The HR Magazine headline about leadership development programs is “Developing leaders not delivering ROI.” Jenny Roper discusses several measures of “ROI” of the programs and they’re not accounting measures. That’s a good thing because trying to put dollars and cents on the output of a leadership development program is a little like putting a tutu on a rhinoceros.
Forget the accounting measures
Accounting seems so precise. The numbers look precise. There are even decimal points. But trying to attach monetary values to something where the most important results won’t show up for decades, means that you’re probably replacing measurements that matter with some that only seem precise.
Instead of trying to come up with account ROI for your leadership development program, think about other ways you can measure success and progress.
Organizational measures
The purpose of leadership development is to have leaders ready to move up when needed. One way to measure your leadership development program is to track the number of leadership positions with at least one qualified person ready to fill the job if the incumbent leaves. When you’ve got at least one qualified person ready for each key position, raise the bar. Consider having two or three qualified internal candidates for every position.
Individual assessments
Measure the performance of your leaders. One way to do that is to measure performance against objectives. But don’t stop there. Have the leader’s team members and peers assess his or her performance.
Don’t fall into the accounting trap
Accounting measures are appropriate for some things but not for others. Leadership development is one of those “others.”
