{"id":9413,"date":"2025-09-08T08:47:50","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T12:47:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/?page_id=9413"},"modified":"2025-09-11T07:28:14","modified_gmt":"2025-09-11T11:28:14","slug":"program-roi","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/program-roi\/","title":{"rendered":"Program ROI"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
\n\t
\n
\n
\n

Return on Investment for Programs<\/h1>\n \n \n \n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n
\n \n
\n\t\t\n\t\n\n\n \t

We find that Generation programs have an ROI of 3-7x against counterfactuals, and graduates earn 6-22x more income upon graduating from Generation over five years, compared to their baseline situation (90% are unemployed prior to joining Generation programs).<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Return on investment for a program is the net added value the the program creates for every dollar invested in it. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To understand this, we look at what happens to people who don’t go through our programs vs those that do. These are called counterfactuals<\/strong> and we have a few different ways of doing this analysis \u2014 through impact evaluations, we have assessed the outcomes for people who were eligible for our program but we could not accept due to number of seats, people who went through other similar programs at the same time and accessed government data on people who have a similar profile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where we have not conducted these evaluations as yet, we look at the before and after for our alumni \u2014 how did their employment and income progress over time compared to where they started? When learners join Generation, 90% are unemployed, with half being long-term unemployed. Three months after program completion, graduates have a 73% employment rate, rising to 83% within six months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These outcomes are durable over time \u2013 two to five years after graduation, 76% of Generation alumni remain employed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n \t

These sustained high outcomes drive a high ROI for our programs.<\/h2>\n\n\n \n <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n
\n \n
\n\t\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n \t

ROI vs Counterfactuals<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ROI vs Counterfactuals in India uses data from a quasi-experimental outcomes evaluation for Generation graduates vs counterfactual of graduates of same professions from public skilling programs and evaluation of employment and income outcomes vs counterfactual of non-selected Generation applicants of similar profiles in Kenya. In France and Italy, it uses data from administrative data (employment, tax and benefits records) based outcomes evaluation for Generation learners vs counterfactual group of jobseekers, and outcomes evaluation for Generation graduates vs counterfactual data from public data employment metrics for individuals who went through training programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

India<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t7.2<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Kenya<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t3.2<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

UK<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t4.9<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Italy<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t4.0<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

France<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t3.6<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n \t


ROI vs Baseline levels<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For ROI vs Baseline Levels we use the Livelihood Impact Lab ROI Estimator provided by Livelihood Impact Fund to assess the additional incomes earned by Generation graduates over a period of five years post graduation compared to their earnings based on baseline employment and income levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

India<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t9.5<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Kenya<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t6.9<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

UK<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t10.9<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Italy<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t8.3<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

France<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t9.4<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Spain<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t13.2<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Brazil<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t6.5<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Mexico<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t22.4<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Colombia<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t5.3<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Thailand<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t15.2<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Chile<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t6.3<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Spain<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t13.2<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Hong Kong<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t6.0<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Australia<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t12.2<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Ireland<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t10.1<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Singapore<\/h4><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t7.0<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n \n <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n \n
\n\t\t\n\t\n\n\n Drivers<\/span>\t

We achieve high ROI through durable graduate outcomes (career growth, wages, job quality), robust employer partnerships, and cost-effective scaling powered by data and technology.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At 2-5 years post graduation, 76% of our alumni continue to be employed globally. 58% of employed alumni have advanced beyond entry level jobs by two years after graduation, reaching 71% by year 5. This career growth is also evident in wages \u2013 73% of employed alumni are earning above a living wage at two to five years post program, with annual wage growth rate compared to their first salary after Generation at 9% globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These durable outcomes for our graduates are fuelled by the strength of our employer relationships. We have engaged with 21,000+ employers globally to date and 79% of our graduates in the last 12 months have been hired by repeat employers, i.e., employers who have hired our graduates previously. Generation employers affirm the talent of our graduates through qualitative surveys as well, with 87% stating that they would definitely hire Generation graduates again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As we scale, we have leveraged our data and technology to reduce our program costs while improving program delivery. Our Shared Delivery Platform(content, systems, tools) enables consistent quality across countries. Nearly half of our programs are now delivered fully online, achieving comparable outcomes to in-person programs at a lower program cost. We are also embedding AI tools\u2014including a job-matching system, interview roleplay coach, learner chatbot, and multilingual podcasts\u2014to strengthen learner support, build workplace skills, and improve long-term employment outcomes.<\/p>\n\n\n \n <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n

\n \n
\n\t\t\n\t\n\n\n
\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\n
\n\t\n\t\n\n\n <\/span>\t

Methodology<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1. To calculate the ROI of our programs vs counterfactuals, <\/strong>we assess the additional incomes earned by Generation graduates over a period of five years post graduation compared to those earned by a counterfactual group in the same period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • Earnings are calculated for years 1-5 using the employment rate and wages for each group from the evaluations of Generation outcomes vs counterfactual<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Additional earnings over the 5 year period are calculated as Generation graduate earnings – counterfactual group earnings<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Additional earnings are divided by the cost per learner to calculate the ROI<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    2. To calculate the ROI of our programs vs baseline levels, <\/strong><\/strong>we use the Livelihood Impact Lab ROI Estimator provided by Livelihood Impact Fund to assess the additional incomes earned by Generation graduates over a period of five years post graduation compared to their earnings based on baseline employment and income levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • Earnings are calculated for years 1-5 using the employment rate and wages for graduates and with baseline metrics<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Additional earnings of Generation graduates = Total wages earned at post generation employment rate – Total wages earned at pre generation employment rate over 5 years<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Additional earnings are divided by the cost per learner to calculate the ROI<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\t\n<\/div>\n\n\n
      \n\t\n\t\n\n\n <\/span>\t

      Evaluation of outcomes for the \u201cnear miss\u201d applicants in Ghana<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      In 2024, we conducted an evaluation of Generation Ghana using a \u2018near miss\u2019 design, comparing program graduates to a group of eligible but non-selected applicants. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      From roughly 20,000 eligible applicants, we randomly sampled 1,400 individuals who had applied at least three months before the evaluation period to allow time for alternative education or employment pathways. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      These applicants were invited to complete an online survey about their education and employment journey. We received 550 responses (40% response rate), and the results for the study were statistically significant for both employment and income differences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The evaluation found that Generation graduates achieved significantly stronger outcomes than their peers. Graduates were more likely to secure and retain employment (81% vs 48%) and demonstrated greater financial stability (55% able to meet daily needs vs 39% of peers).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Coalition partners using Generation\u2019s methodology also reported higher employment outcomes compared to their prior programs (68% vs 48%). Importantly, results were consistent across demographic groups, such as women and individuals with dependents.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\n<\/div>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n \n <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

      <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-9413","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","wpautop"],"acf":[],"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Generation","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.generation.org","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9413"}],"version-history":[{"count":35,"href":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9413\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9467,"href":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9413\/revisions\/9467"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.generation.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}