Proving the Impact: How Data and KPIs Show the Value of Coaching and Mental Health Initiatives in the Workplace
By Belinda Sharp, LMHC
In today's workplaces, coaching and mental health awareness are no longer “nice to have”—they are strategic investments. But even the most transformative program will struggle for funding or staying power without clear evidence of its impact. People will often question the value of developing “soft skills” or misinterpret the value of focusing on coaching or mental health outcomes rather than other company issues. That’s where data, KPIs, and metrics come in.
When we measure what matters, we not only validate our efforts—we build the case for long-term cultural change. In this article on Coaching and Leadership, we look at how Key Performance Indicators along with real world examples related to implementation offer a clearer roadmap for launching a coaching program that fits your team’s culture, goals, and resources.
Start With Clarity: What Are You Measuring and Why?
When I became a supervisor, and then a clinic director, the need for managing data increased. It came in the form of spreadsheets, dashboards, and other tracking forms. I understood the value of the data, but it was frustrating at times when I couldn’t figure out how to put the pieces together in a way that explained what was going on, or I couldn’t attach it directly to overall goals. People might feel like they were filling something out just as another piece of paper rather than understanding the meaning behind the data. This makes it increasingly crucial to make sure what you are measuring and how it connects to outcomes, growth, and support not only makes sense, but is helping to meet goals.
Before choosing metrics, anchor them to the purpose of your coaching or mental health initiative. Are you trying to reduce burnout? Build more effective managers? Improve psychological safety? Once you know the goal, meaningful measurement becomes much easier. Regardless of your industry, there are standards that have to be measured. These can be adapted based on needs in order to provide support for changes in embedding or prioritizing coaching and mental health as part of the process.
As John Doerr emphasizes in Measure What Matters (2018), organizations succeed when they “measure what truly counts”—aligning data to objectives that are clear, ambitious, and actionable. His OKR (Objectives and Key Results) framework is used by companies like Google, Intel, and Bono’s ONE campaign to turn vision into reality. This mindset can be adapted across industries of many sizes, particularly when trying to embed coaching or wellbeing practices into organizational culture.
What Does Measurement Look Like in Practice?
In order to effectively align the implementation of practices, you should outline specific KPIs, what they assess, and how to track them effectively. For example, when it comes to leadership coaching, the most effective organizations use a combination of behavioral assessments, employee feedback, and business performance indicators to track progress. For instance, a common starting point is a 360-degree leadership assessment, administered before and after coaching. These tools reveal measurable changes in communication, influence, and relational skills—providing concrete evidence of leadership growth over time.
Goal achievement rates also offer insight into program effectiveness. By tracking the percentage of coaching goals successfully reached—whether it's improving delegation, enhancing emotional intelligence, or leading more inclusive teams—organizations can connect individual development to broader business outcomes.
Another meaningful metric is the engagement level of employees who report to coached leaders. Post-coaching improvements in team morale and collaboration are often visible through quarterly pulse surveys or tools like the Gallup Q12. These indicators show how a single leader’s growth can positively ripple across a team.
Retention and promotion rates provide another valuable lens. When employees who’ve received coaching are more likely to stay with the company or move into higher roles, it speaks directly to coaching’s impact on leadership pipeline development. Similarly, manager effectiveness ratings from direct reports help assess shifts in trust, empathy, and performance support—key signals of leadership alignment and influence.
Measuring Mental Health Impact with Purpose
On the mental health side, data tells a powerful story when tracked intentionally. For example, absenteeism and presenteeism rates are often the first signs of trouble. High rates may indicate stress, disengagement, or burnout—but after implementing well-structured mental health initiatives, many companies report a drop in these metrics as employees feel more supported and energized.
To measure emotional well-being at scale, organizations often deploy validated assessments like the Maslach Burnout Inventory or custom stress and burnout surveys. These tools help HR and leadership identify high-risk departments or teams and monitor the impact of interventions over time.
Turnover data is another valuable input. If voluntary exits decrease after investing in mental health awareness and training, that’s a clear signal the organizational culture is becoming more supportive and sustainable.
