Stephen M. R. Covey is a cofounder of CoveyLink and the FranklinCovey Global Speed of Trust Practice. A sought-after and compelling keynote speaker and advisor on trust, leadership, ethics, and high performance, he speaks to audiences around the world. He is the New York Times and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The SPEED of Trust, a groundbreaking and paradigm-shifting book that challenges our age-old assumption that trust is merely a soft, social virtue and instead demonstrates that trust is a hard-edged, economic driver. He and business partner Greg Link recently co-authored Smart Trust: Creating Prosperity, Energy, and Joy in a Low-Trust World,which shares enlightening principles and anecdotes of people and organization that are achieving unprecedented success from high-trust relationships and cultures. Stephen advocates that the ability to establish, grow, extend, and restore trust with all stakeholders is the critical leadership competency of the new global economy. He passionately delivers this message and is dedicated to enabling individuals and organizations to reap the dividends of high trust throughout the world. Audiences and organizations alike resonate with his informed, practical approach to real-time issues that affect their immediate and long-term performance.
He is the former CEO of Covey Leadership Center, which, under his stewardship, became the largest leadership development company in the world. Covey personally led the strategy that propelled his father’s book, Dr. Stephen R. Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, to one of the two most influential business books of the 20th Century, according to CEO Magazine. A Harvard MBA, he joined Covey Leadership Center as a Client Developer and later became National Sales Manager and then President & CEO.
Under Covey’s direction, the company grew rapidly and profitably, achieving Inc. 500 status. As President & CEO, he nearly doubled revenues to over $110 million while increasing profits by 12 times. During that period, both customer and employee trust reached new highs and the company expanded throughout the world into over 40 countries. This greatly increased the value of the brand and company. The company was valued at only $2.4 million when Covey was named CEO, and, within three years, he grew shareholder value to $160 million in a merger he orchestrated with then Franklin Quest to form FranklinCovey.
Over the years, Covey has gained considerable respect and influence with executives and leaders of Fortune 500 companies as well as with mid- and small-sized private sector and public sector organizations he’s consulted. Clients recognize his unique perspective on real-world organizational issues based on his practical experience as a former CEO.
Covey currently serves on the board/advisory board of several entities, including the Human Performance Institute—the leader in energy management technology—where he serves as Advisory Board Chairman.
Covey resides with his wife and children in the shadows of the Rocky Mountains.
Trust is hard, real, and quantifiable. It measurably affects both speed and cost. A function of character and competence, trust can be created and destroyed, effectively taught and learned. In most cases, lost trust can even be restored.
This fast-paced and engaging presentation dramatically reveals TRUST as the hidden variable that will become your most leverage- able tool, giving you a distinct strategic advantage. We call it “Leading at the SPEED of TRUST.”
Additional Presentations:
“Stephen Covey is a dynamic speaker who kept our audience engaged with the introduction of trust cards and the application thereof in both professional and personal life experiences.”
“Stephen is a dynamic speaker. His presentation was interactive and he kept the team’s attention. He was very well prepared. He understood our culture and values, so much so, that you would have thought he had been a long term member of our team. It was terrific how he integrated them with the Speed of Trust so it became an enabler of our overall objectives.”
“Thank you for agreeing to be the guest speaker at this year’s All Flag Officer Training Symposium… The revolutionary concept of the material presented in the Speed of Trust is perfectly aligned with the Navy’s newly implemented Business Enterprise. This is a great opportunity for Navy senior leadership to hear your unique insight regarding today’s leadership challenges directly from ‘the source’. More importantly, the Speed of Trust discusses the essential tools necessary to cultivate and leverage trust in today’s Navy.”
“I cannot believe in someone or something more than I do Stephen and his book!!! After reading the first few chapters of The Speed of Trust, I knew that this was exactly what our team needed to hear in the midst of the real estate industry’s largest merger/acquisition of CBRE and Trammell Crow Company. He was inspiring, entertaining and the results from our time have led to faster and more efficient interaction with our teams. In a world awash with “How To” seminars, this was the best I have ever been a part of.”
“We learn from Stephen M. R. Covey that continuous improvement is one key to developing trust, the centerpiece of relationship formation. There are compelling economic and social benefits of building high-trust relationships and being able to move with incredible speed. In my view, this book will inspire leaders just as Dale Carnegie’s book, How to Win Friends and Influence People, has inspired generations over the past 50 years.”
“TRUST is a shamefully elusive quality in business, leading organizations to make poor decisions, go to market more slowly, and waste time and effort in unproductive pursuits… Stephen M. R. Covey drove his message home as thought leader at our Annual Meeting & Exposition for the ASAE and the Center for Association Leadership—the secret of speed to market, loyalty, responsiveness, and a high-functioning—even remarkable—organization may be the most elementary (but all to often absent) component of effective human relationships: TRUST.”
“Thank you for sharing the powerful message on the Speed of Trust. We have received rave reviews on your presentation and truly appreciate the time you put into getting to know our guests and supporters. Your presence at this event was invaluable, and we are so grateful for your words of truth on leadership and ethics.”
