With information this is not the case. Relatively modest investments in information and systems can lead to massive returns. The returns were massive, hurting the competition significantly and generating true competitive advantage. On the other hand, you can invest tens of millions of dollars and see no return. Where ROI can be most accurately predicted it is almost always small and where it is uncertain the returns are often huge.
Data warehousing is the classic example.
It is usually impossible to predict the returns from a large data warehousing implementation, but studies show the percentage returns are typically in the hundreds. Compare this to the investment in ERP, where justification is usually made through detailed ROI calculations. If the ROI turns out positive, management can be grateful. Another twist is worthy of note. The 'big returns need a big investment' mentality of many large companies cannot be applied to information systems.