Matthew Curtis
Re-starting, recovery and resilience, why the relaxing of restrictions means businesses should “Stay Alert”.
It’s late July, the UK is finally emerging from what might prove to be only the first period of lockdown needed to slow the spread and reduce the fatalities caused by Covid-19.
How has the lockdown experience been for you personally, your family, teams and for your business? There is every chance that your experience of lockdown will be different to the experience of colleagues and the same is true of businesses.
To say that we are all “in the same boat” isn’t true, in my opinion
… it’s more apt to say we are all caught in the same storm, in vessels of different shapes and sizes and of seaworthiness. It’s also true to say that each boat has on board a unique crew, made up of individuals with their own skills and experiences, strengths and weaknesses.
Relaxation of lockdown restrictions is undoubtedly welcome news for businesses that are able to re-emerge and begin trading again. To return to the stormy seas analogy, for many businesses’ lockdown coupled with an un-precedented package of government support represented a period of safe haven and shelter from the tumultuous seas.
As we entered lockdown decisions had to be taken due to the restrictions and circumstances forced upon us. Decisions had to be taken quickly and communicated at a pace that didn’t allow for inclusive debate or consensus building.
Re-opening, re-starting and building a forward looking and resilient business able to stand the test of time in an ever more complex, volatile and un-certain climate requires a much more inclusive style of leadership, where it is acceptable to show your team, your vulnerability, to be open with them that you do not have complete answers to all their questions and that you would like them to play a part in finding new solutions to the challenges that you are facing as a business. Make time to check in with your "crew" both collectively and 1:1.
Businesses need to use the diversity within their teams and think about how their business's unique combination of people, products & processes can be leveraged for resilience and competitive advantage.
Business leaders should be mindful that Business Continuity planning and Business Resilience planning are not the same. Continuity planning produces “planned” responses to foreseen occurrences i.e. in the event X happens procedure Y shall be adopted. Continuity planning does exactly what it says on the tin… allows a business to continue and to mitigate the damage an event has on the business – It seeks to stop the bad things that were predicted might happen from being catastrophic.
Business continuity thinking and stopping bad things happening is an important part of building a resilient business, but only a part. Resilient businesses also build the environment, culture and teams that are more able to make good things happen than their less resilient competitors.
They do not focus only on continual improvement and stability, they spend time and energy on innovation and flexibility.
Being able to be consistent and prudent to mitigate risk whilst at the same time being flexible innovative and open to trying new things, inevitably will bring about challenging conversations within leadership teams… and it is for this reason building a safe environment and culture for challenge to take place is so important to building business resilience and high performing teams that are truly committed and prepared to be accountable for delivering results.
At a time when we are asked to wear a mask to reduce the spread of Coronavirus, it’s critical that we do not allow our professional masks to be a barrier to open and transparent communications with our teams and other stakeholders in our businesses. It may not be possible yet to lay out a detailed roadmap of the next 12 months for your organisation, but you can your shorten time horizons and come together around short term goals, give people a shared sense of purpose, add pace and momentum to your recovery.
Communicate frequently, be ambitious, be specific and be transparent.
