A Complete Guide to Developing Leaders With Transferable Skills

A small business is only as strong as the team behind it. As your business grows, it’s crucial to ensure your people gain knowledge and are able to take on more responsibility over time, so you can focus on where your energy is needed most. 

Our guide explores strategies to ensure you’re properly developing your small business leadership team. 

Assess and build on each person’s natural leadership style

Each member of your team is an individual with strengths you can help grow, allowing them to harness their full potential within their unique leadership style. 

“Diverse perspectives and styles ultimately strengthen the organization,” explained Dr. Jeff Ditzell, Lead Psychiatrist at Dr. Ditzell Psychiatry. “Strong leaders aren’t just developed through instruction; they’re shaped through experience, reflection, and meaningful human connection.”

But, how do you do this?

• Actively participate in mentorship. People chose to work for your company. Your voice, knowledge, and encouragement carry weight to help others grow and learn.
• Model what matters. If there are specific leadership values that are important to you, put them at the forefront of every interaction you have with your people.
• Delegate. People learn by doing. Allow your team members to take on tasks and handle them in their own ways, offering correction and guidance when asked or once the task is complete.

[Read more: 7 Steps to Finding the Leadership Style That Works Best for You]

Model the leadership behaviors you want across the team

If there are specific behaviors you want to permeate your team, such as communication, accountability, and decision-making, it’s your responsibility to model them and make your vision clear. Upon joining your company, new hires should be surrounded by the atmosphere and leadership model you value—both through formal documentation (such as through your employee handbook) and through everyday behaviors. For example, if you value honest communication, equip managers with the tools to give comprehensive reviews that build upon the positive and help people grow past their weaknesses. 

Model true leadership by being open to the ideas of others, thus exhibiting the value of being coachable and accountable. Partner with them on making a plan, allowing them to learn critical decision-making skills.

Create mentoring and networking systems to accelerate growth

Mentoring and networking with industry leaders is a primary way many entrepreneurs grow. Offering these same avenues to your people can offer similar growth opportunities. Through creating a mentor system, allowing experienced leaders to bring up the next generation of professionals, you ensure they’re given the best tools to execute company values while their talents shine.

“At [our organization], we believe in co-piloting before solo flight—especially in creative environments where confidence and voice take time to develop,” said DéVon Christopher Johnson, Chairman and CEO of BOMESI Foundation. “That means pairing emerging leaders with mentors who are invested in their success, giving them access to decision-making conversations, not just the outcomes.” 

For your management team, consider curating mentorship and networking opportunities outside of your organization. Exposure to new ways of thought and communication styles equips them with a fresh perspective and can even help them recognize and bring out the hidden talents of those around them. By allowing them to learn from other great minds in the industry, you ensure your company’s foundation stays solid well into the future. 

[Read more: Building a Mentorship Program Can Give Your Business a Competitive Edge]

Delegate thoughtfully

Delegation can be daunting. However, trying to do everything yourself is the fastest way to burn yourself out and rob your team of the opportunity to grow.

“If you want to build leaders, you have to distribute decision-making,” said Dr. Geoffrey Varner, a physician and leadership author and keynote speaker known as America’s Decision Expert. “When everything stays at the top, people don’t grow. Identify individuals willing to take initiative, give them structured autonomy, and reward decisiveness, not perfection.” 

Allow your people to take on tasks where their abilities lie and to grow over time as they earn trust. As you give them these opportunities, empower them with clear-cut directives, the resources, and freedom they need to get the job done. Keep the door open for them to ask questions as they go. 

By giving employees room and not micromanaging them, you give your people the strongest opportunity to learn and move forward.

Build feedback habits

Feedback allows budding leaders to find their voice and build their confidence as they also learn from their weaknesses and mistakes. Colleen Joyce, CEO at Lawyer.com, recommends giving feedback on a regular basis, not just during employee review cycles.

