When stakeholders ask 'What's the ROI of agile coaching?', they're really asking: 'Is this investment worth it?' It's a fair question — and one that agile coaches should be prepared to answer with data, not just anecdotes.
The mistake many organizations make is measuring agile coaching success through proxy metrics like velocity, story points, or the number of ceremonies held. These are activity metrics, not outcome metrics.
Instead, focus on business outcomes: time-to-market for new features, customer satisfaction scores, employee engagement and retention, defect escape rates, and the ability to pivot when market conditions change.
A well-structured agile coaching engagement should show measurable improvement in at least two of these areas within the first 6 months. If it doesn't, the coaching approach needs to be reassessed.