How should an enterprise approach the question of determining ROI on mobility/BYOD?

This is one of the most common questions that I get from CIO’ and the IT Executive staffs. Its a complex undertaking and more than anything an ROI exercise really needs to be aligned to your business objectives. It is important that an ROI isn’t, or shouldn’t be, just about money savde, or net new revenue generated. An ROI may be about employee acquisition, retention and morale.

With that in mind, here are a few items to get you started along the path of establishing an ROI against your investment in mobile.

1. Start by looking for love in the right places. All too often enterprises are applying outdated 18th century business techniques against a 21st century business opportunity. If you did that in your personal life, looking for your life long partner, just how far do you think that would get you?

2. Flip the BYOD ROI question on its head. What is the cost of not investing in BYOD? For some companies BYOD is a business norm. For some employees it may be considered an entitlement right (for better or worse). Ask yourself if is this an application specific initiative or an enterprise wide consideration?

3. Think beyond the gadgets. Most companies will over-estimate the business process or features they mobilize and underestimate the impact the mobile has on their back office infrastructure.

4. Get everyone on the same page. Compounding the BYOD ROI issue in many companies are, the real and imaginary forces, of accountability, politics, competitive pressures and risk. These forces are both internal, and external. Marketing and sales worry about driving revenue, acquiring and supporting customers, and extending the brand. IT worries about protecting margins through technology enablement, on boarding and supporting employees and protecting the brand. Finding the common ground between these perspectives is critical. Ask yourself what you need to do, want to do and why? And make sure that you involve business, technical and employee end users as you create the answers.

5. Ignore the myth that BYOD is about employees and their gadgets. It may not be, and often isn’t, contrary to conventional thinking. BYOD can also about customers and supply chain partners “showing up” in your store, at a campus site, on your network or at your Internet doorstep with their mobile device in-hand. Yikes….

6. Don’t let the numbers get in the way. Numbers are a game of liar’s poker. All we have to do is remind ourselves about all those Web ROI calculations we did in the 90’sto remind us why…

Do you have other items to add to the list?