The Value of Learning: How Organizations Capture Value and ROI and Translate It into Support, Improvement, and Funds [Hardcover]

Patricia Pulliam Phillips (Author), Jack J. Phillips (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 27, 2007 | ISBN-10: 0787985325 | ISBN-13: 978-0787985325 | Edition: 1

The Value of Learning is a hands-on guide for the implementation of learning and development programs that can be applied across all types of programs, ranging from leadership development to basic skills training for new employees. In this book, Patti Phillips and Jack J. Phillips offer a proven approach to measurement and evaluation for learning and development that can be replicated throughout an organization, enable comparisons of results from one program to another, and ultimately improve ROI.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The authors are renowned for their work as advocates of the ROI concept in training." (T + D, Dec 2007)

Review

"Clearly the Phillips are the established experts, and in this book offer tested, step-by-step ways to succeed and gain the necessary organizational support for learning. Just to underscore the importance that a number of us at Capella University place in the Phillips’ work, we are proud to use their methods and tools in our courses to allow our learners to obtain ROI certification as part of our masters and doctoral programs in Training and Performance Improvement. I recommend this book to anyone interested in proving the value of learning."
—Michael J. Offerman, president, Capella University

"Understanding the value of learning is critical for all business professionals. This book provides specific tools and techniques for evaluating learning effectiveness. A must read for anyone interested in the value of learning."
—Tamar Elkeles, Ph.D., vice president, Learning and Development,
QUALCOMM

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Pfeiffer; 1 edition (July 27, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787985325
• ISBN-13: 978-0787985325
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #514,346 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book - wonderful insight!, June 6, 2008

By 

Stephanie Dillon - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Value of Learning: How Organizations Capture Value and ROI and Translate It into Support, Improvement, and Funds (Hardcover)

I recently started some ROI projects at my company and had no idea where to begin. I begrudgingly went to the book store to purchase a book I knew I was going to have to force myself to read. I decided on The Value of Learning and was very pleasantly surprised!

I honestly not only found the book interesting but I was able to immediately apply some of the information in the first two chapters to classes I was currently preparing. I was so worried that it would be a huge challenge to read about measurements and ROI and that I would be bored to tears! However, I found the book well written, engaging and full of relevant information. I read the other review that the book was meant for beginners and I think that is true. It's a wonderful starting point and will make you thirst for more knowledge, which is available in his and Patricia's following books and case studies.

I think this book is an easy read and a great read. Very helpful in creating new ROI plans!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Best for beginners, November 14, 2007

By 

Observer "Bernie" (Boston, MA, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Value of Learning: How Organizations Capture Value and ROI and Translate It into Support, Improvement, and Funds (Hardcover)

Jack Phillips has been working in this area for many years and is an acknowledged expert. This book, however, was disappointing. It lacked the concrete, in-depth examples that I would expect from two experts with extensive field experience. Concrete examples are essential, I believe, to illustrate the more difficult aspects of measuring results, calculating ROIs and persuading skeptics, i.e., accountants and engineers, that a program worked and was worth its direct and indirect costs.

A good illustration of the need for and paucity of examples is Chapter 7, Measuring and Isolating the Impact of Programs (page 212 to 256). The bulk of the chapter is mind numbing lists and fairly mundane definitions. The first extended concrete example of the techniques described occurs on page 248, table 7.2. Here the authors provide a potentially useful illustration of applying a confidence estimate to the estimated contribution made by "a program" to an estimated or actual change in a relevant $$ outcome. This is good stuff. However, they really do not work the example. For example, for an ROI calculation you need to focus on the net benefits not the gross benefits - so we don't really know how, for instance, the Annual Improvement on Inventory of $2241 was calculated and whether we are talking about a reduction in working capital (a gross benefit) or the carrying cost of the inventory (a net benefit). Equally it is unclear how these estimates were derived from the information provided by program participants and how believable they were. Examples of the actual action plans would have made the material more interesting and easier to generalize. Finally, it would have been great to know what questions senior managers asked when presented with these results. What issues did the finance guy raise? What numbers got the most scrutiny?

One thing I do applaud is the authors' general emphasis on making conservative estimates of claimed benefits.

In sum, I would have found a case book that illustrates these techniques by retelling actual engagements far more useful and compelling.

5.0 out of 5 stars "Show me the value...", July 22, 2008

By 

David Boisselle (Chesapeake, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Value of Learning: How Organizations Capture Value and ROI and Translate It into Support, Improvement, and Funds (Hardcover)

Patti Phillips is fond of saying that finding the return on investment in workplace learning and performance programs via both quantitative and qualitative methods is simply "telling the story." She and her husband Jack, who is widely credited with conceiving and applying a fifth level--ROI--to Kirkpatrick's four levels of evaluation, have written their best book yet encapsulating everything a trainer needs to "show me the money."

Donald Kirkpatrick, professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin, first defined the four levels training evaluation in his 1975 book (since revised), Evaluating Training Programs. The four levels: reaction, learning, behavior, and results, have become the most widely used and popular model for the evaluation of training and learning. What Kirkpatrick's model didn't measure, however, was how the data are collected, analyzed, and reported. Jack Phillips developed a methodology to provide bottom-line figures and accountability for all types of learning, performance improvement, human resource, technology, and public policy programs.

The Value of Learning walks the reader through the rationale behind the need to build a comprehensive evaluation process (chapter one) and defining the needs and objectives that ensure business alignment (chapter two). Chapter three discusses the data, the measuring of inputs and indicators that are the heart and soul of the ROI equation. Chapters four through seven discuss the four levels of evaluation, answering not only the "why," but the challenges, sources of data, measuring techniques, and how to construct action plans. The heart of the book is chapter eight, which treats return on investment in depth, including how to convert output data to money, and why monetary value is needed to understand problems. Intangible measures such as customer service, employee attitudes, and stress--which drive funding and are the foundations of organizations--and whether they could or should be converted to monetary values are the topic in chapter nine. Finally, a process for communicating ROI results (chapter ten) and a discussion of the issues surrounding the implementation and sustainability of a comprehensive evaluation system (chapter eleven) tie a nice bow on the Phillips' case that workplace learning and professionals can and should be able to "show me the money."

I found The Value of Learning to be an easy-to-understand and well-written roadmap for a workplace learning professional to discover the "what," the "why" and the "how-to" (although a casebook supplement would be welcome) in implementing ROI as a way to demonstrate the accountability and value of our programs. As they authors say, "organizations are moving up the value chain, away from measuring reaction and learning to measuring application, impact, and occasionally ROI...organizations with comprehensive measurement and evaluation systems in place have enhanced their program budgets."