Search

In order to improve performance, company allocates significant amount of expenditures for IT investment. Regardless IT productivity paradox phenomenon, the companies certainly expect investment that have been made able to gain various benefits to the company. This research aims to compare five method of IT investment evaluation and find the closest accurate method according to selected literatures. Analysis was done by comparing: i) tangible and intangible ii) advantage iii) disadvantage iv) object and v) how to use. The result showed that Return on Investment (ROI), and Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) focus on tangible. While Multi Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) focus on intangible. The method must justify tangible and intangible to get accurate result. Information Economics (IE) and Real Options Analysis (ROA) focus on both tangible and intangible. From both methods, IE was the closest accurate method because it could calculate tangible, quasi-tangible, and intangible, and also calculates the value of an investment based on enhanced ROI, business factors, and risk criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite knowing and even appreciating the importance of intangible benefits of social interventions, like – increase in confidence and self-esteem, furthering in linkage of social bonds, leap in hopes and aspirations, rise in spending on essential goods and services etc., conventional methods of return on investment (RoI) end up comparing investment made into the intervention with tangible and visible social outcomes like increase in income levels (as a result of programme). Erroneously the social benefits or intangible gains are ignored while calculating the total monetary gains. For instance, Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) would only compare monetary inputs in the programme with monetary outputs created by the programme (in present case – increase in income levels). These limitations in conventional approach can be addressed by following SROI i.e. adding ‘social’ benefits while arriving at ‘RoI’. Through participatory process of consulting stakeholders, SROI monetises all experienced social, environmental and financial outcomes (both tangible and intangible) for every rupee invested in social welfare initiatives of a programme through a combination of Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA), Opportunity Cost Analysis and Impact Assessment methods. Entire process of SROI analysis provides a ratio and a story. The story of how the programme has created values during the course of its intervention and after and; the ratio being how much social value is created per rupee of investment. Thus, after due process of stakeholder consultation and primary research one could come to the conclusion “that Rs. X of investment in social intervention has been able to create Rs. Y of social value”. Thereby, helping the management and implementers of the programme to self-evaluate efficiency and impact of the social intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecological rehabilitation is subject to a variety of risks affecting the likely return on investment. We propose an options approach to allocating scarce conservation funds that explicitly allows for the irreversibility of investment and risks to investment payoffs. The approach captures ecosystem dynamics from extinction debt, as well as ecological and climatic risks at the project scale. Climatic risks are introduced through three channels: the effects of climate change on species loss, future rehabilitation benefits and frequency of catastrophic events. Our results suggest that allocating voluntary rehabilitation contracts on the basis of real options criteria increases cost-efficiency and delivers greater value for money for the Government when compared with the conventional cost-effectiveness criterion as it is illustrated for the case of Box Gum Grassy Woodland rehabilitation in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In order to meet demands in mobile broadband and to bridge the digital divide WiMAX was introduced in 2004. However, in order to increase the financial return on the investment, service operators need to make every effort in designing and deploying the most cost-effective networks using this technology. This paper presents a novel dimensioning technique for WiMAX technology which takes the dimensioning problem to a new level and produces more accurate results in comparison to traditional methods. Furthermore, a novel decomposed optimization framework for the WiMAX network planning is introduced which subdivides the overall problem into three distinct stages – a network dimensioning stage, initial sectorization and configuration stage and a final network configuration stage. The proposed framework also solves two fundamental problems, which are cell planning and frequency planning, simultaneously. Optimization is based on a tailored simulated annealing algorithm. Results, based on experiments in and around a UK city, show that the three stage framework produces viable designs with good coverage and service. In particular Stage 1 is efficient and more accurately dimensions the network than the traditional methods. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Child care and education are to some extent joint products of preschool programs, but public policy and research frequently approach these two goals independently. We present a benefit–cost analysis of a preschool program that provided intensive education during full-day child care. Data were obtained from a randomized trial with longitudinal follow-up through age 21. Study participants were 104 economically disadvantaged children and their families. Economic benefits include increased maternal earnings, decreased K-12 schooling costs, increased lifetime earnings and decreased costs related to smoking. Net present value is positive over a range of reasonable discount rates. Program benefits are compared to estimates from other studies with particular attention to a benefit–cost analysis of a half-day preschool program that did not provide child care. Returns to early childhood policy could be improved by greater attention to how programs might maximize education and child care benefits together regardless of the primary aim of the policy''s agency sponsor. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Unlabelled: The net benefit (i.e., benefits minus costs) of sustained-release (SR) bupropion for smoking cessation from an employer's perspective has previously been evaluated in clinical trials including frequent, in-person behavioral counseling and manufacturer recommended dosing but not in actual practice settings and lower dosing.Objectives: The objective of this research was to determine the return on investment (ROI) and internal rate of return (IRR) from an employer's perspective of two dosing schedules of bupropion SR in combination with behavioral interventions of minimal intensity (tailored mailings, TM) or moderate intensity (proactive telephone calls, PTC) in an actual practice setting.Methods: An open-label, randomized trial with 1-year follow-up was conducted in a large health system (Group Health Cooperative) based in Seattle, WA. Participants included 1524 adult smokers interested in quitting smoking. Participants were randomly assigned to receive 150 mg of bupropion SR daily and PTC (n=382), 150 mg of bupropion SR daily and TM (n=381), 300 mg of bupropion SR daily and PTC (n=383) or 300 mg of bupropion SR daily and TM (n=378). Sufficient medications for 8 weeks of dosing were provided to patients. The primary outcome measure of the field trial was self-reported point-prevalence 7-day nonsmoking status at 12 months, and the primary outcome measures of the economic analysis were employer net benefit, employer ROI, and the ROI-associated IRR using 2002 dollars.Results: Using net benefit, the 300-mg/PTC and the 150-mg/PTC treatments were approximately equally preferred. Using ROI or IRR, both the 150-mg/TM and 150-mg/PTC treatments were about equally preferred, with IRR values of 31.7% and 31.4%, respectively. Under a pessimistic scenario regarding effectiveness and costs, 150 mg/PTC became more cost-effective than 150 mg/TM, and employer IRR for 150 mg/PTC was 13%. Under an optimistic scenario IRR exceeded 45% for all treatments.Conclusions: These results suggest that employers can receive competitive returns on investment from sponsoring smoking cessation programs, that 150 mg of bupropion doses yield better returns than 300-mg doses, and that PTC treatments should be preferred to TM if smoking cessation rates in the targeted employee population are lower than those in the study population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]