In periods of economic uncertainty, market disruption, rapid growth, or organisational change, businesses need experienced leadership more than ever. However, committing to a full-time executive hire can increase fixed costs and create long-term obligations at a time when flexibility is critical. A fractional executive provides access to senior-level expertise on a part-time basis, enabling the business to make better decisions, execute faster, strengthen leadership capability, and improve performance while maintaining financial agility. If your organisation is currently facing one or more of the following challenges: Uncertain market conditions Pressure on revenue and profitability Increasing customer expectations Scaling operations without increasing overhead Leadership capability gaps Business transformation initiatives Delayed decision-making due to limited executive bandwidth Need for specialist expertise not currently available internally While these challenges require executive-level attention, a permanent appointment may not be financially prudent or strategically necessary. A viable solution can be engaging a fractional executive to provide strategic leadership and operational support on a part-time basis (from 1-3 days per week) to focus on delivering measurable business outcomes in key areas such as: Strategy development Revenue growth Operational efficiency Change management Digital transformation Commercial execution Team development Investor and stakeholder engagement Expected Benefits: 1. Reduced Leadership Cost A full-time executive can represent a significant annual investment when salary, bonus, benefits, pension contributions, recruitment fees, and onboarding costs are included. A fractional executive delivers equivalent strategic capability for a proportion of that investment while avoiding long-term employment liabilities. Benefit: Lower fixed costs Improved cash flow management Greater budget flexibility 2. Immediate Access to Expertise Executive recruitment can take several months, with additional time required for onboarding and organisational learning. Fractional executives are typically able to contribute immediately. Benefit: Faster decision-making Accelerated problem solving Reduced time to value 3. Improved Business Performance Experienced executives focus on outcomes rather than activity. Their attention is typically directed toward the highest-value priorities. Potential impact includes: Increased revenue Improved profitability Lower operating costs Stronger sales execution Greater customer retention Enhanced organisational effectiveness Benefit: Direct financial return on investment 4. Objective and Independent Perspective Internal teams are often constrained by existing assumptions, politics, or historical practices. A fractional executive provides external insight and constructive challenge. Benefit: Better strategic decisions Identification of blind spots Enhanced governance and accountability 5. Flexibility During Uncertainty Business needs can evolve rapidly. Fractional leadership can be scaled up, reduced, or concluded as circumstances change. Benefit: Reduced organisational risk Leadership support aligned with business need No long-term commitment 6. Capability Transfer Strong fractional executives mentor internal leaders, improve processes, and establish frameworks that remain after the engagement ends. Benefit: Sustainable organisational improvement Reduced dependency on external support Stronger leadership bench strength Risks of Not Acting Without senior leadership support, the business may experience: Slower decision-making Missed growth opportunities Increased operational inefficiencies Leadership burnout Delayed transformation programmes Higher future costs of correction The cost of inaction may exceed the cost of engaging experienced leadership. Recommendation Engage a fractional executive for an initial 6-12 month period with clearly defined objectives, success measures, and review points. This approach provides the organisation with executive-level leadership, strategic clarity, and accelerated execution while preserving flexibility and managing financial risk. Bottom line: A fractional executive enables businesses to access the leadership they need when uncertainty is highest, without assuming the cost and commitment of a permanent executive hire. The model offers a low-risk, high-impact way to drive performance, strengthen resilience, and create strategic momentum.
As we pass the halfway point of 2026, a clear pattern has emerged from our conversations with business owners, leadership teams and growing SMEs across multiple sectors. While headlines continue to focus on AI, economic uncertainty and technological disruption, the challenges that are actually keeping business leaders awake at night are often far more fundamental. Across dozens of consulting conversations this year, four recurring themes have consistently surfaced: People and management Sales and market penetration Operational effectiveness Supply chain compliance What's particularly interesting is that very few of these challenges are primarily technical. Most are rooted in execution, leadership and organisational capability. 1 . People Problems Are Still the Biggest Business Problems It is remarkable how often a business issue initially presented as operational or strategic ultimately traces back to people. Many organisations are trying to implement change, improve efficiency, introduce new systems or embrace technology. Yet the greatest barrier is frequently not capability, but resistance. Employees can understandably fear that change will reduce their role, diminish their value or make existing skills redundant. Meanwhile, managers often avoid the difficult conversations required to address performance issues, accountability gaps or behavioural challenges. The result? Teams operate in silos. Knowledge stays trapped within departments. Collaboration becomes transactional rather than proactive. Key individuals become single points of failure. One of the most common observations we've made this year is that businesses are often overly dependent on a handful of experienced individuals. While these employees are valuable, over-reliance creates risk and limits growth. The strongest leadership teams create a culture where colleagues both support and challenge one another. They actively encourage cross-functional collaboration and invest in succession planning long before it becomes an urgent requirement. Businesses that solve people challenges effectively often discover that many of their other problems become significantly easier to address. 