Original research · Published 2025
The 2025 State of Education-Led Growth
What research reveals about how education drives business growth. We surveyed 97 customer, partner and employee education leaders to learn which strategies tie education to revenue, retention and go-to-market impact.
84%
of education teams target retention outcomes
60%
measure business impact within 3 months of launch
62%
say disconnected systems block measurement
6%
have a dedicated marketer on the education team
Key findings
Six findings that define Education-Led Growth in 2025
Education is no longer just a support function. The programs that prove business impact share a clear GTM role, access to marketing and analytics, and early measurement.
- 0174%
Educating more audiences drives more revenue impact.
74% of teams that educate customers, partners and employees report high or moderate revenue impact, versus 31% of teams that educate employees only.
See the data → - 0223%
Marketing resources tie education to revenue.
23% of teams with a dedicated marketer report high revenue effectiveness, nearly 3x the 8% of teams with no marketing resources. Yet only 6% have a dedicated marketer.
See the data → - 0360%
Early measurement builds confidence.
60% of teams measure impact within 3 months of launch. Those teams are more likely to integrate education into product success and see greater revenue impact.
See the data → - 0462%
Integration is the measurement gap.
62% cite a lack of integration between systems and 62% lack access to platforms that hold key data. Tools alone don’t close the gap.
See the data → - 0531%
Pre-sale education is underused.
Education is concentrated in implementation (85%) and adoption (81%). Only 31% apply it to marketing and 29% to sales, the stages closest to revenue.
See the data → - 0663%
Strategic focus beats team size.
63% of 1–4 person teams prioritize revenue. Small teams that focus on high-impact initiatives can match the success of larger, well-resourced teams.
See the data →
“Education is no longer just a support function—it’s a strategic driver of business growth. Companies that prioritize education as a growth strategy will lead their industries.”
Definition
What is Education-Led Growth?
Education-Led Growth (ELG) is a strategic framework that positions customer and partner education as a primary driver of business growth. By aligning education with revenue, retention and adoption goals, companies create measurable business impact.
The Education-Led Growth™ Framework
- 01Outcomes
- 02Audience
- 03Initiative
- 04Resources
- 05Delivery
- 06Marketing
- 07Measurement
Continuous improvement connects every stage.
Survey demographics
Who we surveyed
97 education leaders, mostly at U.S.-based software and technology companies. 70% work in software (42.3%) or technology (27.8%), 76.3% are based in the United States, and 79% of companies have under $500M in revenue.
Employees includes L&D, product enablement and sales enablement.
Other includes Education Services, Support, Partner Marketing/Success, standalone education departments and other functions.
Respondents represented a wide range of company sizes.
5 companies did not disclose revenue and are excluded.
Practitioners work within a team or as individual contributors.
Only 48% collaborate with implementation and 34% with CX, a missed chance to align with onboarding and satisfaction.
Senior-level representation matters.
27% of respondents have education represented at the executive leadership level, while 39.6% have no representation above manager or senior manager. Programs led by senior leaders showed a stronger focus on revenue, higher engagement rates and more access to analytics tools.
27%
executive-level representation
39.6%
no one above manager level
Few companies reach deep training penetration.
Only 19% of programs train more than 61% of their audience each year, and 19% educate less than 20%. 57% of education programs are free; of those that charge, most charge only for live training.
19%
train 61%+ of their audience yearly
57%
don’t charge for education
Business outcomes
Retention and performance take priority.
84% of education teams target retention outcomes, 75% target performance and 70% target revenue. Only 57% focus on cost reduction.
Priorities depend on where education sits. Teams in Marketing or Sales prioritize revenue and lead generation; Customer Success teams focus on retention, expansion and adoption; Professional Services teams emphasize implementation and billable training. Larger teams address multiple outcomes, while smaller teams prioritize a few key metrics, most often revenue.
Audience strategy
Education is concentrated post-sale—and broader audiences pay off.
The most common lifecycle stages for education are implementation (85%), product adoption (81%) and retention/renewal (70%). Fewer than a third use education in marketing (31%), sales (29%) or customer advocacy (29%), the stages closest to revenue.
Educating multiple audiences increases revenue impact.
74% of teams that educate customers, partners and employees report high or moderate revenue impact, compared with 31% of teams that educate employees only. Teams with broader audiences were also less likely to be unsure of education’s contribution to the bottom line.
Audiences educated overall: customers 92%, employees 59%, partners 58%, prospects 46%. “Employees” includes L&D, product enablement and sales enablement.
Self-reported effectiveness of education in driving revenue. Rows sum to 100%.
Initiative strategy
More initiatives, higher revenue effectiveness.
69% of teams running four or more education initiatives report high or moderate revenue effectiveness, versus 44% of teams running a single initiative. Skills & enablement is the most common initiative (89%), followed by onboarding (69%) and certification (64%). Only 17% own compliance training.
Self-reported effectiveness of education in driving revenue. Rows sum to 100%.
Resource strategy
Most education teams are small. Strategy matters more than size.
