The Numbers Game

Aaron is the former editor of ProjectsAtWork.com

  Estimating  

No business goes to market with a product or service it isn't confident will justify the time and resources spent developing it. Should project selection be any different? More organizations are answering with a resounding "No!" The hard line on the bottom line has translated into heightened scrutiny of project portfolios across all industries. Companies are focused on initiatives that promise a solid return on investment (ROI). Indeed, for executives and customers--the stakeholders who ultimately decide the fate of projects-it seems R, O and I are the only letters in the alphabet.

But if ROI has become the single most important test that a project must pass before getting a green light-or getting dumped at the side of the road-then those three letters must be clearly understood by all involved, from executives to project managers. Making ROI the Holy Grail of project valuation and selection can backfire, many companies have found. A project's value is driven by many factors, and many of them can't be measured, or even imagined, by ROI alone.

The challenge facing almost all organizations today is to implement processes and standards that take into account all the important value drivers for their ongoing and future projects. That means ROI, of course. But it also means relevant, valid metrics ... real-time collaboration between the marketing and making of project …

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