arckit-sobc

name	arckit-sobc
description	Create Strategic Outline Business Case (SOBC) using UK Government Green Book 5-case model

You are helping an enterprise architect create a Strategic Outline Business Case (SOBC) to justify investment in a technology project.

About SOBC

A Strategic Outline Business Case (SOBC) is the first stage in the UK Government business case lifecycle:

• SOBC: Strategic Outline (this command) - High-level case for change, done BEFORE detailed requirements
• OBC: Outline Business Case - After some design work, with refined costs
• FBC: Full Business Case - Detailed case with accurate costs, ready for final approval

This command creates the SOBC - the strategic case to secure approval to proceed with requirements and design.

User Input

$ARGUMENTS

Instructions

Note: Before generating, scan projects/ for existing project directories. For each project, list all ARC-*.md artifacts, check external/ for reference documents, and check 000-global/ for cross-project policies. If no external docs exist but they would improve output, ask the user.

This command creates a Strategic Outline Business Case (SOBC) following HM Treasury Green Book 5-case model. This is a high-level justification done BEFORE detailed requirements to secure approval and funding.

When to use this:

• After: $arckit-stakeholders (MANDATORY - SOBC must link to stakeholder goals)
• Before: $arckit-requirements (SOBC justifies whether to proceed with detailed requirements)
• Purpose: Secure executive approval and funding to proceed to next stage

Note: Later stages will create OBC (Outline Business Case) and FBC (Full Business Case) with more accurate costs. This SOBC uses strategic estimates and options analysis.

1. Read existing artifacts from the project context:

   MANDATORY (warn if missing):

   • STKE (Stakeholder Analysis) in projects/{project}/
     • Extract: ALL stakeholder goals (become benefits), drivers (explain WHY needed), conflicts (become risks/mitigations), outcomes (become success criteria)
     • If missing: STOP and warn user to run $arckit-stakeholders first — every SOBC benefit MUST trace to a stakeholder goal

   RECOMMENDED (read if available, note if missing):

   • PRIN (Architecture Principles, in projects/000-global/)
     • Extract: Strategic alignment, technology standards, compliance requirements
   • RISK (Risk Register) in projects/{project}/
     • Extract: Risks for Management Case, risk appetite, mitigations

   OPTIONAL (read if available, skip silently if missing):

   • REQ (Requirements) in projects/{project}/
     • Extract: Detailed requirements for more accurate cost estimates
   • PLAN (Project Plan) in projects/{project}/
     • Extract: Timeline, phasing for Commercial Case delivery schedule
   • TNDR (Procurement Market Intelligence) at projects/{project}/research/ARC-{P}-TNDR-*.md
     • If found: extract the median award value and award count as a market-context benchmark for the Economic Case options analysis — e.g. to sanity-check an option's Rough Order of Magnitude cost against what comparable work has been awarded for in the market
     • Critical: awarded value is NOT actual spend and must NOT be used as the costed figure; cite it as market context and market view only, with that caveat stated explicitly whenever the figure appears
     • If no TNDR artefact exists, skip silently

2. Understand the request: The user may be:

   • Creating initial SOBC (most common)
   • Updating existing SOBC with new information
   • Creating UK Government Green Book 5-case model (automatic for UK projects)
   • Evaluating multiple strategic options

3. Read external documents and policies:

CRITICAL - Auto-Populate Document Control Fields:

Before completing the document, populate ALL document control fields in the header:

Step 0: Detect Version

Before generating the document ID, check if a previous version exists:

1. Look for existing ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-SOBC-v*.md files in the project directory
2. If no existing file: Use VERSION="1.0"
3. If existing file found:
   • Read the existing document to understand its scope
   • Compare against current inputs and requirements
   • Minor increment (e.g., 1.0 → 1.1): Scope unchanged — refreshed estimates, updated stakeholder data, corrected details
   • Major increment (e.g., 1.0 → 2.0): Scope materially changed — new options added, fundamentally different recommendations, significant new stakeholder goals
4. Use the determined version for document ID, filename, Document Control, and Revision History
5. For v1.1+/v2.0+: Add a Revision History entry describing what changed from the previous version

Step 1: Construct Document ID

• Document ID: ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-SOBC-v{VERSION} (e.g., ARC-001-SOBC-v1.0)

Step 2: Populate Required Fields

Auto-populated fields (populate these automatically):

• [PROJECT_ID] → Extract from project path (e.g., "001" from "projects/001-project-name")
• [VERSION] → Determined version from Step 0
• [DATE] / [YYYY-MM-DD] → Current date in YYYY-MM-DD format
• [DOCUMENT_TYPE_NAME] → "Strategic Outline Business Case (SOBC)"
• Classification → comes from the resolved Document Control header, not from a placeholder. _partials/RENDERING.md fixes the ladder from the artefact's own regime; ${default_classification} applies only where that regime falls through to user config.
• [STATUS] → "DRAFT" for new documents

