What’s Your ROI On Coaching?

We can all probably agree that coaching and development are important, but we can also probably agree that good coaching programs can be expensive. So, in terms of a financial return, what can you expect for your investment?

In a recent SalesGlobe survey, about half of companies (48%) reported that they get a return greater than their investment in coaching and development, or a return multiples greater than their investment. And an additional 32% of companies at least recover their costs from coaching.

On the “return” side of the ROI calculation, the outcome from coaching is not always clear or near-term. While productivity levels and close rates may appear to be clear metrics for coaching success, those metrics may be driven by other organization and market factors in addition to the coaching program. Improvements in sales capability can develop over time as well. For instance, learning more effective methods for developing the business case and value proposition for strategic accounts may yield results months later when those opportunities naturally present themselves over a long sales process. While the effect of coaching is there, its impact may be latent for some period of time.

But measuring ROI is not an exact science. Companies report several challenges in tracking this information. For example, on the “investment” side of the ROI calculation, coaching in many organizations is conducted informally at the manager level and is not practiced consistently in the field. This makes it difficult to measure the actual resources, both hard and soft dollars, invested in coaching. Also, coaching is often blended with other management roles and not clearly tracked by the organization.

What sort of financial returns should you expect on your coaching investment?

To learn more, visit us at SalesGlobe.