Building the business case for energy efficiency projects

 

Training and one-on-one project support to help energy practitioners improve the success-rate of business case proposals for energy efficiency projects

 

 

• How was the course developed?

 

To develop the course the consulting team:

 

1. Conducted a desk-top review of publicly available guidance material on developing business case proposals in general and developing proposals for energy efficiency projects more specifically. Key sources of information included:

• The Australian Government’s 'Business Case and Beyond Project'  (developed by Patrick Crittenden and Helen Lewis)

• The UK Carbon Trust Guide 'Making the business case for a carbon reduction project. How to win over the board and influence people' 

• Patrick Crittenden’s PhD thesis: 'New Perspectives on Institutional Change: The Case of Changing Energy Management Practices in Australia'

 

2. Conducted interviews with twenty experienced practitioners, policy makers and program managers

 

3. Piloted the training with staff from the Office of Environment and Heritage and a selection of experienced practitioners

 

The training is continually improving as participants provide feedback on what they like best and where improvements can be made. As post training support projects are undertaken, the lessons learned are also incorporated into the training.