2. Winning New Business Has Become Harder Than Ever Generating demand remains a major challenge for many SMEs. Traditional B2B outreach methods are delivering diminishing returns. Cold emails are frequently ignored, decision-makers are harder to reach, and crowded markets make it difficult for businesses to stand out. Many organisations are also discovering that positive sentiment does not necessarily translate into sales. Consumers may say they want to support local businesses, buy sustainably or choose British-made products, but purchasing decisions are still heavily influenced by convenience, pricing and familiarity. For product-based businesses, gaining access to retail channels remains particularly challenging. Retailers have limited shelf space and are understandably cautious about introducing products that lack proven sales performance. Some businesses have attempted to overcome this through "sale or return" arrangements, only to find that the fundamental challenge remains unchanged: someone still has to drive demand. The businesses seeing progress are often those willing to test and learn rapidly: Experimenting across multiple sales channels. Attending local events and exhibitions. Building credibility through early adopter customers. Using samples, case studies and testimonials strategically. Accepting lower-margin opportunities to create future marketing assets. In several cases, securing a small initial customer was less about immediate profit and more about building evidence that could unlock larger opportunities later. The lesson is clear: market penetration remains a marathon, not a sprint. 3. Operational Excellence Is a Competitive Advantage Operational issues continue to place significant pressure on growing businesses. Rising costs remain a concern, particularly in energy-intensive industries where electricity costs have a direct impact on profitability. However, financial performance is often more complex than revenue alone. We've encountered businesses generating healthy sales and maintaining positive cash flow, yet still struggling to achieve sustainable profitability. Channel costs, inventory demands and working capital requirements can quickly absorb available resources. In one case, a business sold through its available stock successfully but lacked the capital required to replenish inventory and fund future growth. This required a strategic refocus towards the most promising brand and opportunity. Technology is another recurring frustration. Many organisations understand the importance of digital capability but remain constrained by underperforming systems, poor user experiences and fragmented processes. Common issues include: Poor website conversion performance. Weak search engine visibility. Broken customer journeys. Slow resolution of technical problems. Lack of operational planning systems. For several businesses, improving digital infrastructure is not simply an optimisation exercise—it is essential to capturing revenue during critical seasonal trading periods. At the same time, growing companies are increasingly recognising the value of structured planning tools such as Material and Resource Planning (MRP) systems to improve visibility, forecasting and operational control. 4. Compliance Is Not Optional One of the most significant shifts we've observed this year is the growing importance of supply chain governance and compliance. Businesses that previously viewed compliance as a concern only for large corporations are now finding themselves subject to increasing scrutiny from customers. Several companies have been surprised by requests for detailed supplier information, including: Anti-bribery policies. Ethical sourcing declarations. Supply chain due diligence evidence. Environmental commitments. Quality management documentation. The reality is that larger organisations are facing growing regulatory obligations and are increasingly flowing these requirements down through their supply chains. As a result, SMEs can no longer assume that a good product and competitive price will be enough to win business. Increasingly, customers want reassurance that suppliers are operating responsibly, ethically and sustainably. We are also seeing greater awareness of environmental considerations within quality management systems and broader business operations. Businesses that proactively prepare for these requirements will be far better positioned than those who wait until an urgent customer request arrives. The Bigger Picture When we step back and look across all four themes, a common thread becomes apparent. The businesses making the strongest progress in 2026 are not necessarily those with the most advanced technology, the largest marketing budgets or the most sophisticated facilities. Instead, they are the organisations that: Build resilient leadership teams. Create strong cross-functional collaboration. Test and adapt their route to market. Maintain operational discipline. Anticipate compliance requirements before they become barriers. Growth rarely comes from solving a single problem. It comes from strengthening the systems, processes and people that allow the business to thrive despite uncertainty. As we move through the remainder of 2026, the businesses that focus on these fundamentals will be best placed to turn today's challenges into tomorrow's opportunities. About M4C At M4C, we work alongside SMEs to identify barriers to growth, strengthen operational performance and develop practical strategies that deliver measurable results. If any of the challenges outlined above sound familiar, we'd be happy to have a conversation.
