An ERP return you can defend starts from a number you already know in your own company: hours lost to reconciliation, documented stock losses, or a subscription that will be cancelled after the move. Tie that number to what will change in the work, add the cost and the period beside it, and you have a decision file your finance partner can read and review. That file is the difference between a purchase you can justify and a promise to “save time”. Before going further, you can get to know the solution on the ToDoOps home page.
When an owner and a finance lead face a purchase decision, they usually ask three things: what exactly will improve, what will it cost, and when will we see it? Answering these in numbers is the investment case.
Why are buyers asking about ROI now?
In a Deloitte survey of executives (548 respondents at director level or above) across five sectors, covering firms with revenue of USD 500 million or more and fielded in May to June 2025, the share reporting ERP investment rose from 35% in 2024 to 43% in 2025, an eight-point difference. That is a picture of investment movement among large firms; your own return comes from your own measurement, which is what the rest of this guide builds.
The definitions, the denominator and the period are set out in the ERP ROI methodology. This article focuses on preparing and maintaining the decision file.
Which problem do you measure first?
Choose a problem with evidence and an owner. You might start from the time spent matching orders, documented stock write-offs, or an old software subscription. Record the measurement source, the period, the transaction count and who reviews the result. Keep both normal and unusual periods; a quiet week or a seasonal month needs a note before you rely on it.
| Proposed benefit | What it needs before it enters the decision |
|---|---|
| Less time preparing reports | A before-and-after measure for the same scope, and a plan for the time released |
| Lower cash expense | An actual amount that can be cancelled, with evidence the commitment will end |
| Less stock loss | A realised loss and a cause the change can address |
| Better sales | Incremental contribution margin and a reviewable causal assumption, not total revenue |
When the system frees an employee’s time and the salary stays the same, you have released capacity, and its value shows when you direct that time to other work. Total stock value differs from stock lost, so only realised losses enter the calculation.
How do you build the cost side on one basis?
Add implementation, training, migration and any development outside the scope, then subscription, hosting and recurring support. Odoo’s consulting packs separate service scope from the subscription, and the pack page states that travel time and expenses are billed separately, so implementation needs its own written scope, as the implementation cost guide explains. Place each activity inside the pack price or outside it, once.
State whether the comparison is before tax, and separate internal staff effort from additional spend. Use one time horizon and distinguish year-one cost from renewal. If a material amount is unknown, show the known part with a step to complete the rest instead of a final percentage.
ERP ROI and payback: a worked example
Assume an initial cost of SAR 30,000, annual running cost of SAR 6,000 and an eligible annual cash benefit of SAR 24,000. To try similar inputs yourself, the ToDoOps calculators are an optional starting point.
| Item | Amount (SAR) |
|---|---|
| Initial cost | 30,000 |
| Annual running cost | 6,000 |
| Total year-one cost | 36,000 |
| Eligible cash benefit | 24,000 |
| Year-one net (24,000 − 36,000) | −12,000 |
Return on year-one cost is about −33.33% (−12,000 ÷ 36,000). The 66.67% figure is the benefit divided by cost before cost is deducted, a different measure from net ROI.
After go-live, the assumed annual net cash is 24,000 − 6,000 = SAR 18,000. Simple payback on the initial investment is 30,000 ÷ 18,000 × 12 = 20 months, assuming a steady net flow from the start of the period. The example is hypothetical, not a ToDoOps price or a customer result. It spreads the benefit evenly and omits financing, discounting, tax timing and changes in expenses, and if the benefit starts late, payback moves.
What is the value of clarity and capacity that the cash line does not show?
ERP value is wider than the cash line. Faster reports and figures everyone agrees on shorten the argument before a purchase decision, and time released for the sales or purchasing team can go to a customer or a supplier instead of re-keying data. That is real professional capacity and it deserves a place in the decision file.
To size it, use a separate illustration: four employees each expect to release two hours a week. At an assumed loaded cost of SAR 50 an hour and 52 weeks, the model gives SAR 20,800 of annual time capacity (4 × 2 × 52 × 50). These are illustrative assumptions, not Saudi salary benchmarks or measured Odoo results. The figure is reported as capacity and kept outside the cash total until part of it becomes an expense that actually stops.
When you trace the effect through a sales and inventory cycle, you can see where benefit passes from one department to another. Try Odoo interactively: a guided simulation with sample data for a sales and inventory flow, which helps you decide which steps you want to measure. To see which applications fit your activity, browse the Odoo apps.
How do you test the scenario before presenting it?
Try a lower benefit, a delayed start for part of the scope or a known increase in recurring cost. Pick the assumption that flips the decision and name the information that would reduce its uncertainty; that is more useful than a generic contingency percentage.
Check for overlap: was error-correction time also counted in the reporting hours? Was the stock-loss reduction counted in inventory and again in sales margin? Every line should rest on one traceable basis.
How do you make measurement part of operations?
After launch, compare results with the baseline, adjusting for changes in volume and prices. Keep the original assumption and record why differences arose, instead of rewriting the past. Project success can show up in clearer follow-up and better data before it turns into cash, so record both.
Questions that help you decide
Does released time mean payroll savings?
It becomes a cash saving when an actual expense stops. If the expense remains, the time is available capacity for other work. Name the amount that can cease and how, and keep the two categories separate.
Does a negative result mean the project must be rejected?
It describes one scenario and period. Review the timing of benefits and costs, non-cash effects and alternatives, and keep every real cost visible and every unknown benefit outside the figure.
Why are ROI and payback different?
ROI compares net benefit with cost over a defined period, while payback estimates when net cash flow recovers the initial investment. Their meaning can differ because of timing; the steady flow in the example is an explicit simplification.
Is all inventory value an annual benefit?
Releasing working capital differs from avoiding write-offs or reducing holding cost. Each effect has its own period and measurement method, and overlap is removed before they are combined.
What if some inputs are unknown?
Start with the process and costs you can establish, and keep unknown amounts open in the file. You can discuss the operating scope with ToDoOps before every input is complete.
Sources and references
[1] Odoo — consulting service packs. Reviewed 27 October 2026: pack hours and normal prices, the first-deal discount and separately billed travel. The service-scope reference used here; conversions use SAR 3.75 per USD before tax.
[2] Deloitte — AI and tech investment ROI, 16 October 2025. Original study. May–June 2025 survey of 548 director-level or more senior respondents across five industries, in organisations with revenue of at least US$500 million. The source for the technology and ERP investment figures discussed here.
From a clear decision file to the next step
The strongest decision sets benefit, cost and period side by side in a form others can review. Get to know the solution on the ToDoOps home page, try the calculators on a scenario whose inputs you know, then contact ToDoOps to discuss what your measurement still needs, by phone, WhatsApp or the form on the contact page.