Leadership and Management Training for Small Business Owners 

I’ve always stressed the importance of continuing education and exerting effort in enhancing your skills. Whether you’re a leader, employee, or student, investing in yourself is vital so you can get ahead in the game and progressively move closer to achieving your full potential. As a business owner, leadership and management training is crucial in ensuring you’re consistently relevant, effective, and productive. 

Leadership and management training for small business owners is an investment crucial to the advancement of the company. Bad leaders can quickly bring your business down, while good leaders can efficiently lead it through challenges. Good leadership is a great tool to ensure success. 

This article talks about the benefits of leadership development and why business owners should be quick to invest in their leadership pipeline early on in the game. You will also come across some of the best leadership and management courses available today and how they could provide tailor-fitted solutions to your business’ unique needs. 

The Importance of Leadership and Management Training

Many small business owners forego investing in leadership and management training because they think they can single-handedly fulfill this task, especially if there are just a handful of leaders on board. Furthermore, leadership development can get expensive, so some business owners direct their limited funds toward other causes they deem more worthwhile. 

The truth is that leadership development must be one of a business owner’s priorities from the get-go. Without it, you might find driving growth, sustaining productivity, and staying profitable more challenging. 

I remember when a friend told me about her brother’s startup gaming company. She was proud of what her brother had accomplished at a young age, but she was also bothered by how nonchalant he seemed in reacting to his business’ fast growth. 

My friend advised him to start investing in leadership development — by providing training for his 2 team leaders on the latest digital developments in the gaming industry. She also suggested that he start identifying employees with leadership potential so he can begin grooming them for future leadership roles. 

Sadly, my friend’s brother refused to listen to his sister. His small business gradually succumbed to the demands of such a fast-paced industry. He wasn’t able to keep up, and was left with no choice but to officially shut down his company last month.

If you want to give your small business an edge in a dynamic, competitive industry, investing in leadership and management training is the way to go. As your company grows, you’ll need skilled and efficient leaders at the helm, and it’s never too early to start investing in this aspect of your business. 

A leadership and management training program lets you:  

• Build a healthy leadership pipeline
• Enjoy continuous business growth
• Adapt to changes faster and more efficiently 
• Improve your leaders’ skills, especially the most crucial ones, such as decision-making, problem-solving, and resiliency
• Increase engagement and work productivity
• Create better career prospects for employees and aspiring leaders
• Improve job satisfaction
• Reduce turnover rates

Leadership and Management Courses for Small Business Owners

Here are some of the best options you can consider for your business’ leadership and management training plan:

1. Academy of Business Training

The Academy of Business Training offers courses for business owners and leaders in various levels of leadership. Backed by management professionals with more than 30 years of experience in the industry, you can learn about leadership best practices that have been tried and tested through time.

They offer in-person training, webinars, on-site classes, and self-study options. They put a lot of focus on teaching the value of organizing workflow, task delegation, and coaching. They also keenly promote the importance of providing constructive feedback and setting specific, time-bound goals.

2. Think Like a Leader

Think Like a Leader is a leadership course designed by Brian Tracy, an industry veteran with over 30 years of experience in public speaking, business development, and leadership. The course boasts a habit-based formula focused on strategic planning, effective communication, adopting a leadership mindset, and harnessing the power to positively influence others. 

This course is suited for first-time and senior leaders. It will teach them how to implement efficient daily practices that will help effectively communicate their visions, formulate sound action plans, and motivate their teams to efficiently achieve shared goals. It also features scenario-based exercises to help make workplace applications more seamless. 

3. The Science of Leadership

The Science of Leadership adopts an evidence-based approach to leadership development. It is backed by psychological research and the personal insights of Julian Barling, an esteemed professor and author. 

By the end of the book, you’ll have a firmer grasp of how leaders impact an organization and how leadership development interventions affect significant changes in how the business works. 

Barling also highlights the idea that not all leaders are naturally born. Instead, leadership can also be taught and learned, and the skills and experiences one acquires over time will be crucial in influencing success. 

4. Mentorship Training

Having a mentor is one of the most reliable ways to learn the ropes, discover effective strategies and techniques for managing a team, and determine your leadership style. It’s also a great way to pass on company-specific know-how, work dynamics, and culture. 

Traditionally, a senior leader takes the spotlight as a mentor, while a lesser-experienced leader becomes the mentee. However, note that the mentor-mentee relationship is a 2-way street — a mutually beneficial relationship where both can learn and benefit from each other.

A good mentorship program creates a learning culture within the organization where people are encouraged to continually share, seek, and apply learnings and skills that can help enhance business functions. It can also help with succession planning since it gives senior leaders opportunities to identify promising individuals for future leadership roles.

Here are the 4 types of mentorships:

1. Flash Mentoring. A one-time session where the mentee is specific about what they want to learn from the mentor. 
2. Workshop Mentoring. A structured meeting-type session where mentees and mentors can freely exchange ideas, tips, and know-how. 
3. Circling Mentoring. A successive-type program where 1 mentee interacts with multiple mentors with various specialties. It gives mentees a peek into the workings of different business functions. 
4. Shadow Mentoring. A hands-on approach where a mentee enjoys a front-row seat to a mentor’s day-to-day activities.

5. Sancus Leadership

Sancus Leadership offers a unique take on leadership development. If you’re keen on exploring innovative, exciting, and constructive ways to enrich your leadership skills and experiences, you’ve found the perfect partner. 

With experiential outdoor training as one of its main thrusts, you will be pleasantly surprised that you won’t have to spend hours cooped up in a room, listening to experts sharing their experiences and pieces of advice. 

Neither will you be forced to participate in predictable team-building activities that foster trust, collaboration, and efficiency. So you can certainly say goodbye to spiritless games, such as team relays, scavenger hunts, blindfolded activities, Pass the Message, and the Trust Fall.

Sancus Leadership will take you to the most fascinating locations where you can explore your leadership competencies while enjoying the beauty and capriciousness of nature. Take a look at some of the most thrilling outdoor leadership development activities offered:

• Camping: teaches the value of collaboration, task delegation, communication, and time management.
• Mountain climbing: teaches decision-making, critical thinking, and risk assessment.
• Whitewater rafting: teaches adaptability, resilience, trust, and strategic thinking.
• Adventure sports: teaches integrity, empathy, teamwork, and working through pressure. 

When you’re ready to experience the difference that outdoor training brings, book a call with us! At Sancus Leadership, we can help enhance your leadership skills and enrich your experiences so you return to the workplace rejuvenated and better equipped to face the challenges ahead.