Measuring the Impact of Leadership Development

SOLUTIONS

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

MEASURING IMPACT

Prove the Value of Your Leadership Program

With tight resources and high expectations, you need proof that your leadership development delivers real results. HR professionals value behavior change, but your C-suite wants to see ROI in their own language. How do you showcase success to your stakeholders—and stand out as a strategic partner?

DDI delivers measurable outcomes aligned to your top priorities, including behavior change, learner engagement, and talent retention. With a structured measurement strategy and a clear path to progress, you’ll see exactly how your leadership program addresses critical business needs, improves leader performance, and achieves strategic goals—so you can confidently prove its overall impact.

By the Numbers

The Impact of DDI Leadership Development

24 Increase in Effectiveness

DDI programs drive behavior change, increasing leaders’ effective leadership behaviors by 24%.

88 Leader Engagement

88% of leaders reported increased engagement in their roles.

85 Team Productivity

85% of direct reports indicated their teams became more productive as a result of their leader’s participation in DDI training.

90 Skill Application

90% of leaders apply their new skills on the job.

Impact Evaluation Data from over 40K responses in 200+ organizations

[Across different levels of leaders], there have been improvements across the board. We have a 97% - 98% rate of leaders saying they’re implementing something that they’ve learned in the program.

Organizational Development Manager, Retail

Behavior Change

78% of HR professionals say behavior change is the most valuable measure of leadership development impact.

DDI HR Insights Report 2025

Track What Counts

Measure the Impact of Better Leaders

Showing the success of leadership development doesn’t have to be complicated. We make it easy to measure the outcomes that matter to you and your stakeholders. Together, we’ll ensure your programs are:

Targeting critical needs: Aligned with your business priorities and leadership skill gaps.
Implemented effectively: Engaging, relevant, and supported for long-term success.
Enhancing your talent: Driving behavior change while improving engagement, retention, and your leadership bench.
Delivering business results: Advancing performance, productivity, and growth.

With all the tools, resources, and easy-to-use reports you need to evaluate program effectiveness, you can clearly prove the value of your program—without adding to your workload.

See Progress at Every Step

Our Leadership Development Subscription includes everything you need to get a clear picture of program effectiveness. You’ll get insights and actionable data to track progress, understand learner engagement, and align development with leaders’ needs.

Show how your program is working with:

Assessment data: Focus future development plans with group data and trends.
Learner progress and activity: Track milestones and learning journey completion.
Digital content engagement: See how learners interact with resources, which competencies they’re developing, and trends over time.
Top development interests: Discover which topics and skills matter most to your leaders.

DDI provides the necessary expertise and resources for HR teams to drive continuous development and equip leaders with the skills and behaviors they need to thrive in their evolving roles.

The Total Economic Impact™ of a DDI Subscription

Related Research

DDI Leadership Development Subscription Delivered 424% ROI

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Have a Question?

Frequently Asked Questions About Measuring the Impact of Leadership Development

Why is it so difficult to measure the impact of leadership development?

Leadership development drives powerful outcomes like retention, engagement, and business performance. But isolating its impact can be difficult. Behavior change starts at the individual level, while more effective leaders improve performance across teams and organizations. The challenge is connecting development outcomes to strategic priorities to clearly demonstrate impact to stakeholders.
What are the most effective ways to measure leadership development?

The best approach combines qualitative and quantitative data. Track behavior change, skill application, and learner engagement, alongside business outcomes like productivity and retention. Then, layer in participant stories that show how leaders apply their learning and the impact it has on their teams and the business.
How does DDI help organizations track ROI on leadership development?

DDI connects leadership programs with your business priorities, then provides tools to measure impact like behavior change, program effectiveness, and business results. From learner progress to engagement data and skill application, DDI gives you clear, credible proof of impact.
What is a good starting point for measuring leadership development success?

Start by aligning your leadership development with critical business needs. Then, define success and select the metrics that matter most. Use tools like group learner trends, engagement tracking, and surveys to measure progress over time. A structured measurement strategy builds clarity, confidence, and credibility with stakeholders.

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