How do you measure the impact and ROI of your partner training program?

1 Define your objectives and metrics

The first step in creating a partner training program is to define what you want to achieve and how you will measure it. Depending on your partnership strategy and model, you may have different objectives and metrics. Common objectives include increasing partner satisfaction and loyalty, sales and revenue, retention and renewal, referrals and leads, and skills and certifications. To track progress and success, you need to identify key performance indicators (KPIs) such as Partner Net Promoter Score (NPS), revenue growth rate, churn rate, referral rate, and certification rate.

2 Collect and analyze your data

The second step is to collect and analyze the data that will inform your KPIs. To do this, you need to have a reliable and consistent way of gathering and storing data from various sources, such as partner surveys and feedback, partner portal and learning management system (LMS), partner relationship management (PRM) and customer relationship management (CRM) software, partner contracts and invoices, and partner marketing and sales reports. Additionally, you need to have a clear and standardized way of analyzing the data and calculating the KPIs. To visualize and compare the data over time and across different segments of your partner network, you can use tools like spreadsheets, dashboards, and reports.

3 Calculate your ROI

To calculate the return on investment (ROI) of your partner training program, you need to estimate the benefits and costs of the program and divide the benefits by the costs. The benefits are the additional revenue or profit that you generate from your partners as a result of the training program, which can be estimated by multiplying the partner revenue growth rate by the average partner revenue or profit margin. The costs are the expenses that you incur to design, deliver, and maintain the training program, which can be estimated by adding up the direct and indirect costs of the program, such as content development and update, platform and technology fees, instructor and facilitator fees, travel and accommodation expenses, marketing and promotion expenses, opportunity costs of time and resources, administrative and operational overheads, and quality and compliance costs. The ROI is the ratio of the benefits to the costs, expressed as a percentage, which can be calculated by dividing the benefits by the costs and multiplying by 100.

4 Evaluate and improve your program

Evaluating and improving your partner training program based on the results of your measurement and calculation is the fourth and final step. Compare your actual performance with your expected or desired performance to identify gaps and opportunities for improvement. Additionally, solicit and incorporate feedback and suggestions from your partners and stakeholders, and make the necessary adjustments and enhancements to your program. Ask yourself questions such as: how well did you achieve your objectives and metrics? What were the strengths and weaknesses of your program? What were the best practices and lessons learned? What were the challenges and barriers that you faced or anticipate? What are the areas and actions that you can improve or optimize? By following these four steps, you can measure the impact and ROI of your partner training program and ensure that it delivers the value and results that you and your partners expect and deserve.