Risk analysis and investment appraisal in marketing

The author is employed in Pharmaceutical Development and is concerned with the introduction of methods designed to integrate new products and technologies with the often conflicting objectives of production, marketing, and finance.

This article outlines an approach to quantifying risk in investment appraisal and considers a marketing project although the technique has been used to appraise plant investment associated with uncertain technology and sales forecasts and also to investigate the optimal participation and financing for joint venture proposals. In addition, it is suggested that the organization of investment appraisal work may be more important than the techniques employed.