成本效益分析in Project Management

Today we will discuss cost-benefit analysis in project management. This technique is also known as benefit-cost analysis, cost-benefit ratio, project cost analysis, etc.

It is rare for an organization to have unlimited resources, so they routinely must choose the best option from all the opportunities available. One of the ways organizations make these decisions is by using cost-benefit analysis.

This technique is also very helpful when deciding on a new course of action.

Cost-benefit analysis has a vast scope and explaining it in one blog post is not easy, so I will provide a preliminary outline of this project cost analysis technique.

成本效益分析

成本效益分析是通常由高层管理人员执行的收益测量方法。

This technique is useful during the feasibility study to determine if the project is worth taking.

另外，在项目selection analysis, cost-benefit analysis helps management select the right project from multiple options. They gather data and analyze all the projects, and then try to discover which project is more profitable.

成本效益分析提供了有价值的信息，例如：

• Expected Profit
• Time value of the profit
• 比较项目的基础

Expected Profit

成本效益分析发现并将收益转化为货币价值。然后，从收益中减去投资成本以获得结果。

You can proceed if the result is positive; if not, abandon the idea.

For instance, suppose your company is involved with manual bookbinding, and you propose that management buy equipment to improve efficiency.

Before submitting the proposal, you will perform the cost-benefit analysis. You will list the costs of the investment.

For example:

• Machine cost
• Maintenance cost
• Cost of electricity used by these machines

然后，您将确定好处，例如

• Profit from improved production
• Cost of reduced workforce
• Cost of the better-quality product

You will figure out the investment cost and the monetary value of benefits.

You will then perform the cost-benefit analysis by subtracting the cost of investment from the benefits. Use this figure with management to justify your proposal.

利润的时间价值

在成本效益分析中，您可以计算支出和预期利润。请记住，几年后赚取的利润与今天的价值不会相同，因此在分析成本时考虑通货膨胀。通货膨胀侵蚀了金钱的价值，因此您的利润不会超过

For example, assume a 5% inflation yearly. What you can buy for 100 USD today will cost 105 USD after one year.

Calculating the Current Worth

假设您将100,000美元投资于一个项目。您预计一年后将赚取10,000美元的利润。

考虑年度通货膨胀率为5％，当前价值将是多少？

查找当前值的公式是

FV = CV(1+r/100)^n

Here,

FV = Future Value

CV = Current Value

r = Inflation

n = time

Given values,

FV = 10,000 USD

r = 5

n = 1

Putting these values in the formula,

10,000 = CV（1+0.05）^1

CV = 10,000/1.05

CV = 9,523.80

Therefore, the current value of your profit is 9,523.80 USD.

There is no specific cost-benefit analysis formula; however, simple equations can provide you with accurate information.

比较项目的基础

Cost-benefit analysis helps you select the best project when faced with many options. Here you compare the profit earned from each project in current values, and then choose the one with the highest profit.

如果这是一个多年的项目，那么您将不会从今天的价值上获得利润。您可能希望您能从中获利；但是，净现值（NPV）分析可能令人大开眼界，值得做。

The Advantages of Cost-Benefit Analysis

Cost-benefit analysis has many advantages. It helps organizations conduct feasibility studies and select prudently from many choices. It is also useful when an organization takes a new course of action. This analysis has several basic advantages:

1. It justifies selecting a project.
2. 它有助于比较投资成本和收益。
3. 它提供了一个用于比较可用选项的基线。
4. It compares the future earnings with today’s dollar value.
5. 它有助于选择最有利可图的项目。

成本效益分析的局限性

The benefit-cost analysis has a few limitations.

It is useful for small项目s持续时间较短。随着持续时间的增加，该技术变得更加复杂和笨拙。更大的项目更加困难；转换无形的成本并不容易，因此此技术不再有用。

随着项目的增长，无形的成本和收益越来越复杂。将这些成本和收益转换为货币形式并非易事。通货膨胀在更长的项目中起着重要作用。同样，项目持续时间越大，风险就越大。

Summary

成本效益的技术是一个系统的approach to calculate the investment cost and received benefits. It is a simple technique that lets you know if you should proceed with the project or which project you should select among many.

Cost-benefit analysis is an important concept from a PMP exam point of view. Make sure you fully understand it.

How do you use cost-benefit analysis in your organization? Please share your thoughts in the comments section.