Come on mcgyvr, we have both been doing this long enough to know derived parts and bottom up modelling works just fine, but you are lying if you deny multi-body master part modelling is not at least 100% more efficient.
There is no company that can't use these workflows, I am not talking about making pretty pictures with transparent solids, I work in structural and pressure equipment industries and it is equally as applicable as plastics and the like.
It isn't about hoping that next years will be better, it is about over 5 years will it be better - always. Because you will have to wait 4-5 years before it is more economical to upgrade than stay on subscription. Now you can't say that over 5 years there will be no feature enhancements that will improve productivity, otherwise you have not been using Inventor over the past 5-10 years.
You could easily justify that expense based on ROI for one feature in 5 years. To put it in perspective (I think we could use a bit of that) our charge out rate for one drafter for 2 days work is more than a years subscription! It doesn't matter how many seats you have, it is included in the cost of doing business.
I have never worked for a company that doesn't upgrade because the old product does all they need, they do it because they are cheap. It usually flows though the products they make and the remuneration they pay. You don't want to work for companies like this, they view design as an expense not an income.
"I bet I could also show that your expense was just a waste of money." I bet you can't. If you actually perform an ROI analysis the evidence clearly shows the productivity enhancements by using the most up to date tools. And I am not talking about the flashy marketing tools we never use, I am talking about the one or two new features you can't do without. Years ago it was debated about the merits of waiting to upgrade, these days all power users I come across on the forums (not this one) work off the latest release, coincidence?..