You probably don’t need to sell the idea of using Slack to your co-workers, but you do need to make a case to whoever’s paying the bills. I did just that. With the input from a couple of my colleagues, I formed a nice business case and proposal for using Slack at my company in 2016.

In this post I’m going to share the business case document with you as a template (download link at the bottom). Hopefully it helps you think through the different angles to make a solid business case at your company. But first…

Why Make a Business Case for Slack?

If you don’t take some time to think through some of the basic aspects of what you’re proposing, be prepared to crash and burn. Change is always hard. So you want to be sure you’re making a solid case for the change you’re proposing. Essentially, you’re selling an idea. It takes thoughtfulness, preparation, and some basic organization.

Your thoughtfulness and preparation will be appreciated and noticed, even if you don’t get a ‘yes’ in the end. It’s worth the time to think through all the various angles about what you’re proposing. It makes it easier on those that need to make the final decision. Your mindset should be “how can I make this easy for them to decide”.

How to Present the Business Case

Before presenting the business case to anyone, start talking with the person(s) that will make the final call about using Slack. You will want to gain momentum and early buy-in in your effort to persuade. Don’t surprise anyone with a proposal like this. They should be expecting it.

Once the skids are greased, pull in some colleagues to help with the content. Poke holes in the business case until you feel it’s solid. Then it’s time to present it to the powers that be.

I recommend sending the document and a meeting invite at the same time. Give people time to review the document on their own time before meeting to discuss it. That way everyone can come to the meeting prepared with questions and everyone is on the same level playing field having read the same document in advance.

From there you can gather feedback and answer questions. If there aren’t any major concerns you can ask for a decision or at least a timeline to make a decision.

Download the Slack Business Case Template

Download the template using the button below. Would you consider sharing this article or give me a shout out at @ericleeclark on Twitter. 🙂 I made it easy for you, just use the “click to tweet” box below.

Update Feb 2019: I have also shared the business case content on GitHub. Here’s a link to the repository. Feel free to contribute or fork it.