What ROI can we expect in 90 days?

1. Set a baseline before you build

ROI is not a story; it is a measurement plan. Before any model or dashboard is built, define the baseline: current margin, cost per unit, churn rate, or conversion by segment. Without a baseline, you cannot prove value.

The baseline should be owned by finance or the business owner, not the data team. This forces alignment on what will be measured and how it will be counted. It also prevents post‑hoc debates that kill momentum. This baseline should align with your broader data strategy.

If you can’t name the baseline in one sentence, the use case is too vague. “Improve customer insights” is not a baseline. “Reduce churn from 8% to 7% in the SMB segment” is.

A good rule of thumb is to lock the baseline within the first two weeks. If you can’t agree on it quickly, the use case is not a 90‑day candidate.

2. Pick 1–3 use cases with direct P&L impact

The fastest ROI comes from use cases that touch revenue or cost directly. Pricing, churn reduction, and operational efficiency are the most reliable mid‑market candidates. They are measurable, have clear owners, and can be piloted quickly.

Avoid use cases that depend on large data platform rebuilds or cross‑departmental reorganizations. Those are important, but they rarely show ROI in 90 days. Focus on quick wins that prove the model and build credibility with the board.

A 90‑day portfolio should be small and ruthless. If a use case cannot be piloted inside one business unit, it is not a 90‑day use case. Keep scope tight to protect speed.

A typical 90‑day portfolio includes one revenue use case (pricing or upsell), one cost use case (operations or procurement), and one risk use case (AI or compliance control).

3. Package decisions, not dashboards

A decision pack ties the use case to an owner, a business decision, and a capture KPI. It is the artifact that allows a board or COMEX to approve funding quickly because the economics are explicit. This is how you move from analytics to decisions.

Each pack should include: the business problem, the proposed decision, expected financial impact, data requirements, risk assessment, and the capture plan. When done well, this replaces the endless cycle of “one more dashboard.”

The pack should also define what “done” means. If a pricing model is built but not deployed, it is not done. If an ops optimization is proposed but not executed, it is not done. The decision pack makes that explicit.

In 90 days, teams can usually deliver three decision packs. That is enough to build momentum and prove ROI capture discipline. If you need executive leadership to run that cadence, see fractional CDO cost and outputs.

4. Capture is a process, not a promise

Capturing ROI requires operational change. A pricing model only creates value when pricing rules are implemented, monitored, and adjusted. An ops model only creates value when teams use it to change workflows.

That’s why ownership matters. The business owner must sign off on the capture plan and commit to the operational changes. If the data team owns everything, ROI remains theoretical.

In practice, the highest ROI cases are the ones where the owner already has decision rights and budget authority. If you choose cases with unclear ownership, capture stalls.

A practical cadence is a bi‑weekly value review with finance and owners. This makes ROI visible early and prevents drift.

90‑day ROI scoring rubric

If a use case does not score well on these criteria, it is unlikely to deliver ROI in 90 days. Use this rubric to choose the portfolio and avoid “ROI theater.”

• Clear baseline and counterfactual (quantified in one sentence).
• Named owner with decision rights and budget authority.
• Data availability without major platform rebuild.
• Operational change can be deployed inside one business unit.
• Impact is measurable weekly or monthly (not yearly).

If a use case depends on a multi‑quarter migration, it is not a 90‑day ROI case. Park it in the 12‑month roadmap and keep the 90‑day sprint focused on execution.