A feasibility study may be needed for several projects. In the private sector, studies are mainly of an economic nature and are carried out with a view to expanding a company or small business or to ensure its good performance. In the public domain, they mostly concern the construction of public works. Although each feasibility study is different, there are some basic steps to follow in order for a study to perform its function of supporting a project. Here are some of the main points needed for public officials or business leaders who want to do a feasibility study.
Steps
Step 1. Plan a study
Business executives and other people responsible for carrying out the feasibility study will need to plan the different aspects of the study, from identifying the objectives to considering alternatives to implement.
- Address financial issues as needed. In the research for entrepreneurial feasibility studies, managers will have to make a study oriented towards competition, market supply and demand and other aspects aimed at determining whether a given entrepreneurial or corporate project is ultimately feasible.
- Address material aspects as needed. In a feasibility study aimed at the realization of a public work or a municipal project, it may be necessary to focus some experimental data concerning, for example, pedestrian flows or traffic. Here it will be necessary to plan how the engineers and other staff members will conduct the study, in order to achieve adequate final results.
Step 2. Hire staff as needed
Some feasibility studies need competent engineers to collect and interpret some of the data that will build the credibility of the study. Look for external consultancy firms for a specific study or project and make sure the selected individuals have the appropriate qualifications.
Look for consultants with specific skills. Feasibility studies can focus on aspects such as traffic routes, soil and water quality, rainwater runoff and other technical aspects. It is important that the engineers drafting the study are competent in the specific field that the study deals with. Otherwise, the study can create problems later
Step 3. Implement the study
When all the numerous points of the study have been gutted and put in writing, the people involved must begin to do what has been planned.
Work within a specific time frame. The feasibility study must have a time frame for all the activities to be implemented, whether it is a survey aimed at consumers or a market research for an economic study, or to monitor traffic or other elements of a study for a municipal project. Respect the time frame for a more orderly procedure
Step 4. Write down the results
The people involved must summarize the final results of their activities and report them in a single report which will be considered the result of the feasibility study.
Step 5. Distribute the feasibility study
A study doesn't do much good until it ends up in the hands of the right people. Deliver the study to all executives in the company or any other person who can profit from the study by using it to make critical decisions within an enterprise, agency or department.
