An L&D manager opens a slide deck and says, “Seventy people are on Business English this quarter. The feedback is positive. Here are a few quotes.” A finance manager nods, then asks the only question that really matters when budgets are tight:

“What measurable change has this brought about in the business?”

If that scene feels familiar, you’re not alone.

It’s almost cliché to say that English is no longer a nice-to-have in business. Across sectors, it’s a standard requirement across sectors. Leaders are demanding results, and employees who increasingly value the confidence that English brings, as Pearson’s 2024 report clearly shows. And yet, many organizations still treat language training as a recurring calendar entry rather than a strategic lever. Classes happen, materials circulate, learners attend. Business as usual.

Then the inevitable question arrives: Is this actually working?

The question “What’s our ROI (Return on Investment) on Business English courses?” echoes across the boardroom table. Out come the attendance charts, school-issued progress reports, maybe a few glowing comments. Useful? The Germans would say jein, yes and no (and of course they have a word for that).

The case for measuring what matters

If the above sounds familiar, or if I’ve simply managed to grab your attention, keep reading. Over this short two-part series, I’ll show how to build a measurement philosophy for language training using KPIs, explain why independent assessment via the Global Scale of English (GSE) is your best ally, and illustrate how all these datapoints come together in the only metric every boardroom finds attractive: ROI.

I’ll also show how the Pearson English International Certificate (PEIC) ticks that final box of recognition and reward. Although this post is primarily aimed at business stakeholders, I invite everyone in the EFL world to see how the GSE can serve as a business tool, alongside its methodological prowess.

KPIs: small, steady, and meaningful

In learning and development, measurement works best when it’s little and often. KPIs shouldn’t be an autopsy at the end of a course; they should be pulse checks along the way, data you can act on.

Short feedback loops after sessions, mid-course benchmarks, quick manager observations on behavioural change - these aren’t just admin exercises. They’re your early-warning and early-celebration system rolled into one.

I like to think of KPIs as chapters in a coherent story. Each chapter answers a different question, and together they tell a narrative that HR, L&D and the board can all buy into.

Let’s start with participation and regularity. Are people showing up and staying engaged? Track attendance, lateness and, for online components, log-ins and time on task. That’s your health check. If the numbers drift, then scheduling or content might need a rethink, ideally in tandem with your provider (trust me, collaboration here pays off).

Then there’s progress in level and skills. Here, independence matters. Use baseline, mid-course and endline tests that are external to the training provider and mapped to the GSE. Because GSE operates on a 10–90 scale, it captures micro-progress that broad CEFR bands simply miss. Where the CEFR might still say “B1”, the GSE can show movement from 48 to 53. A few GSE points may not sound like much, but in the world of adult learning, that’s a genuine success story. Where CEFR might suggest stagnation, or plateauing, as we call it in Applied Linguistics - the GSE tells you the learning curve is alive and kicking.

And finally, application on the job. Is the business experiencing tangible benefits from improved communication? And since our learners are the heart of any programme, their satisfaction and motivation levels are equally telling. Low energy or disengagement is often the first sign something’s off, long before the test scores flatten.

These KPIs are deliberately mixed, with some being complex numbers and others experience-based. That’s intentional. Research in e-learning shows you need both if you want to understand what’s really happening in a course, not just what appears in the final test report.

Why GSE changes the game

The GSE isn’t just a theoretical framework, it’s an ecosystem:  courseware, AI-driven assessments, analytics, the works. My experience as an LSP (Language Service Provider) owner and Head of Studies at choices® has taught me one thing: using third-party, reliable and organization-agnostic testing gives us a massive advantage. Businesses are often promised "pies in the sky". The problem? Those pies are frequently baked and taste-tested by the same baker.

Independent, GSE-based assessment is a genuine USP.

It’s external to the language services provider, which makes the data credible to L&D, HR and, most importantly, the board. It’s granular, so it captures those subtle wins that keep learners motivated. And it’s consistent across time and cohorts: gold dust when budgets are tight and every line item gets scrutinised.

When you can say, “We measure independently, we’re aligned, and here’s evidence of real progress”, you’ve earned yourself something priceless: a protected budget.

Coming up next

In the next post, I’ll move from "how" to "why", showing how these insights translate into measurable business outcomes. We’ll talk ROI: the costs (both obvious and hidden), the returns (both hard and soft), and the benchmarks that make all the difference. Because when you measure smartly, with GSE as your compass, everyone wins: learners, managers, HR and yes, even the boardroom sceptics.

We live in a world in which change is a constant. While change has always existed, lately it has definitely accelerated. There is an idea in society that we should embrace change and adopt whatever is new, with an underlying assumption – wrong to many – that what is new is always better.one that is often wrong

In the world of ELT, new materials are developed every year. It is unthinkable for most teachers to be using teaching materials that were published 10 years ago. Some would even claim that anything published before 2020 is already out-dated.

How does all this impact on the Global Scale of English (GSE) – published over 10 years ago? When it was launched in 2014, it constituted a significant innovation in ELT. The following quotes were provided by ELT experts at the time of launch.

At the beginning of every school year, we welcome new learners into our classrooms with the same core question: Where are our students now, and how far can we take them?

For English teachers, this reveals a huge challenge. In a single class, we might have one student at an A2 level, while others are solidly B1 or just entering A2+. Navigating such a wide range of abilities can feel overwhelming.

We’ve all seen it: students can spend months (or even years) studying English and still feel like they haven’t moved up a level. Teachers work incredibly hard, and students put in the effort, but progress feels intangible. Why is that? And more importantly, how can schools make it easier to see and support that progress?

In recent years, I have found a powerful ally in answering that question: the Global Scale of English (GSE). Backed by Pearson and aligned with the CEFR, the GSE offers more than just levels, it provides a clear, data-informed path to language growth. Most importantly, it gives teachers and school leaders the ability to set meaningful goals and measure real progress.

But, how is this useful at the beginning of the school year?

Starting with assessment

To get a clear picture from the start, assessment is essential; there’s no doubt about it. However, it can't just be a punctuation mark at the end of a term or a requirement from administration. Used strategically, this first assessment can be the compass that guides instruction and curriculum decisions, empowering both teachers and students from day one. This is why choosing the correct assessment tools becomes fundamental.

The GSE difference: Precision, clarity, confidence

Unlike the broad bands of the CEFR, the GSE provides a granular scale from 10 to 90, breaking down each skill into precise learning objectives. This allows educators to monitor progress at a much closer level, often identifying improvements that would otherwise go unnoticed.

When learners see that their score has moved from 36 to 42, even if their overall CEFR level hasn’t changed, they gain confidence. They recognize that learning is a continuous process rather than a series of steps. Teachers, in turn, are able to validate growth, provide clear evidence of learning and tailor instruction to the learner’s current needs, not just their general level.

For example, two students might both be classified as "A2", but the GSE gives us a much clearer picture: a student with a GSE score of 35 is likely mastering simple sentences, while another student scoring 40 might already be comfortable writing simple stories and is ready to tackle B1-level tasks.

This isn't just data: it's a roadmap. It tells us exactly what to teach next, allowing us to differentiate with confidence instead of relying solely on gut feeling.

GSE tools that make it happen

Pearson offers a comprehensive range of GSE-aligned assessment tools that support different stages of the learning journey. Each tool plays a distinct role in placement, diagnosis, benchmarking or certification.