Leadership capability is becoming one of the most important workforce priorities for organisations looking to strengthen retention, improve performance, and build future-ready teams. As businesses continue to navigate change, evolving employee expectations, and increasing pressure to do more with limited resources, the quality of leadership across every level of an organisation matters more than ever.

Yet leadership development can easily become a tick-box activity if it is not connected to real business challenges. Workshops, frameworks, and capability models may look impressive on paper, but they only create value when they help leaders solve practical problems, such as reducing attrition, improving succession planning, lifting engagement, or building confidence in people management.

The most effective leadership development programs are not generic. They are structured around commercial outcomes, tailored to different leadership levels, and supported by coaching, mentoring, and real workplace application. For HR and L&D teams, the challenge is not simply delivering training, but embedding behaviour change that lasts.

“I think you’ve got to be solving business problems.”

On a recent Market Update, Host Leanne Lazarus, Specialist Recruitment Manager at Frog Recruitment and people2people Australia, was joined by Sarah Stone, Co-Founder at LinkABLE, to discuss what effective leadership development programs should include, where organisations often fall short, and how HR teams can create programs that deliver measurable impact.

A key theme was the importance of starting with the business problem. Rather than building a leadership program around what HR assumes leaders need, Sarah explained that organisations should first identify the biggest levers that will support strategic or people objectives. That could include reducing turnover, strengthening succession pathways, improving delegation, or lifting engagement. Once those priorities are clear, the program can be designed with measurable outcomes from the beginning.

This commercial focus is particularly important when presenting leadership development to executive teams. With every initiative competing for budget and attention, HR needs to show how leadership capability connects to tangible business value. Sarah recommended keeping measurement simple, with four or five clear metrics that can be tracked across defined milestones. These may include attrition, internal progression, confidence levels, engagement, or innovation outcomes.

Another important point was that leadership development should not be one-size-fits-all. Frontline leaders, middle managers, senior leaders, and executives all face different challenges. While the overall goals of a program should be aligned across the organisation, the content and delivery need to reflect the capability level of each group. Sarah noted that middle management is often where organisations can achieve the greatest cut-through, provided there is strong alignment and sponsorship from senior and executive leaders.

Soft skills were also highlighted as a major priority, particularly when technically strong employees are promoted into leadership roles. Many organisations see high performers struggle when they move into people leadership because they have not been equipped with the skills to delegate, have difficult conversations, coach others, or manage performance. As Sarah explained, “delegation and having tough conversations always comes up as a challenge for leadership groups.” These skills need to be practised and applied in real workplace scenarios, not treated as theory.

To drive meaningful behaviour change, leadership programs should blend group learning with individual coaching. Group sessions help create shared language and alignment, while one-on-one sessions allow leaders to focus on their own goals, challenges, and development needs. This personalised approach can also increase ownership, especially when leaders are encouraged to reflect on where they are now, where they want to go, and what needs to change.

The conversation also explored the role of HR in leadership development. While HR often owns the framework, vendor selection, and measurement of impact, accountability cannot sit with HR alone. Executive sponsorship, senior leader involvement, and ownership from the leaders participating in the program are all critical. HR may provide the structure, but business leaders need to reinforce the behaviours, expectations, and outcomes that the program is designed to create.

External facilitators can also play a valuable role. Sarah noted that internal HR and L&D professionals can sometimes be limited by organisational expectations or hierarchy. An external partner can bring fresh perspective, challenge assumptions, and push thinking in a way that may be harder from within the business. This can be especially helpful when working with senior leadership cohorts or when an organisation needs to disrupt established ways of working.

For HR and L&D professionals designing leadership programs, the advice was clear: speak directly to the business. Understand the challenges being experienced across departments, identify common capability gaps, and build the program around what will make the biggest difference. This means moving beyond content delivery and focusing instead on practical outcomes, behaviour change, and long-term leadership impact.

Resources such as Go1’s “Simplify L&D with one subscription for essential training” can also support organisations looking to make learning more accessible and scalable. However, technology and content libraries are most effective when they sit within a broader leadership strategy that is aligned to business needs and actively supported by leaders.

Ultimately, leadership development is not just about creating better managers. It is about building stronger teams, improving retention, supporting succession, and helping organisations adapt to change. When programs are practical, measurable, and connected to real business priorities, they can shift from being a training initiative to a genuine driver of performance.

What should HR consider before building a leadership development program?

• Start with the business problem, not the training topic.
• Align leadership development to measurable outcomes such as retention, succession, engagement, or internal progression.
• Tailor programs by leadership level while keeping a consistent thread across the organisation.
• Blend group learning with individual coaching to support both shared capability and personal growth.
• Secure executive sponsorship and make leaders accountable for embedding change.
• Keep measurement simple, visible, and linked to commercial impact.