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Page 5 © 2014 Nucleus Research, Inc. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Nucleus Research is the leading provider of value-focused technology research and advice. NucleusResearch.com January 2014 Document O8 P R E S E N T I N G T H E B U S I N E S S C A S E When presenting the business case, there are a few key points to remember: Show all the costs you include, even the little ones. Show the broader list of benefits, not just the top two or three you identified and quantified. Show both and expected and worst-case scenario, so you can understand the potential variance in your ROI and FIXING A BAD ROI If your initial pass at the business case doesn't meet your ROI expectations, don't panic. There a number of legitimate ways to improve the potential ROI from your project including: Change cost timing, or negotiate on initial price. Move costs out of the initial year by spreading training or consulting investment over one or two years. Ramp costs with users. Timing an increase in subscription costs as users or divisions are added, or gradually increasing costs for training and other areas as employees begin to use the technology, may be more accurate and will improve the ROI. Change deployment strategy. Using the technology to support a smaller key (high- ROI) return group first, or looking at outsourced solutions or adjusting consulting can drive a positive initial ROI — and the technology can be deployed more broadly later. Re-examine your correction factors. If you've been overly conservative with your correction factors and productivity gains you may be passing up technology that can help your company. The objective is not to be conservative or aggressive but as accurate as possible. Companies should also consider the benefits of the cloud delivery method as a part of the overall business case, and not overlook the benefits that flexibility, remote access, and the ability to upgrade or expand the application over time deliver. C O N C L U S I O N Building a business case isn't complicated, it's just structured. Companies considering an investment in a cloud-based financial management application such as Intacct can use these three steps to structure their business case and the five key factors to identify and prioritize areas of real benefit. This approach will help companies both to justify an Intacct investment and build a business case that can serve as a useful roadmap for maximizing returns from Intacct.

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