Finally, perhaps one of the most telling indicators is psychological safety—employees’ sense of whether they can speak up, make mistakes, or share concerns without fear. Tracking this through internal surveys gives leaders real-time insight into trust and openness across the organization.
Linking Metrics to Meaningful Outcomes
These numbers don’t live in a vacuum—they help leaders connect people development to business results:
Higher retention reduces recruitment costs.
Improved engagement increases productivity and innovation.
Stronger leadership drives better decision-making and team alignment.
Better mental health leads to reduced healthcare spend and less burnout-related downtime.
For example, a company that reduced team burnout by 20% following a mental health awareness campaign also saw a 12% increase in team performance and a 30% drop in turnover over 12 months. That’s real ROI—with human and organizational benefits.
The Power of Combining Numbers and Narrative
Quantitative data tells us what happened. Qualitative data tells us why.
Pair your dashboards with stories from participants—quotes from leaders who benefited from coaching, or testimonials from employees who felt safer and more supported because of mental health programming. This combination turns metrics into meaning.
One of the most telling examples of how data supports implementation of coaching or mental health programs comes from real world business models. At Google, the landmark “Project Aristotle” studied over 180 teams to identify drivers of success. The strongest predictor of high performance was psychological safety—the belief that team members can speak up without fear. By tracking this through surveys and performance outcomes, Google found that psychologically safe teams were more innovative and collaborative. As a result, psychological safety became a core cultural KPI across the company. Source: Rozovsky, 2015
Another example is how Microsoft chose to focus on coaching to improve outcomes.Under Satya Nadella’s leadership, Microsoft shifted from a fixed to a growth mindset culture, with coaching playing a pivotal role. The company used 360-feedback, employee pulse surveys, and team effectiveness data to track leadership behaviors aligned with empathy, curiosity, and continuous learning. These metrics helped drive a massive cultural transformation—and contributed to Microsoft tripling its market valuation within five years. Source: Nadella, 2017
At Deloitte, mental health metrics were embedded into leadership development. By tracking EAP engagement, absenteeism, and wellbeing scores, the company identified high-risk teams and trained managers in psychological safety. The result: a 25% drop in turnover and increased productivity. Source: Deloitte Insights, 2021
In addition to these larger corporations, there are examples of start ups and smaller businesses that see the value of embedding these programs and are seeing data reflect their success.
Torchlight Technology Group, a 50-person digital agency in Canada, implemented anonymous wellbeing check-ins and coaching support. Within six months, stress levels dropped by 35%, sick days declined, and employee satisfaction rose—proving that consistent listening and simple tracking can have a major impact without major infrastructure.
Similarly, TrueSpace, a Colorado-based consultancy, embedded internal coaching and tracked both behavioral and business KPIs. Improvements in decision-making, team alignment, and retention directly correlated with a twofold increase in revenue over two years—highlighting the ROI of leadership development even in scale-stage businesses.
Whether you're launching a coaching initiative or embedding mental health awareness into your strategy, these examples affirm the power of tracking what matters most with intention, regardless of business size—and letting that data guide transformation. When you measure impact meaningfully it can enhance the ability to adapt faster to changing needs of both the people and the business.
Closing Thoughts: Measure to Improve, Not Just to Prove
Metrics aren’t just about proving success—they’re about fostering reflection, learning, and continuous improvement. A well-designed dashboard reveals what’s working, highlights areas for growth, and guides strategic evolution. When leveraged thoughtfully, data becomes the driving force that transforms coaching and mental health programs from one-time initiatives into long-term organizational assets.
Whether you're developing a leadership coaching program or rolling out a mental health initiative, measurement should be integrated from the very beginning. Select KPIs that align with both business goals and the human experience. Track what truly matters. Refine your approach as insights emerge. Most importantly, use the data not only to demonstrate and prove impact—but to deepen and improve it.
When organizations invest in their people and measure those efforts with intention, they build cultures where everyone thrives.
Reference:
Doerr, J. (2018). Measure what matters: How Google, Bono, and the Gates Foundation rock the world with OKRs. Portfolio/Penguin.