Software development ROI
Software development ROI is the return on the money an organisation spends building software: the value produced divided by what it cost. Cost is usually known; value usually is not, which is why most attempts stall. Measuring it means establishing the value side independently, from the work itself, and tracking it over time.
The difficulty is the numerator. Activity metrics measure effort, not value, and AI has severed the link between the two, so counting output no longer tells you what was produced. 49% of CIOs and CFOs cannot even agree on what their software spend produces (KPMG, 2025).
A real measure reads output and value across teams and vendors from the codebases, sets it against cost, and treats risk and technical debt as a liability against the return. Because it is read independently, no one grades their own result.
Measuring software development ROI, in full →
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