Founded on a conviction that has not changed in fifty years.
Leadership is only truly learned under real pressure. When leaders see themselves clearly, they change. That idea shaped everything Leadership Trust has built.
1975. Britain was in crisis.
Two people had an answer.
David Gilbert-Smith had commanded the SAS Training Wing. He understood what it took to lead under genuine pressure - that the qualities which mattered were not rank or technical skill but self-knowledge, courage and the ability to bring people with you.
Janet Richardson was a behavioural psychologist who understood how behaviour actually changes. Together they built Leadership Trust - not a training company, not a business school, but a place where leaders could find out, with complete honesty, how they actually led. And change it.
“My vision was to create a centre of excellence for leadership in this country, for this country.”
David Gilbert-Smith, Founder
The SAS gave Leadership Trust its foundations.
Shared leadership. Courage. Honesty. Integrity. Humility. The willingness to act on what you know to be right, even when it is uncomfortable. An unrelenting pursuit of excellence.
Those principles have not changed. But fifty years of working with leaders across every sector has deepened them. Humanity. Vulnerability as a strength. Self-knowledge as the starting point for change. Energy and drive.
The founding values came from the regiment - courage, honesty, integrity and the willingness to lead under real pressure. Fifty years of working with leaders across every sector has added to them. Humanity and humility. Vulnerability as a leadership strength. Self-knowledge as the foundation of change.
That is who Leadership Trust is today.
The science behind the pressure.
Experiential challenge without psychological framework is just an away-day. Janet Richardson’s contribution was to give the method its rigour - grounding every element of the programme in a deep understanding of how leadership behaviour actually forms and shifts.
That combination - the discipline of the regiment and the rigour of behavioural science - is what no other organisation has replicated in fifty years.
The founding idea has never mattered more.
The world David and Janet were responding to in 1975 - economic uncertainty, rapid change, leaders under pressure without the tools to perform - looks familiar.
And AI has changed the equation. As artificial intelligence takes over the transfer of knowledge, frameworks and information, the human side of leadership - trust, good decisions, bringing people with you - becomes the differentiator. Those capabilities are not built in a classroom. They are built through real pressure and honest feedback, the way Leadership Trust has always built them.
In conversation with Leadership in Management Alumnus - Tim Vernon
As part of our 50 for the Future Campaign we took some time to catch up with Tim Vernon, an alumnus from 1978 to find out what still resonates about the Leadership in Management programme today.
Fifty Years
The full story - from the founding in 1975 to Chelsea Parkfields today. The milestones, the people and the moments that shaped Leadership Trust over five decades.
Tell us about your organisation and your leaders. We'll tell you honestly what will work and why.
Talk to Sinead or Damian.
Sinead Daly
Global Business Manager
T: +44 (0)1989 240021
Email Sinead
Damian Sherrard
Global Business Manager
T: +44 (0)7968 429912
Email Damian