User-specified fields (must be confirmed with user):

• [OWNER] → Who owns this business case? (typically from stakeholder RACI matrix)
• [REVIEWED_BY] → Who will review? (mark as "PENDING" if not yet reviewed)
• [APPROVED_BY] → Who must approve? (mark as "PENDING" if not yet approved)

10. Write the output:

• Create or update projects/NNN-project-name/ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-SOBC-v${VERSION}.md
• Use project directory structure (create if doesn't exist)
• File name pattern: ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-SOBC-v{VERSION}.md
• Later stages will be: ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-OBC-v*.md (Outline Business Case), ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-FBC-v*.md (Full Business Case)

11. Use appropriate language:

• UK Government: Use Green Book terminology (intervention, public value, social benefit, spending controls)
• Private Sector: Adapt to commercial language (investment, shareholder value, competitive advantage)
• Always: Link to stakeholder analysis for credibility

12. Flag uncertainties:
    • Mark estimates as "Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM)"
    • Flag where more analysis needed
    • Note dependencies on external factors
    • Recommend sensitivity analysis for key assumptions

Output Format

Provide:

1. Location: projects/NNN-project-name/ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-SOBC-v1.0.md
2. Summary:
   • "Created Strategic Outline Business Case (SOBC) for [project name]"
   • "Analyzed [X] options against [Y] stakeholder goals"
   • "Recommended: Option [X] - [name]"
   • "Estimated investment: £[X]M over 3 years"
   • "Expected benefits: £[X]M over 3 years from [stakeholder goals]"
   • "Payback period: [X] months"
   • "Business case lifecycle stage: SOBC (strategic outline)"
3. Next steps:
   • "Present to [approval body] for go/no-go decision"
   • "If approved: Run $arckit-requirements to define detailed requirements"
   • "After requirements: Create OBC (Outline Business Case) with refined costs"
   • "After design: Create FBC (Full Business Case) for final approval"
4. Traceability note:
   • "All [X] benefits traced to stakeholder goals in ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-STKE-v*.md"
   • "All [Y] risks linked to stakeholder conflict analysis"

Common Patterns

Pattern 1: Technology Modernization:

• Strategic Case: Legacy systems failing, stakeholder frustration high
• Economic Case: 3-5 options from do-nothing to complete rebuild
• Commercial Case: Cloud migration, Digital Marketplace G-Cloud
• Financial Case: £2-5M over 3 years, CFO approval needed
• Management Case: Phased migration, minimal disruption

Pattern 2: New Digital Service:

• Strategic Case: Citizen/customer demand, competitive pressure
• Economic Case: MVP vs full-featured comparison
• Commercial Case: Build in-house vs platform vendor
• Financial Case: £500K-2M year 1, ongoing £200K/year
• Management Case: Agile delivery, beta to live

Pattern 3: Compliance/Risk Driven:

• Strategic Case: Regulatory requirement, audit findings
• Economic Case: Minimum compliance vs best practice
• Commercial Case: Specialist vendors, certification needed
• Financial Case: Non-negotiable spend, insurance cost reduction
• Management Case: Deadline-driven, stakeholder compliance team owns

UK Government Specific Guidance

Key HM Treasury references: The Green Book provides the 5-case model, the Magenta Book provides evaluation design guidance (theory of change, proportionality, impact evaluation), and the Sourcing Playbook covers should-cost modelling and market assessment. See docs/guides/codes-of-practice.md for the full Rainbow of Books mapping.

For UK Government/public sector projects, ensure:

1. Strategic Case includes:

   • Policy alignment (manifesto commitments, departmental objectives)
   • Public value (not just efficiency, but citizen outcomes)
   • Minister/Permanent Secretary drivers
   • Parliamentary accountability

2. Economic Case includes:

   • Social Cost Benefit Analysis (if required)
   • Green Book discount rates (3.5% standard)
   • Optimism bias adjustment (add contingency)
   • Wider economic benefits

3. Commercial Case includes:

   • Digital Marketplace assessment (G-Cloud, DOS)
   • SME participation commitment
   • Social value (minimum 10% weighting)
   • Open source consideration

4. Financial Case includes:

   • HM Treasury approval thresholds
   • Spending Review settlement alignment
   • Value for money assessment
   • Whole-life costs

5. Management Case includes:

   • Service Standard assessment plan
   • GDS/CDDO engagement
   • Cyber security (NCSC consultation)
   • Accessibility (WCAG 2.2 AA compliance)
   • Data protection (ICO/DPIA requirements)

Error Handling

If stakeholder analysis doesn't exist:

• DO NOT proceed with SOBC
• Tell user: "SOBC requires stakeholder analysis to link benefits to stakeholder goals. Please run $arckit-stakeholders first."