49.5% of education teams have 1–4 people and another 37% have 5–20. Fewer than 15% have more than 21. Small teams lean hardest on revenue: 63% of 1–4 person teams prioritize increasing revenue, while teams of 100+ favor operational and cost efficiency (50%) over revenue growth (42%).
Marketing strategy
Only 6% have a dedicated marketer. Those who do see the most revenue impact.
Access to marketing is split almost evenly: 35% of teams do their own marketing, 31% have no marketing resources and 28% get dedicated support from central marketing. 70% of teams with a dedicated marketer report high or moderate revenue effectiveness, compared with 37% of teams with no marketing resources.
Self-reported effectiveness of education in driving revenue. Rows sum to 100%.
Measurement strategy
Teams measure early, but disconnected systems hold them back.
60% of education leaders start measuring business impact within 3 months of launching an initiative; 28% don’t measure consistently. The biggest obstacles are a lack of integration between systems (62%) and no access to the platforms that hold key data (62%).
The role of education in go-to-market
68% tie education to product success in the market.
24% say their education programs are very closely tied to their product’s market success and 44% somewhat closely. Most GTM alignment is post-sale—64% support onboarding and adoption—while only 19% use education to drive demand generation. 20% have not integrated education into their GTM strategy at all.
Very closely · Somewhat closely · Minimally · Not at all
Key recommendations
How to design education for business impact
- 01.
Align education with revenue-focused outcomes.
Regardless of company size, revenue remains a priority. Consider how education can be monetized or used to drive lead generation, expansion or product adoption.
- 02.
Expand education’s influence.
If your program is driving its desired impact, there’s a case to grow. As you increase the audiences you train and the initiatives you run, you’ll see greater impact.
- 03.
Prioritize the lifecycle stages with the biggest impact.
Too many touchpoints dilute education’s impact. Start with the lifecycle stages where education can drive the greatest success.
- 04.
Refine marketing strategies.
Use email campaigns, automation and incentives to drive new and returning learners.
- 05.
Improve measurement and KPIs.
Track business outcomes within 3 months and set clear success metrics for every education initiative.
About the survey
Research methodology
Sample size
97 respondents
Customer, partner and employee education leaders.
Survey period
Nov–Dec 2024
Collected with Survicate.
Design
26 questions
Primarily multiple-choice and “choose all that apply.”
Recruitment
Community + direct
Customer Education Slack, Customer Education Management Association, email campaigns and LinkedIn.
Verification
Name + email
Respondents verified to ensure valid entries. Skipped questions excluded; percentages rounded.
Analysis
Sheets + Looker
Percentage breakdowns plus dashboard analysis of relationships between responses.
Notes: Roughly one-fourth of respondents were unsure what percentage of their audience completes at least one program per year. Respondents who did not disclose revenue (5 companies) are excluded from the revenue chart. Business-outcome figures group 12 selectable objectives into four outcomes: revenue (increased revenue, product activation, active users), retention (reduced churn, improved sentiment, product adoption), performance (ramp time, goal attainment, skill proficiency) and cost reduction (content creation, support and onboarding costs).
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about the 2025 Education-Led Growth Report
What is the Education-Led Growth Report?
The 2025 State of Education-Led Growth Report is original research from Intellum, based on a survey of 97 education leaders conducted in November and December 2024. It examines how customer, partner and employee education programs drive revenue, retention and go-to-market impact.
What is Education-Led Growth (ELG)?
Education-Led Growth is a strategic framework that positions customer and partner education as a primary driver of business growth by aligning education with revenue, retention and adoption goals. The framework covers outcomes, audience, initiative, resources, delivery, marketing and measurement, connected by continuous improvement.
Which business outcomes do education programs target most?
Retention is the most common target (84% of teams), followed by performance (75%), revenue (70%) and cost reduction (57%).
Does educating more audiences increase revenue impact?
Yes. 74% of teams educating customers, partners and employees report high or moderate revenue impact, compared with 31% of teams that educate employees only.
How soon should education teams measure business impact?
60% of education leaders start measuring within 3 months of launching an initiative. Teams that measure early are more likely to integrate education into product success and report greater revenue impact. Intellum recommends tracking business outcomes within 3 months.
What prevents education teams from measuring impact?
The most common obstacles are a lack of integration between systems (62%), no access to platforms that hold key data (62%) and a lack of clear metrics or KPIs (36%).
How should I cite this report?
Cite it as: Intellum. (2025). The 2025 State of Education-Led Growth Report: What Research Reveals About How Education Drives Business Growth, and link to https://www.intellum.com/resources/education-led-growth-report-2025.
Recommended resources
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Suggested citation
Intellum. (2025). The 2025 State of Education-Led Growth Report: What Research Reveals About How Education Drives Business Growth.https://www.intellum.com/resources/education-led-growth-report-2025
Short attribution for a statistic
60% of education teams start measuring business impact within three months of launching an initiative (Intellum 2025 Education-Led Growth Report).
About Intellum
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Blog · Education-Led Growth
What Is Education-Led Growth?
Learn how the Education-Led Growth framework positions customer and partner education as a driver of revenue, retention and adoption.