By Jon Davidge, Non-executive Director of Leadership Trust
In 1975, David Gilbert-Smith made a decision that would quietly reshape how leadership was developed in Britain.
A former SAS Major and international rugby player, Gilbert-Smith had seen leadership done both well and badly – and believed much of what passed for leadership in business at the time wasn’t fit for purpose. He knew from experience that leading under pressure required more than technical competence or formal authority. It required a level of self-awareness and self-mastery most people were never asked to develop.
Creating the conditions for such personal growth became the founding principle of Leadership Trust. Fifty years later, it still is.
From battlefield to boardroom: the founding vision behind Leadership Trust
The UK in the 1970s was facing economic crisis, industrial unrest and political division. Businesses were struggling, morale was low and too many managers were clinging to rigid, top-down leadership styles that did little to inspire the people they were meant to be leading.
Gilbert-Smith’s early partnership with Peter Prior laid the groundwork for something different. Prior was the Managing Director at H.P. Bulmer, a cider company that turned its decline around by implementing the leadership principles Gilbert-Smith and Prior espoused. Their shared belief – that leaders should be developed from the inside out – led to the first courses that would become the foundation for Leadership Trust.
Early delegation in the 1970s.
In 1975, Leadership Trust was formally established and the first Leadership in Management programme ran in 1976. By 1977, more than 100 companies had sent leaders to take part. By the 1990s, Leadership Trust was working with over 600 organisations and 2,000 delegates per year.
Experiential leadership development, long before it was a buzzword
What made Leadership Trust different then – and what still sets it apart now – is its unshakeable commitment to experiential learning. Not in the corporate team-building sense, but in the real sense of experience: where pressure reveals patterns of thought, feeling and behaviour, and where those insights lead to transformation.
From the beginning, delegates were not taught theory. They were invited to put themselves to the test. The point wasn’t to pass or fail – it was to notice how you lead when the path isn’t clear, where you default to under pressure, how your actions affect the people around you and then to improve.
Leadership Trust pioneered experiential learning as far back as 1975.
This wasn’t about physical toughness, despite Leadership Trust’s military roots. It was about emotional clarity. As Gilbert-Smith put it, “If we can be in touch with our feelings, can handle them right… we can handle other people’s emotions as well.” This from a Special Forces officer, some 15 years before the term ‘EQ” was first coined by Mayer and Salovey.
That belief still informs every programme we run.
Janet Richardson introduced psychological frameworks that are still in use today.
Emotional intelligence in leadership: a principle that still guides us
The arrival of psychologist Janet Richardson gave the methodology further rigour. Together, Richardson and Gilbert-Smith developed the psychological frameworks and tools that still underpin our approach – including the Spectrum model and the recent Personal Power Index.
Their combined vision shaped a learning experience that’s deeply human: personal, honest, often uncomfortable, and consistently transformative.
What emerged from those early days wasn’t just a new model of leadership development. It was a new way of thinking about what leadership is. Leadership, here, is not about necessarily being the ‘boss’, the loudest voice or the most confident presence in the room. It’s about how you show up, what you notice and take responsibility for and whether people trust you when things get hard.
Founder David Gilbert-Smith presenting the Spectrum model.
What 50 years of leadership development has taught us
Today, Leadership Trust has worked with well over 80,000 leaders across more than 30 countries. Over that time, we’ve never lost sight of what matters most – the individual in front of us, their pressure points, potential and willingness to step into the discomfort that real growth requires.
We’ve expanded to offer open and bespoke programmes, supporting CEOs leading transformation, mid-level managers finding their voice, and new leaders building their foundations. But whether you come to us through our Leadership in Management or Cultivate Leadership programmes, our coaching or something custom-built – the principles remain the same:
Leadership happens when individuals find and apply their personal power to win the hearts and minds of others to achieve a common purpose.
50 years on, Leadership Trust has worked with over 80,000 leaders.
Looking ahead: how Leadership Trust can make a difference today
The world leaders operate in today is more complex, fast-moving and emotionally charged than ever before. In many ways, the need for grounded, emotionally intelligent leadership has never been greater.
That’s why our work feels as urgent now as it did in the 1970s. Because while the pressures may have changed, the human dynamics at the heart of leadership haven’t.
The current home of Leadership Trust, Chelsea Parkfields.
When we talk about 50 years of Leadership Trust, we’re not just looking back. We’re reaffirming the value of deep, experiential leadership development in a world that too often rewards speed over reflection and style over substance. We exist to interrupt that. To help leaders pause, reflect and lead from a place of clarity. To help organisations grow leaders who know how to think, feel and act their way through challenge.
Half a century on, our belief remains the same: leadership begins with the individual and leadership development is fundamentally a personal development process. When people discover their own personal power, they not only transform themselves, they transform the teams, organisations and communities they serve. That’s why Leadership Trust exists, and why our work is at least as vital today as it was in 1975.
About the author:
Jon Davidge has been part of the Leadership Trust family for 37 years, serving in roles ranging from course director to coaching supervisor, consultant and, today, non-executive director. His connection began in 1988 when he attended the Leadership in Management programme — an experience that sparked his belief that leadership exists at every level, not only at the top.
Alongside his long-standing work with the Leadership Trust, Jon built a career in publishing, holding senior roles in export sales, marketing and at board level for more than 25 years. That combination of business experience and deep commitment to leadership development continues to shape the perspective he brings to Leadership Trust today.
