ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the process of making a Convincing Case for the Strategic Value of Organisational Learning and Development (OL&D). Re-educating senior management presents a Herculean task and OL&DPs need to be able to spot every resistance trick in the chapter. The secret to using ROI effectively, for OL&D purposes, is to understand its underlying theory in great depth and have the ability to adapt its application in practice. The purpose of ROI for OL&D is to keep everyone focused on the objectives, not to claim how wonderful the training is. The key to getting the best out of ROI is to know its weaknesses as well as its strengths; its capabilities and limitations; how to use it; when to use it and when not to use it. ROI provides the clearest, most focused, line-of-sight between learning and business performance. This was an immature organization throwing money at an indeterminate business need called 'customer intimacy'.