“Feedback … [should be] constant, direct, and constructive,” said Joyce. “The best people want to know where they stand and how to get better.”

Continuous feedback gives the opportunity for maximum growth and improved performance. Create plenty of opportunities for both formal and informal feedback. If you need to create a performance improvement plan (PIP), establish a more frequent and structured cadence for check-ins; this allows you to meet them where they are and help them grow. 

You may also consider two-way feedback, which is the opportunity for your team to give you feedback on your performance as well. This can help you understand what does and doesn’t work when guiding your team. When managed correctly, it fosters growth, understanding, and the knowledge that you are a leader who listens and wants to grow your own abilities alongside your team.

[Read more: How to Talk to an Employee About Poor Performance]

Invest in leadership development

There are numerous ways you can support your leadership team’s continued growth and learning. While not necessary to use all options, knowing what’s available and choosing what best works for your people is critical.

Training programs

There are multiple training programs available to help shape your leadership team and hone their skills. These programs can better their understanding of the technology and leadership skills of today to keep your company moving in the right direction. Here are just a few:

• Dale Carnegie (multiple course options).
• Global Knowledge (multiple course options).
• Leadership in an Exponentially Changing World, offered by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management.
• RITx's Leadership Essentials Professional Certificate, offered by the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Learning opportunities

It’s important to offer a variety of learning opportunities to your team. Since not all leadership styles are the same, why would we believe all learning styles are? By offering formal learning opportunities like courses and mentorship, and also opening the door to informal styles like peer coaching and cross-department projects, you ensure you reach all available talent.

On-the-job experience

On-the-job experience is a valuable asset in growing your team members. By offering the option for things like rotational roles, stretch assignments, and giving project ownership, your employees can build confidence and transferable skills.  

Teach transferable skills that make better leaders

When your people are well-rounded in their transferable skills, they are powerful in moving your company forward and become leaders you can trust.

“It’s often in an employer’s best interest to invest in employee development, especially when it comes to transferable “soft” job skills like project management, conflict resolution, and emotional intelligence that could serve them in any role they take on,” explained Suzette Schilling, Chief Human Resources Officer at EBG Solutions. 

Here are just a few key transferable skills to prioritize building in your organization: 

Communication

People with strong communication skills are powerful in motivating those around them. They’re clear, direct, and have an understanding of the way they’re being received. In order to communicate strongly, they have to be able to bridge the gap between themselves and their audience, which can make them strong teachers as well.

Problem-solving 

Problem-solving is an invaluable skill. Teaching people to think outside the box to find the answer, or keep going until an answer is found, is a skill that can transfer to leadership. A person who looks at a problem and sees an opportunity is a leader.

Resilience

A person who persists when times are difficult is a leader who will come alongside those they work with on challenging days. Resilience in the face of hard times is a key distinguisher of a leader who will go the extra mile. Give your team members a chance to do the hard things, and support them along the way.

Conflict resolution 

Conflict resolution means developing a high emotional intelligence and being able to keep one's own emotions in check. During disagreements, set up open dialogue with your team and help them improve their ability to stabilize their own emotions, while reaching across to understand the other party as well. Help them learn to listen and understand. 

Prevent burnout while developing leaders

Many well-intentioned leaders push their teams too hard, too fast, and burn out bright talents before they’ve even begun to take shape. So, how do you avoid this? Remember that a balance between their workload, leadership development, and well-being is key. Take care of your people by knowing the signs of burnout: 

• Constant fatigue.
• Apathy or cynicism.
• Mood changes, such as emotional volatility.
• Reduced performance.
• Physical complaints like headaches.

To help avoid these, set up lunch breaks, happy hours, and networking opportunities that help to give your people time to relax and team build. Also, ensure your middle management team is big enough to take on the full load of work without being overtaxed.

Transferable skills are the most important thing you can help the leaders in your company develop. By investing your time and energy into their futures, you ensure your business stays ahead of the curve.

Emily Heaslip contributed to this article.

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