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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.

International education is undergoing a transformation. Today’s students are more mobile, more digitally connected and more determined than ever to seize global opportunities. As expectations evolve, institutions must keep pace – not only in how they teach but in how they assess the readiness of their potential students. 

One area under increasing pressure is English language proficiency testing, where speed, flexibility, and trust are no longer just an option but are essential. 

Why Pearson English Express Test meets the modern demands

The traditional model of language testing, with fixed test centres and long result waiting times, does not reflect the reality of the modern student's journey. Application timelines are tighter, competition is fiercer, and students expect seamless experiences. 

They want to:

• Apply, test and receive results quickly 

• Take the test anywhere and at any time 

• Have confidence in the fairness and accuracy of the process

For universities, this means rethinking how they evaluate language skill testing without compromising on quality or security. 

Introducing the Pearson English Express Test

The new Pearson English Express Test is designed for the pace and complexity of today’s global admissions. It offers students the freedom to take the test anywhere, any time – whether they are in a remote area or a bustling city. With certified results delivered in just 48 hours, it removes the delays that can stall applications and cause frustration for both students and the admissions team. 

Once seen as the pursuit of gap-year students and those looking for a novel way to broaden their horizons, teaching English as a foreign language is now a powerful way to open doors worldwide. And with the benefits of learning English – including allowing you to communicate on a global scale, boosting productivity and building interpersonal skills – it's more important than ever. So, how has this impacted on why and how teachers do the job?

Sharing the gift

“When I applied to go and teach English, it was something I wanted to do for me,” recalls Anandi Vara, who taught English in Nepal. “That soon changed. As soon as I observed the students I was teaching embracing, and experiencing the benefits of, English – even at that fledgling stage – it became a reward in itself and sustained me for the rest of the time I was there. The idea that I was partly responsible for setting someone off on the first steps to a life richer in opportunities is a pretty unbeatable motivator, and it spurs you to be as good at the job as you can be.” This supports research released by Pearson, which suggests that it's this "lightbulb moment" that keeps the vast majority of teachers in the job.

Thomas Stephen, who taught English in the Mexican city of Guadalajara, agrees. “I speak Spanish as well as my native English, so have personally experienced the numerous benefits of bilingualism; a gift I was keen to share with others and witness them appreciating,” explains Thomas. “Being a living, breathing example of what can be achieved is an added dimension in the classroom too,” says Thomas.

Motivations and expectations

The benefits of learning English are steadily evolving: are teachers’ motivations for – and methods of – facilitating this learning changing, too?
“There is certainly the rapidly-aging stereotype of teaching English overseas being viewed as some sort of rite of passage,” says Anandi. “That makes it sound like a rather passive, selfish act on the part of the teacher, which couldn't be further from the truth – especially in this day and age.

Teaching English is collaborative, because the students are steering you, as much as you’re steering them, towards a highly personalised way of learning. For example, what vocabulary will be useful to them in the hobbies and after-school jobs they do, which may well inform a future career. Students are savvier than ever about why they want to learn and what they want to learn and, as a result, can be very vocal about it, which can only be a good thing! Thinking back to your own aspirations as a student is a very helpful aid in reaching the people you're teaching and understanding their needs.”

As Thomas highlights, you’ve also got to consider how your younger students ended up in your class to begin with. “It’s worth remembering that many will have been sent to the school you teach at because their parents probably learned English the same way, and many will be reaping the professional (and financial) benefits of having done so, so want the same for their children,” says Thomas. “That puts an added pressure on teachers, of course; as parents are keen to right the wrongs of their own path to learning, as well as trying to optimise their children’s learning to maximise the chances they’ll be able to study overseas and secure a good job in future.”

Changes to the role

Sophie Atkinson, who taught English in Sri Lanka, cites the internet as a big factor in sculpting the ambitions of learners. “Although the Internet was relatively scarce where I was teaching, even the briefest exposure to it offered a window into a richer life – not to mention a learning aid that's dominated by the language they're learning,” explains Sophie. “It's having those kinds of insights and adapting your lessons accordingly that are the reasons I wanted to teach. It's a role you can make your own that has selfless rewards that are second to none.”

Opening doors one lesson at a time

In the end, teaching English today is far more than a rite of passage; it’s a deliberate, collaborative act of opening doors. The “lightbulb moment” Anandi describes, the lived example Thomas brings to class and the digital windows Sophie navigates all point to the same truth: that learners are more purposeful than ever, and great teachers meet that purpose with empathy, personalization and rigor. You listen, adapt and guide. So every lesson connects to a real-world future.

Keep centering what matters to your learners, tailoring language to their interests and contexts, partnering with families and making smart use of any tools at hand, even a brief glimpse of the internet. Wherever you teach, from Guadalajara to Nepal to Sri Lanka, each class is another key placed in a learner’s hand. Keep opening doors, one lesson at a time.