The Invisible ROI: Why Leadership Development and Philanthropy Share the Same Secret

I recently shared about my next career move and how excited I was to merge two worlds I know and love: commercial real estate and nonprofit/philanthropy. It got me to thinking about the intersection, or as some may view, conflict, of leadership development, social responsibility and returns on investment.

The most frequent pushback I hear from executives about both leadership development and philanthropy is identical: "Where's the ROI?"

I once reviewed performance metrics for a client's leadership program.  Engagement scores rose 27%. Retention of top talent improved by 31%. Decision-making speed increased by 40%.

But here's what fascinated me: these weren't our primary objectives.

The real transformation happened in what's hardest to measure—how decisions are made when no one is watching, how teams collaborate without prompting, how innovation emerges organically rather than by mandate.  I’ve successfully implemented company-wide initiatives as a result of unintentionally “talking through” situations with my team.   

Both in business leadership and community development, the most powerful ROI often lies in what spreadsheets can't capture.

The question isn't whether leadership development or philanthropy works—it's whether we're brave enough to invest in outcomes we can feel but can't always immediately quantify.

What's the most significant "invisible ROI" your organization has experienced?