If user wants detailed business case:

• Tell user: "This command creates SOBC (Strategic Outline Business Case) - the first stage with high-level estimates. After $arckit-requirements, create OBC (Outline Business Case) with refined costs. After design, create FBC (Full Business Case) for final approval."

If project seems too small for full 5-case:

• Still use 5-case structure but scale appropriately
• Smaller projects: 2-3 pages per case
• Major programmes: 10-20 pages per case

Template Reference

Use the template at .arckit/templates/sobc-template.md as the structure. Fill in with:

• Stakeholder analysis data (goals, drivers, outcomes, conflicts)
• Architecture principles (strategic alignment)
• User's project description
• Industry/sector best practices
• UK Government guidance (if applicable)

Output Instructions

CRITICAL - Token Efficiency:

To avoid exceeding Codex output limits, you MUST use the following strategy:

1. Generate SOBC Document

Create the comprehensive, executive-ready Strategic Outline Business Case following the 5-case model template structure.

Before writing the file, read .arckit/references/quality-checklist.md and verify all Common Checks plus the SOBC per-type checks pass. Fix any failures before proceeding.

2. Write Directly to File

Use the Write tool to create projects/[PROJECT]/ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-SOBC-v${VERSION}.md with the complete SOBC document.

DO NOT output the full document in your response. This would exceed token limits.

3. Show Summary Only

After writing the file, show ONLY a concise summary:

## SOBC Complete ✅

**Project**: [Project Name]
**File Created**: `projects/[PROJECT]/ARC-{PROJECT_ID}-SOBC-v1.0.md`

### SOBC Summary

**Strategic Case**:
- Strategic Alignment: [Brief summary of how project aligns with strategy]
- Spending Objectives: [List 3-5 key objectives linked to stakeholder goals]
- Critical Success Factors: [3-5 CSFs]

**Economic Case**:
- Options Appraised: [Number] options evaluated
- Preferred Option: [Option number and name]
- NPV over [X] years: £[Amount]
- BCR (Benefit-Cost Ratio): [Ratio]
- Key Benefits: [Top 3-5 benefits with £ values]

**Commercial Case**:
- Procurement Route: [e.g., Digital Marketplace, G-Cloud, Open tender]
- Contract Strategy: [e.g., Single supplier, Framework, Multi-supplier]
- Risk Allocation: [Public/Private split]

**Financial Case**:
- Total Budget Required: £[Amount]
- Funding Source: [e.g., Spending Review settlement, reserves]
- Affordability: [Confirmed/To be confirmed]
- Cash Flow: [Summary of phasing]

**Management Case**:
- Project Approach: [Agile/Waterfall/Hybrid]
- Governance: [Board/SRO structure]
- Key Risks: [Top 3-5 risks]
- Timeline: [Start] - [End] ([Duration])

**UK Government Specific** (if applicable):
- Green Book Compliance: [5-case model, options appraisal, sensitivity analysis]
- Technology Code of Practice: [Points addressed]
- Service Standard: [Assessment plan]
- Social Value: [% weighting in procurement]

### What's in the Document

- Executive Summary (2-3 pages)
 Strategic Case: Why we need to act (10-15 pages)
 Economic Case: Options and value for money (15-20 pages)
 Commercial Case: Procurement approach (5-10 pages)
 Financial Case: Funding and affordability (5-10 pages)
 Management Case: Delivery capability (10-15 pages)
 Appendices: Stakeholder analysis, risk register, assumptions

: [X] pages (ready for senior leadership and Treasury approval)



 Review  for full SOBC document
 Present to Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for approval
 If approved, run  to define detailed requirements
 After requirements, refine to Outline Business Case (OBC) with firmer costs

Statistics to Include:

• Number of options evaluated
• NPV and BCR for preferred option
• Total budget required
• Timeline (start date - end date)
• Number of stakeholder goals addressed
• Number of critical success factors
• Number of key risks identified

Generate the SOBC now, write to file using Write tool, and show only the summary above.

Important Notes

• Markdown escaping: When writing less-than or greater-than comparisons, always include a space after < or > (e.g., < 3 seconds, > 99.9% uptime) to prevent markdown renderers from interpreting them as HTML tags or emoji

Suggested Next Steps

After completing this command, consider running:

• $arckit-requirements -- Define detailed requirements after SOBC approval
• $arckit-roadmap -- Create strategic roadmap from SOBC investment plan
• $arckit-tenders -- Anchor the Economic Case market view with real UK award-value benchmarks (when UK government procurement context)