This article explores leadership development in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We investigate determinants of the adoption of leadership development practices in established SMEs expecting human resource management (HRM)-strategy fit, human resource (HR)/leadership expertise and the existence of gaps in leadership capability to influence both the presence and intensity of leadership development practices. We found that all three variables positively related to both measures of adoption. The attitudes of owner-managers towards development mediated the HRM-strategy fit–adoption relationship. The theory and practice implications of our findings are evaluated.