What about the much less tangible (but important) investments made by members of an organization in the attention they devote to executive coaching and hopes that are garnered regarding the anticipated results of the coaching initiative? How are the results to be measured? Do we look just at short-term results, or do we take a long-term perspective? One of the reasons for establishing a long-term relationship with a client is that “return” can be measured over a period of years rather than months.

Furthermore, is the scope of assessment narrow or broad? Executive coaching (and leadership development) initiatives often not only yield discernable results over a long (rather than short) period of time, but also impact broadly rather than narrowly. The improved performance of a leader might not show up right away and might be seen not in the success of the leader’s own division but in the way in which the leader’s division has helped to improve the performance of other divisions in the organization.

As noted above, the way in which executive coaching and leadership development initiatives are most likely to be successful is when they are conceived and enacted in a systemic manner. Should this also be the case when evaluating the effectiveness of these initiatives? Is not a systemic (as well as long-term) perspective required in providing an ROI analysis?

A somewhat different perspective has sometimes been taken regarding ROI. We can consider Return on Expectations (ROE) rather than return on investment. We ask our client what they expect from their investment of money, time, attention and hope in a specific initiative. These expectations might be quantitative: financial, production levels, measured quality of service. However, they might also be qualitative: improved employee morale, increased “coach-like” behavior on the part of leaders, increased “appreciative” behavior on the part of all employees. This broader list of expectations might be harder to assess. However, it is more likely to be fully in line with what our client wants and more directly applicable to the planning and engagement of an initiative that is aligned with our client’s wants and needs.

There is the old, often-told tale about the person discovered searching around a streetlight for “something.” When asked about what had been lost, the searcher indicates that they lost their keys. When asked where the keys were lost, the searcher points to a spot several yards away from the streetlight. The next question is obvious: “why are you looking here under the streetlight?” The answer: “because the light is better here!” Similarly, we might be inclined to measure something (in terms of both “investment” and “return”) that is easily measurable (in the light), but not directly relevant to the expectations of our clients (the location of the keys). We must not only listen to what our clients want but also to what they expect. ROE might make more sense than ROI.

Future of Leadership Development and Executive Coaching

The NECS group discussions about leadership development often turned to the future and directions in which leadership development and executive coaching should move in the near future. One theme emerged that was particularly compelling for NECS participants. This theme concerned the shaping of a next generation of executive coaches and the next generation of coaching perspectives and practices. The field cannot remain stagnant. A strong but flexible bridge must be built between the current generation of coaching leaders (represented by those attending NECS) and the next generation of coaches and coaching leaders – those who are younger and those who have recently entered the field (at any age).