Using Cost Benefit Analysis for Enterprise Resource Planning Project Evaluation: A Case for Including Intangibles

Abstract

The goal of this chapter is to demonstrate how cost benefit analysis can be applied to large-scale ERP projects, and that these methods can incorporate the intangible benefits, e.g., user satisfaction. Detailed information on the business case utilized by a large computer manufacturer in their decision to implement the SAP system R/3 is presented. We illustrate how this organization utilized techniques to include intangibles in the implementation project’s cost benefit analysis. The chapter concludes with a discussion on the state of valuing ERP projects and questions to be answered in the future.