ROI CALCULATOR: WHAT'S STRATEGIC DECISION-MAKING COSTING YOU?
Most organizations never quantify what failed initiatives and poor execution actually cost. These losses are distributed across multiple budget lines—making them invisible to leadership despite their scale.
This calculator helps you quantify the financial impact using research-backed frameworks from PMI and McKinsey.
Time required: 10 minutes
You'll need: Basic portfolio data (initiatives launched, typical budgets, rough success rates)
THE FOUR COST CATEGORIES
1. FAILED INITIATIVES
Initiatives cancelled mid-execution or that delivered no meaningful value.
Your Calculation:
Initiatives that failed in past 2 years: [ ____ ] ÷ 2 = [ ____ ] per year
Average cost per failure: $[ ____ ]M
Annual cost: $____ M
Research benchmark: PMI found only 50% of strategic initiatives meet objectives European CEO. Organizations waste $135M per $1B invested in failed projects PMI.
Example: 10 initiatives over 2 years at $3M each, 40% failure rate = 4 failures = $6M annually
2. EXECUTION WASTE
Timeline delays, budget overruns, scope reductions, rework—even on initiatives that don't fail completely.
Your Calculation:
Annual strategic portfolio: $[ ____ ]M
Waste percentage (use 12% if unsure): [ ____ ]%
Annual cost: $____ M
Research benchmark: McKinsey found mismanaged execution costs companies up to 10% of annual revenue The Strategy Institute. PMI found nearly 15% of strategic initiative spending is wasted due to poor execution European CEO.
What this includes:
Timeline delays that push benefits to future quarters
Budget overruns from unforeseen complexity
Scope reductions that deliver less value than promised
Rework when teams build the wrong thing initially
Example: $50M portfolio × 12% = $6M annually
3. CAPABILITY GAPS & MISALIGNMENT
Funding initiatives your organization can't execute or that don't align with strategic priorities.
Your Calculation:
Initiatives per year: [ ____ ]
% encountering capability gaps (use 25% if unsure): [ ____ ]%
Average cost per gap: $[ ____ ]M
Annual cost: $____ M
Research benchmark: Research shows strategic misalignment wastes 60% of company resources In-parallel. PMI found 61% of firms struggle to bridge the strategy-execution gap European CEO.
What this includes:
Scaling company attempts enterprise approach without infrastructure
Teams commit to capabilities they don't have (contractors fix it later)
Cross-functional misalignment requiring mid-course corrections
Initiatives approved but not truly aligned with strategic priorities
Example: 10 initiatives × 25% with gaps × $2M per gap = $5M annually
4. OPPORTUNITY COST (Lost Revenue)
Revenue-generating initiatives that failed or launched late, missing market windows.
Your Calculation:
Revenue initiatives attempted (past 2 years): [ ____ ]
Average projected revenue per initiative: $[ ____ ]M
Average % of opportunity lost: [ ____ ]%
Annual cost: [ # ] ÷ 2 × [ revenue ] × [ % lost ] = $____ M
Research context: Failed strategic initiatives create missed market opportunities while competitors seize the initiative In-parallel. Beyond direct costs, delays and failures mean revenue you never generate and competitive positions you never establish.
What this includes:
Failed product launches (projected revenue never materializes)
Delayed market entry (competitor establishes position first)
Missed strategic windows (regulatory changes, market timing, technology shifts)
Example: 3 revenue initiatives over 2 years at $5M projected revenue each, 1 failed (100% loss), 1 delayed 9 months (60% loss) = $4M annually
ROI SCENARIOS
GreenlightIQ catches these failures during planning, before budgets are committed—by validating capabilities, extracting expert knowledge, surfacing conflicts, and prioritizing risks.
Annual Investment: $150K
What if you prevent 20-30% of these failures?
Your Total Cost: $____ M
20% Prevention: $____ M → ROI: ____X
25% Prevention: $____ M → ROI: ____X
30% Prevention: $____ M → ROI: ____X
Important: Actual results depend on how many initiatives you evaluate, quality of team inputs, and organizational commitment to acting on insights. GreenlightIQ doesn't guarantee success—it systematically identifies what could cause failure before you commit.
WORKED EXAMPLE: $500M COMPANY
Profile: $500M revenue, $50M strategic portfolio, 10 initiatives/year
Failed Initiatives: 2 per year × $3M = $6M
Execution Waste: $50M × 12% = $6M
Capability Gaps: 2.5 initiatives × $2M = $5M
Opportunity Cost: Revenue initiatives underperforming = $4M
Total Annual Cost: $21M
ROI Scenarios:
20% prevention: $4.2M saved → 28X ROI
25% prevention: $5.25M saved → 35X ROI
30% prevention: $6.3M saved → 42X ROI
PRESENTING TO THE BROADER TEAM
Key Messages:
1. The Scale: "Our annual cost of strategic decision-making failures is [X]M—[X]M— [X]M—[X]M over three years if the pattern continues."
2. The Validation: "PMI research shows 50% failure rates European CEO, McKinsey found execution problems cost up to 10% of revenue The Strategy Institute. Our numbers are conservative."
3. The Cause: "Most failures aren't bad luck—they're capability gaps, hidden assumptions, and misalignments that existed from day one but weren't surfaced before commitment."
4. The Solution: "Systematic validation before commitment. Even preventing 20% of failures delivers [X]X ROI."
5. The Alternative: "Without change, we'll experience similar losses next year. GreenlightIQ costs $150K. We can't afford NOT to."
NEXT STEPS
[Schedule 20-minute call] — Discuss your specific situation
[Apply as design partner] — Limited January 2026 spots
RESEARCH SOURCES
PMI (2013). "The High Cost of Low Performance." Pulse of the Profession. PMI
McKinsey & Company. Research on strategy execution costs. The Strategy Institute
PMI/Economist Intelligence Unit. "Why Good Strategies Fail." European CEO
In Parallel. "The Hidden Cost of Strategy Failure." In-parallel
Questions? steve@greenlightiq.com
