In many businesses, leadership is seen as something that happens in a board of directors or quarterly comments – a responsibility that a few people assume. However, this top-down model is simply impossible to achieve for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) facing rapidly changing markets, personnel pressures and customer expectations.
Instead, leaders must share. Whether it’s customer-facing technicians solving problems on the spot or administrators improving clumsy processes, leadership can and should happen anywhere. When doing so, the results are powerful: greater engagement, better problem solving, and a culture of accountability that drives internal growth.
This mindset shift is not only aspirational—it is feasible. SMEs need to unlock the leadership potential of the entire team more than ever.
Leadership is a mentality, not a title
The Chartered School of Management (CMI) found that 82% of managers entered the role without any formal management or leadership training – an amazing number that highlights how many people are expected to lead without successful tools. Especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, this presents both a challenge and an opportunity: With higher structure and greater flexibility, smaller businesses can develop leadership behaviors between teams well, not just the top.
At Chubb Fire & Security, a global organization operating across different markets, the idea is deeply embedded in our culture. Our philosophy is simple: everyone is a leader. Whether it’s a field engineer or an office-based support team, leadership is seen as a mindset – based on ownership, integrity, and improving for others. Although this approach reflects the values that guide us at Chubb, it is a principle that businesses of scale and industry can adopt. Because when leadership lives on all levels, it not only enhances individuals—it strengthens the entire organization.
This belief is based on Chubb’s enduring purpose: to build great leaders. It’s not just a slogan—it’s part of its DNA, it’s the foundation for how the business grows people and drives performance. Innovation may drive Chubb’s success, but it’s the one who makes innovation possible. That’s why leadership is cultivated in every role, rather than retaining a few. By equipping individuals to thrive – and ensuring everyone can find a great leader – Chubb creates a ripple effect, thereby enabling team capabilities, building trust and increasing resilience from the inside out.
Three ways small and medium-sized enterprises can cultivate leadership at all levels
Allow people to lead
Leadership begins when people feel trust. This could mean encouraging new employees to make decisions, share ideas for improvement or lead small projects. These are not “extra” tasks, but the foundation of leadership in action.
In Chubb, employees are called leaders – not as titles, but to strengthen people’s belief that everyone contributes to business performance and influence as a person. This is the method any SME can adopt by strengthening initiative rather than hierarchy.
Practical Tips: Start asking, “Who else can lead this?” This is a subtle but powerful shift in meetings and planning.
Make career path transparent and inspiring
Internal progress is one of the most powerful motivations for leadership behavior, but it only works when people see the path forward. Chubb’s career path model and coaching program provide clarity and support to help employees develop in any direction: upward, sideways, or new teams.
Small and medium-sized businesses may not have formal HR departments, but they can still build simple frameworks to show how skills and responsibilities develop. Whether it’s shadows, friend programs, or informal career conversations, the message is clear: you can grow without leaving.
Practical Tips: Have quarterly development chats with all employees (not just managers), not wishes, not assessments.
Coach, don’t command
Traditional command and control styles have hindered leadership thriving. Instead, coach-like managers who listen, coach and challenge create conditions that others can lead.
Coach-style leadership talent brings results. CIPD-supported research shows that a leadership development program that integrates coaching technology with structured manager support leads to better employee engagement and adaptability – the benefits of SME with a more beautiful structure are ideal to achieve.
Chubb’s “Leader’s Lab” and ongoing learning program show that this shift is not about training courses, but about daily behavior. Managers don’t need all the answers; they just need to help others find their own things.
Build culture, not just ability
Embedding leadership at every level requires more than training – it requires cultural reinforcement. One way Chubb maintains this is through consistent employee appreciation. Through the Chubb Cheers Ecard, Bravo and Superstars Awards, the company not only recognizes employees to achieve results, but also demonstrates how they embody leadership behaviors such as collaboration, resilience and innovation.
Practical Tips: Celebrate leadership moments, not just milestones – focus on small examples of people stepping up.
When leadership becomes a part of how people view themselves, it promotes long-term agility. Especially in small and medium-sized businesses, everyone has a clear impact, and this cultural consistency is important.
Bottom line
Leadership isn’t limited to titles – it is embedded in the ways people emerge, solve problems and support each other. For small and medium-sized enterprises, fostering leadership in every role is not a luxury. This is a competitive advantage.
As companies face more and more complexity, the most flexible thing is where everyone has the ability to lead. It starts with trust, continues to develop, and is maintained through culture. Leadership is everyone’s business – now it’s time to take action.
