More than 400 heads of learning responded to a survey distributed across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa as well as the Asia-Pacific region.
It also found that up to one-half of survey respondents in charge of learning programme initiatives still do not believe measurement is a priority or a requirement.
When asked ‘what do you most require to better measure the business impact of learning?’ 35% said they needed a better understanding of how to measure results in the first place. Some 47% admitted they do not use a specific methodology for measuring business impact
"What is striking is that businesses rely largely on anecdotal ‘evidence’ rather than a specific methodology," said Raed Haddad, senior vice president, global delivery services, ESI.
He added: "Without a consistent measurement methodology and the dedication of resources to measure, organisations can’t tie learning engagements to concrete financial and value outcomes."
When asked was is most important to their measurement process, 62% named qualitative outcomes, such as employee or customer satisfaction. Yet, when asked what they ‘would’ measure, financial data, such as ROI and increasing revenue, rose closer to the top of the list, indicating at least a desire for more quantitative measurement.
Haddad said: "It’s clear organisations want to tie learning engagements to financial outcomes, but the research is telling us that they need a clear, consistent measurement methodology."
