I am trying a find a story/lesson that I believe was stated by Andrew
Grove, former CEO of Intel.

As I remember the story, he makes the point that there are certain
types of business strategy questions for which return on investment
cannot be calculated.

He gives the example of Queen Isabella and Christopher Columbus.  He
speculates that Isabella of course did not ask Columbus "show me your
spreadsheet with the ROI calculated and show me the value of finding a
new world".  The point is that some decisions (e.g., looking new
worlds) cannot be quantified.

Can you help me find a reference to this story, please?  Was it Andy
Grove or somebody else?

Thanks.

You have a good memory! It was indeed Andy Grove.

The first mention that I recall having seen of the remark about
Columbus' ROI was in "The Economist." I've found it in the May 8, 1997
issue:

" Andy Grove, the boss of Intel, the world?s biggest chipmaker,
recently summed up the online pioneers? attitude when asked about the
return on investment from his firm?s Internet ventures: 'What?s my ROI
on e-commerce? Are you crazy? This is Columbus in the New World. What
was his ROI?' "

The Economist: In search of the perfect market
http://www.economist.com/surveys/displayStory.cfm?story_id=596262

According to this 1998 article, the remark was made at an Intel
shareholders' meeting:

" The keynoter recalled that Intel chief Andy Grove was asked a
similar question at an Intel shareholders' meeting. Specifically, the
Intel shareholder inquired about the ROI (return on investment) from
the company's Web site.

'This is Columbus in the New World. What was his ROI?' Grove replied
to the abashed shareholder. "

EXN.ca: eCongress - Who's Making Money? The List Goes On
http://www.exn.ca/Stories/1998/06/02/64.asp

My search strategy was simplified by the fact that I remembered having
seen Grove's remark about Columbus in "The Economist." This was the
Google search string that led me to the 1997 article:

Google Web Search: site:economist.com intel "andy OR andrew grove" columbus roi
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=site%3Aeconomist.com+intel+%22andy+OR+andrew+grove%22+columbus+roi

I hope this is precisely what you're looking for. If not, please
request clarification; I'll be glad to offer further assistance before
you rate my answer.

Best regards,
pinkfreud

PERFECT!!!

I went for a bike ride and when I returned the EXACT answer that I was
looking for was there!!

THANK YOU!

Many thanks for the five stars and the nice tip!

~pinkfreud