Suits love metrics, which are related to output, as it helps them to track progress.
Sharpening the Axe is addressing outcome. Those metrics are much more subtle. You need to be a good marketeers to sell them to the suits.
To give an example: Happiness is a great metric to challenge personal development. If people can do what they can do best, if I support them in becoming better in these things, they will be happy.
Happiness is a key driver to improve outcome. But will the suits accept to invest time and effort into sharpening the axe because I can show them that people become more happy?
They will - but only if I tell them the story. The narrative has to involve them and make them become part of the story. This becomes obvious, if the suits understand that they are happy for the same reason, which applies to everyone else in an organisation.