More than ROI: The (Human) Case for Developing Leaders Early

The Twelve Bens Range, Connemara National Park, Ireland

Research consistently links investment in employee’s skill development and career progress to higher engagement levels, stronger motivation, and increased retention. For example, 94% of employees say they would stay longer at a company that invests in their career development (Developing Employees and Improving Performance, LinkedIn). Organizations also see meaningful cost savings when they prioritize internal development over external hiring. In short, investing in people literally pays off.

Zooming in further, the ROI for investing in leadership development is equally convincing. Studies show that organizations with strong leadership development programs significantly outperform their peers on key business metrics. 

We can narrow the lens even further to early leadership development (i.e. leadership training and development for individuals before they take on a formal leadership role). While the body of research is smaller (unsurprisingly, since leadership development has traditionally been limited to senior and executive leaders), the ROI is compelling.

More than Metrics

The research shows that early investment strengthens pipelines, preserves institutional knowledge, and positions future leaders to step into critical roles leading to smoother and less costly transitions—outcomes that ultimately drive measurable ROI. Those outcomes matter. But they’re not the whole story, and if I’m being honest, not what drives me. What motivates me, and what has guided my thinking for years, from my work in inclusion, to starting a business devoted to leadership development for emerging leaders, is the human side: how early investment shapes the experiences of the people leaders work with, helps ensure that historically excluded talent can see themselves as leaders, and prepares the next generation of managers with the judgement, empathy, and trust they will need to lead well in an increasingly complex, AI-driven world.

These are the reasons I’m convinced that organizations should start developing leaders before they take on a formal role. And they’re reasons that matter just as much for people as they do for performance.

1. When leaders aren’t prepared, their teams pay the price

Leadership development is, by nature, ongoing. Some lessons can only be learned through experience. But failing to provide foundational leadership skills before someone takes on a team doesn’t just affect the new leader, it directly impacts the people they lead.

Unprepared leaders often struggle with setting expectations, delegating effectively, providing (and asking for) feedback, managing conflict, and supporting employee growth.

The result is not just lower performance, but increased stress, anxiety, and disengagement among team members. Research consistently links poor leadership to burnout, reduced psychological safety, and higher turnover.

Early leadership development helps prevent this dynamic by ensuring that new leaders enter their roles with at least a baseline level of competence, self-awareness, and accountability, reducing unnecessary harm to their teams.

2. Early development keeps historically marginalized and excluded talent in the leadership pipeline

One of the most important benefits of early leadership development is its impact on who stays on the leadership trajectory.

Research on leadership identity shows that people are more likely to pursue leadership roles when they can see themselves as leaders and feel equipped to succeed. This is particularly important for women and individuals from historically marginalized groups, who are more likely to self-select out of leadership pathways due to lack of confidence, access, or early encouragement (even when performance is strong).

When leadership development is reserved only for those who already hold titles, it often reinforces existing inequities. By contrast, in offering leadership development earlier and more broadly, organizations aren’t just cultivating future leaders, they are expanding who gets to lead, ensuring the leadership pipeline reflects the diversity of the workforce and communities it serves.

3. The future of work requires more capable managers, not fewer

As AI becomes more embedded in organizational life, there is a common assumption that it will reduce the need for managers. In reality, the opposite is increasingly true.

AI may automate tasks, but it also increases the complexity of work. Managers are now responsible for integrating AI into workflows, supporting employees through constant change, addressing ethical concerns, and maintaining trust, clarity, and human connection in more technologically mediated environments.

Research suggests that organizations adopting AI often experience increased demand for strong people leadership: managers who can coach, sense-make, and lead through ambiguity. This raises the bar for what effective management looks like and makes “learning on the job” an increasingly risky strategy.

We need to equip future managers with the adaptive leadership skills (e.g. critical thinking, emotional intelligence, ethical judgment, and learning agility) that AI cannot replace and that organizations will rely on more heavily, not less, sooner than later.

A final thought

From a pragmatic standpoint, organizations benefit when leadership development starts early, even if those leaders leave. As Jack Zenger argued in a 2019 call for earlier investment in leadership development, skeptics often worry that individuals developed early may eventually leave. That concern isn’t unfounded, but it doesn’t signal a failed investment. Organizations still benefit from stronger performance while those individuals are there, and decades of research show that employees who feel invested in are significantly less likely to leave in the first place.

Increasingly, research is exploring leadership development even before individuals enter the workforce, in university and college settings. These studies show that leadership coaching—either on its own or as part of broader leadership development programs—leads to stronger leadership identity, increased confidence in taking on leadership roles, and, as one study by Brown, R. P., Varghese, L., Sullivan, S., & Parson, S. (2021) found, greater humility.

This last outcome is especially noteworthy. In a time defined by uncertainty, complexity, and high-profile leaders who model ego, narcissism, and ‘know-it-all’ attitudes, humility may be one of the most important leadership qualities that early leadership development can help us cultivate in the next generation of leaders.