That's just not true. Remember I was a BSAC Dive Leader before I went back to PADI and became a DM then Instructor
DL & DM are very complimentary courses and they both teach things which are specific to their needs. DL Running a club boat, making sure you have someone to tow, boat handle getting petrol money out of the deep pockets or some of the members and cajoling them to help wash the boat etc post dive
DM obv doesn't have that, but it does have the teaching element, which before I took the course I was scathing about but realised how much it improved my interaction skills with other divers and ability to mentor more effectively
There's also a massive difference between leading club divers, whose skills and foibles you know very well, and leading complete strangers who are complete unknowns
DM's have a similar requirement for theoretical knowledge which is examined - and is more in depth from what they've learnt (or forgotten as a rec diver) Thankfully though they don't need to learn BSAC 88 tables
Club diving for all its strengths also breeds a lot of poor diving and training just because its a closed group practicing self affirmation.
As always the skills of the student at the end of the course is highly dependant upon the quality of instruction , and unfortunately too many people want to hold a DM cert without putting in the effort. Something that a grumpy club DO would never allow
Was referring to the term "dive leader" meaning someone who leads dives with novices, not Dive Leader as in the BSAC sense (organising dive trips, etc.)
In your case, you've obviously got more than just plain old DiveMaster skills, which is a great thing. The challenge with the DiveMaster course is you take raw novices with no diving experience and teach them within the microcosm of the Local Dive Shop -- entry requirements: Rescue Diver with 40 dives. In other words no real world experience nor demonstrable skill quality.
It would be great if the entry qualifications were far higher, but that wouldn't fit one of the core objectives of DM training: more assistants in the shop.