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From Happy Sheets to Real Numbers

  • Matt Williams
  • Sep 10
  • 2 min read

As an L&D manager your “Happy sheets” (course evaluation forms) will tell you whether people liked the biscuits or the room was too cold. What they don’t tell you is if anyone effectively transferred their learning or makes a positive impact.


If you want L&D seen as a capability engine (not a cost centre), you need proof of transfer, performance and business impact, and fast.


People liked the course. Great. But did anything change?


Try these quick gut-check questions:


  • Can you explain, in one minute, how a programme changed behaviour on the job?

  • If the CFO asked, “what did we get for that budget?”, do you have a clear answer?

  • Can your team tell the story of progress over the last 90 days without opening a slide deck?

  • Are your stakeholders chasing you for updates, or are you proactively showing them progress?

  • Do you have a simple, shared definition of success that everyone believes in?


The hidden cost of not measuring L&D


When we don’t show real-world impact, this happens:


  • L&D gets labelled as a cost centre, and budgets are the first to go.

  • Good programmes die early; weak ones limp on because no one knows the difference.

  • Managers disengage (“nice session, same results”).

  • Talent pipelines stall: critical roles stay underpowered.

  • Performance problems persist because nobody connects learning to work.

  • Your team burns energy reporting activity instead of influence.


You don’t need a complex dashboard to fix this. You need clarity, consistency, and a story leaders can trust.


How the TwentyOne Leadership L&D Academy helps


We help you move from activity to evidence, and make it stick. Expect practical tools, brain-friendly design, and simple habits that turn workshops into workplace change. Less faff. More impact. Faster.


Ready to shift the conversation?


If you want your L&D to be the capability engine your organisation relies on, contact matt@twentyoneleadership.com


Let’s talk about your world, your stakeholders, and the quickest path from “nice session” to making the difference.

 
 
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