A plain-English answer to one of the questions most frequently asked by the business and IT pros that visit our website.

Two CIOs; divergent views? Not really. They’re just looking at the same problem from two different perspectives.

Whether it's forecasting the return on an IT investment over time, evaluating financial feasible, or deciding when to terminate projects, measurement of ROI is becoming critical to the financial-services industry. Read about how Merill Lynch is using ROI to define the value of IT investments.

Two IBM Global Services executives discuss IT ROI in the insurance industry. Note the emphasis on IT - Business value measures.

Call it what you will, decision-makers have choices and how well you explain them in terms of the pros (benefits), cons (costs), and risks can make a difference which option (a.k.a., project, alternative, solution, etc.) they choose.

Organizations take different approaches to ROI definition; the common theme is tying IT investments to quantifyable financial and non financial business impacts.

There are differences between organizations that make smart and less smart IT decisions. This article discusses some key differences.

Explaining the ROI of IT security investments is never easy. This article has some good tips. A suggestion to security pros: drop the acronym “ROSI”; “ROI” will suffice! There is one tip that could be added: Speak to top-level decision-makers in a language they understand! See a related slideshow presentation below.

From Resource Management Systems, Inc.

CIOs can't escape management's insistence on establishing and measuring the business value of information technology.
From CIO Magazine

Using simple numeric terms to define value can be dangerous, according to a panel of IS pros who give their views on the changing relationship of IT systems and the businesses they support.
From CIO Magazine

Another useful explanation of CBA Basics. 
From Minnesota State University, Mankato.

For many companies, launching Internet initiatives that advance strategic goals is more important than getting hard-dollar return. 
From Information Week.

InformationWeek Research surveyed 200 IT executives to weigh the pros and cons of custom and packaged apps; here are the results. 
From InformationWeek Magazine.

The real trick is demonstrating to top management how the dollars and cents pay off. This article outlines steps to make sure the return on investment of your network infrastructure is visible.
From InformationWeek Magazine.

Failure to communicate in a language decision-makers understand can undermine "alignment" efforts. 
From InformationWeek Magazine.

Some of the challenges to maintaining "strategic alignment." 
From InformationWeek Magazine.

Get Real on Cost of Ownership

Discusses the difficulties of measuring "hard" and "soft" benefits the importance of a systematic methodology to measure the real costs and benefits of technology. 
From CIO Magazine.

Thoughtful article argues that all "immeasurability" is just an illusion caused by three basic types of misunderstanding about measurement problems. 
From CIO Magazine.

Various approaches to estimating the return on investment (ROI) of extranet projects. 
From CIO Magazine.

Many companies are tossing out conventional thinking about the need for a ROI on E-business initiatives and focusing on how they advance their overall business strategy. This article offers useful insights for IT professionals.
From InformationWeek Magazine.

An approach to calculating the ROI of a web site; examples of how several organizations are doing it.
From CIO Magazine.

This article focuses on software tools to help answer the question: Where are IT dollars going? This article reviews the capabilities of several commercial products.
From InformationWeek Magazine.

How do companies account for investments in "knowledge-management" projects? This article discusses how Shell Oil Co. seeks to project the return.
From InformationWeek Magazine.