"Numbers aren't everything," writes Jack Keen. "Don't underestimate the importance of weaving a good story  into your business case."

                     "GOOD BUSINESS CASES are calculated based on numbers,
                     but they are approved based on stories. My favorite example
                     is the business case created for a notoriously penny-pinching
                     founder and chairman of a billion-dollar services company. All
                     the numbers shouted savings. But what sold the aging
                     chairman was the CFO's pitch that spending money on better
                     human resources systems would return his faltering firm to
                     its former glory. 

                     "ROI numbers, no matter how compelling, won't speak for
                     themselves. It's up to you to explain what they mean to
                     enterprise visions and goals. Sure, the new inventory system
                     will provide a 110 percent ROI by helping to control
                     warehouse costs and boost production efficiency. But what
                     the CEO really wants to hear is that it will make the company
                     a more irresistible supplier to key accounts. 

                     "Clever storytelling is one of the quickest and most effective
                     ways to gain executive understanding, buy-in and funding. It
                     also helps attract support and cooperation from reluctant
                     users during project implementation and operation. Vivid
                     stories translate dry, abstract numbers into compelling
                     pictures of how deep yearnings of decision influencers can
                     come true. Creating effective stories is not hard, provided we
                     clearly understand who these decision influencers are, know
                     well what they most care about and understand where to
                     place stories for the most impact. I've outlined below some
                     tips for doing just that....

                     "All of us have deep desires and concerns that drive our
                     behavior. Good ROI stories know this and speak accordingly.
                     For more eye-opening examples of business storytelling,
                     check out the website for a conference called "Storytelling:
                     Passport to the 21st Century"  (www.creatingthe21stcentury.org). 

                     For the full article, go to: http://www.cio.com/archive/061503/value.html