Opportunity assessment and NPV
Stage 4 · Implementation
Opportunity assessment and NPV
Opportunity assessment and NPV evaluate innovation ideas before R&D starts: a short qualitative overview, a financial model, and a score on significance, ability to execute and technical and commercial feasibility. Together they make projects comparable across the portfolio.
Questions it answers
1Is this idea worth funding?
2What is it worth financially, and when?
3How does it compare with other projects?
How it works
The steps teams follow in our programs and projects.
Step 1
Overview
Market, value proposition and concept on one page.
Step 2
Financial case
NPV with volume, price, cost and investment over 7–10 years.
Step 3
Score
Significance, ability to execute and feasibility.
Step 4
Govern
Monthly or quarterly portfolio reviews.
What you get
The output
A comparable score and financial case for every project, shown in a portfolio view.
Where AI helps
Where judgment decides
Builds financial scenarios and checks assumptions quickly.
Decides which projects to fund, and which to stop.
From our client work
How clients apply it
Paraphrased and anonymized from recent programs and engagements.
Application 1
An innovation director at a polymers company asked for simple, commercial-friendly tools to assess ideas before R&D: an overview template, an NPV model and a prioritization tool.
Application 2
Clients strengthen stage-gates with real customer experiments on desirability, feasibility and profitability.
Point of view
Seen in the market
All points of view →Recent Market Edge points of view that apply this tool.
Linked tools
The output of one tool becomes the input to the next.
Builds on
TAM / SAM / SOMSeparate the total market from the share you can serve and realistically win.Right to WinTest whether you can win a new opportunity before committing resources.Product lifecycle and portfolioReview products on growth, share and margin to decide where to invest.Risk Analysis and VUCAMap the probability and impact of risks for scenario planning.
Feeds into
This tool is the end point: it turns analysis into action and results.
Questions about Opportunity assessment and NPV
Do we need special software?
No. The tools are Excel-based and can be as simple or detailed as your team needs.
How do we get people to use them?
Keep them simple at first, get leadership endorsement and review them on a regular cadence.
Other tools in stage 4: Value Map · Price Change Analysis · Transactional pricing · Launch and campaign plan · Key Account Plan · Opportunity assessment and NPV
Want to use Opportunity assessment and NPV on a live plan?
Book a 20–30 minute sounding board conversation with a senior consultant who has sat in your seat. No cost, no commitment.