcasm, consult PMI’s Benefits Realization Guide.

The Hard Truth

Sometimes the bravest decision is not “rebaseline,” or “phase two,” or “absorbing the change.” Sometimes the only rational word left is “no.” When the business case is dead, continuing is not project management, it’s necrophilia. The sunk cost fallacy is not a strategy; it’s an obituary. 

And So…

The business case is your vow. Treat it as a relic, and the project will end in bitter recrimination. Treat it as living, and you stand a chance of delivery, if not bliss, then at least survival. But do not delude yourself: projects are not fairy tales. They are arranged marriages, held together not by romance but by discipline. The happy ending, if you get one, comes only to those who revisit their vows.