More Lies About Learning: Leading Executives Separate Truth From Fiction

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Lies About the Return on Learning

David Vance

Return on learning is a topic many people have strongly held beliefs about and aren’t afraid to share them. I was once asked to join a group of my colleagues for a two-hour discussion on the return on investment (ROI) for learning. I was happy to oblige and looked forward to a good discussion on its application in our field. When the moderator asked how many of us used ROI, I was the only one—of the 15 people in the room—who said yes. The group proceeded to catalog the reasons why ROI should never be used. So it turns out I was invited to be the token ROI supporter, which was fine because I believe ROI can play an important role in learning. But I learned that day how truly controversial this topic ...