Across the last 18 months, we’ve spoken with more than 70 founders, directors, senior managers and emerging leaders across UK SMEs and mid‑market organisations. Different industries. Different stages of growth. Different cultures. Yet the same leadership challenges surfaced again and again. These insights aren’t theoretical. They’re real, repeated, and shaping the future capabilities of organisations trying to scale. Below, we share the four most prominent leadership trends that emerged — and what businesses can do to address them. 1. The Leadership Development Gap Is Wider Than Ever One of the clearest trends is this: Leaders are promoted early but developed late. Many take on their first leadership role before 30. Yet they often don’t receive meaningful training, mentoring or coaching until after 40. That means a decade of: Learning through trial and error Relying on inherited habits (often from poor managers) Inconsistent decision‑making Teams absorbing the cost of avoidable mistakes This “sink or swim” approach creates predictable problems: ⚠️ High turnover ⚠️ Misaligned behaviours ⚠️ Poor communication ⚠️ Burnout for talented individuals “figuring it out” alone. The good news? This gap is entirely solvable with structured development pathways — ones that begin the moment someone shows leadership potential, not after they’ve already struggled in the role. 2. Change Isn’t the Problem — Uncertainty Is While every organisation is grappling with change, the real challenge leaders face is leading people through it. Across hundreds of comments, a consistent message emerged: People don’t resist change. They resist feeling unprepared for it. Teams fear: Losing competence Being left behind Increased pressure without clarity Change that feels imposed rather than explained The most successful leaders do three things exceptionally well: Create a clear, compelling narrative for change Explain the opportunity — what improves for customers, teams, or the business Address the risk of doing nothing When leaders shift from “telling people what’s changing” to “helping people see why change matters,” adoption accelerates and resistance drops. 3. The hardest step in a career isn’t senior → director... It’s expert → leader. This is the transition that repeatedly causes the most friction. Top performers get promoted because they’re technically strong. But the moment they lead others, the job changes completely. They must shift from: Doing → Enabling Solving → Coaching Control → Empowerment Certainty → Curiosity And that identity shift doesn’t happen automatically. In many cases, new managers feel stuck between “being the expert” and “being a leader,” resulting in: Poor delegation Over-involvement in the work Bottlenecks Frustrated teams Emotional exhaustion Formal support during this transition — through coaching, manager frameworks, and practical skill‑building — is one of the highest‑ROI investments any business can make. 4. Growing organisations need structure — not just great intentions Many early‑stage or founder-led businesses reach a tipping point where informal ways of leading no longer scale. We repeatedly heard challenges such as: “We’ve grown too quickly for our processes.” “People don’t have clarity on expectations.” “We need to formalise how leadership works here.” “We don’t have a consistent set of values or behaviours.” The fix isn’t bureaucracy. It’s structure with purpose. Growing organisations benefit massively from: ✔ Clear, lived company values Not posters. Behaviours. ✔ Defined leadership pathways So people know what leadership looks like here. ✔ Competency models That create consistency in how leaders coach, communicate, and make decisions. ✔ Succession planning So progress is planned, not reactive. ✔ A leadership development system Integrated into performance, recruitment, and culture. When these foundations are in place, businesses scale faster without losing who they are . What This Means for UK Businesses in 2026 Across all four trends, one message stands out: Leadership isn’t something you leave to chance. It’s something you build deliberately. The organisations that will win in the next decade won’t simply have great products or services. They’ll have strong leaders at every level — equipped, confident, aligned, and ready. That takes intentional design, evidence‑based development, and the kind of structured support that turns potential into capability. How M4C Helps At M4C, we work with leaders and organisations to: Diagnose their leadership capability Build competency-led development pathways Equip new managers with practical, usable leadership skills Support founder transitions and succession planning Embed change-ready cultures Create scalable leadership systems that organisations can own long-term If your organisation is growing — or needs leadership to grow — we’d love to help you build the structures and capability to get there with confidence..