Running Training Like a Business: Determining the Return on Investment of Your Learning Programs

In recent years, a growing body of research has been making a case for how spending in human performance areas—training, knowledge management, performance management and advanced human resources practices—translates into bottom- and top-line growth.

A number of companies have developed analyses by which to track return on investment, yet too often these analyses merely show the return on a specific technology-delivered solution, such as eLearning or human resources services. The real challenge has remained: how to do a higher-level analysis of the business benefits of human performance spending.

Accenture has now taken this general research and analysis one step further, developing a detailed measurement methodology and demonstrating its validity by detailing the dramatic business return on investment (ROI) from its own employee learning programs. The resulting Accenture Learning Return on Investment methodology may help other companies demonstrate the value of their learning programs to overall financial performance. Whatever the method used, Accenture believes rigorous measurements of learning investments will increasingly become important.

David Y. Smith is a partner with Accenture Learning BPO Services. Tad Waddington is director of performance measurement-Accenture People Enablement.