Veterans Day Speakers: Matt Eversmann and Six Veterans Who Teach Leadership

Veterans Day honors everyone who has served in the U.S. armed forces. One of the most meaningful ways to mark it at work is to hear directly from a veteran. First Sergeant Matt Eversmann (Ret.), the Army Ranger portrayed in Black Hawk Down, is a leading Veterans Day keynote speaker on leadership, accountability, and teamwork under pressure. Six other veteran speakers are profiled below.

What Is Veterans Day, and Why Does It Matter at Work?

Veterans Day falls on November 11 each year and honors all U.S. military veterans, living and deceased. It began as Armistice Day, marking the end of World War I in 1918, and was renamed Veterans Day in 1954. It differs from Memorial Day, which remembers service members who died while serving.

For employers, associations, schools, and community groups, the holiday is a chance to go beyond a thank-you post. A veteran speaker gives your team a firsthand account of service, along with practical lessons on leadership, resilience, and trust that apply to civilian work.

Who Is Matt Eversmann?

First Sergeant Matt Eversmann (Ret.) is a retired U.S. Army Ranger, New York Times best-selling author, Emmy-winning documentarian, and keynote speaker. He led Chalk One during the October 1993 Battle of Mogadishu in Somalia, the mission depicted in the book and film Black Hawk Down. Actor Josh Hartnett portrayed him in the film. Eagles Talent exclusively represents him.

Matt and his Ranger company deployed to Mogadishu in August 1993 in support of Operation Gothic Serpent. He received the Bronze Star Medal with Valor device for his service there.

What Is Matt Eversmann’s Military Background?

Matt served roughly 20 years in the U.S. Army as an infantryman and Ranger, with combat tours in Somalia, Iraq, and Afghanistan. He spent almost nine of those years in the elite 75th Ranger Regiment, the Army’s premier direct-action raid force, where he rose from a young leader to the one responsible for the lives of the soldiers in his chalk. The 1993 Battle of Mogadishu came during that time and remains the defining event of his career.

As his career advanced, Matt moved from leading soldiers in combat to teaching others how to lead. He served as Operations Sergeant at the US Army War College, the Army’s senior school for strategic leaders, and taught leadership at The Johns Hopkins University. Those roles gave him a chance to test his battlefield lessons on students and senior officers, and they shape how he explains leadership to business audiences today.

His last military assignment was Infantry Company First Sergeant in the 10th Mountain Division. He and his soldiers spent 15 months in Iraq during the Surge, fighting Al-Qaeda and carrying out the counterinsurgency strategy. After years with the Rangers, the assignment gave him experience leading conventional forces as well, which is why he can speak credibly about both elite and everyday teams.

Along the way Matt became a master-rated parachutist and a sniper, and he graduated from Ranger School with honors. He also earned Royal Thai, Egyptian, and British jump wings through training with allied forces. He retired in 2008 and carried that experience into healthcare, non-profit work, consulting, and writing.

What Has Matt Eversmann Done Since Retiring?

Matt spent a decade in healthcare, non-profit, and data management work, then co-founded Eversmann Advisory in West Palm Beach, Florida, a consulting firm that prepares young leaders to join and compete in the workforce.

In 2019 he won an Emmy for the PBS documentary Send Me, about advances in battlefield medicine in Afghanistan. He has co-authored five New York Times best-sellers with James Patterson, including American Heroes (October 2024), Walk in My Combat Boots, Walk the Blue Line, and E.R. Nurses.

What Does Matt Eversmann Speak About?

Matt’s keynotes turn battlefield lessons into business tools. He strips away the gunfire and keeps what actually translates, drawing on both his military career and his years leading in healthcare, non-profit, and technology organizations. The goal is simple: what audiences hear on Friday, they can apply on Monday. He offers two main programs.

Strategic Shock: Leadership Lessons for Business from Black Hawk Down. Every industry faces uncertainty, chaos, and the unexpected, which Matt calls the “urban battlefield.” No business plan can fully prevent strategic shock, but the story of elite teams built on high standards, solid leadership, followership, and teamwork gets the right conversation started. Matt walks the audience through his experience as a young leader thrust into a must-win situation in the harshest conditions. The talk resonates most with the people who have to execute, lead, manage, and answer for delivering results.

FUSION Leadership: How to Be an Elite Leader and Manager. How can you lead like an elite team without military authority or the backing of the Constitution? Matt’s answer is that most of us manage small teams, and that is exactly where this approach works. He spent almost half his career with the elite Army Rangers and about the same amount with conventional forces, so he knows both worlds. A leadership award winner at almost every professional school he attended, he built a system that lets anyone influence a team and get results comparable to those of elite Rangers.

Key takeaways audiences leave with:

• High standards cost nothing but require real commitment from leaders.
• Every team member is accountable for something, and leaders must make sure they know what it is.
• Strategic decisions immediately affect execution, and managers make it happen.
• Some events are beyond anyone’s control, so teams must be prepared for them.

Where he speaks. Matt delivers keynotes at corporate conferences, leadership development programs, sales meetings, association events, and university campuses, both in person and virtually. For a Veterans Day program, he can honor the service of veterans in the room while giving every employee a practical leadership framework.

What event planners say. Clients describe him as gracious, humble, and down to earth, and say he connects with audiences and mingles with attendees in casual settings. One organization noted that he sat in on an earlier meeting and then tailored his remarks to the company’s discussions within about 45 minutes. Others called him an American hero who held an entire crowd’s attention.

• Strategic Shock: Leadership Lessons for Business from Black Hawk Down. Treats modern business as an “urban battlefield” and shows leaders how to handle uncertainty, chaos, and the unexpected.
• FUSION Leadership: How to Be an Elite Leader and Manager. Shows that you do not need military service to lead like an elite team, drawing on his time with both Army Rangers and conventional forces.

Key takeaways audiences leave with:

• High standards cost nothing but require real commitment from leaders.
• Every team member is accountable for something, and leaders must make sure they know what it is.
• Strategic decisions immediately affect execution, and managers make it happen.
• Some events are beyond anyone’s control, so teams must be prepared for them.

Clients describe him as humble, down-to-earth, and quick to tailor his message. One said he adapted his talk to their company’s discussions within about 45 minutes.

Which Other Veteran Speakers Are Great for Veterans Day?

These six veterans also bring leadership lessons from across the armed forces.

Mike Abrashoff (U.S. Navy). Former commander of the USS Benfold, he took over at age 36 as the most junior commanding officer in the Pacific Fleet. Within a year, the ship went from near the bottom of the fleet to number one with the same crew. His book It’s Your Ship has sold over a million copies.

“Waldo” Waldman (U.S. Air Force). A retired lieutenant colonel and former F-16 fighter pilot with 65 combat missions, “The Wingman” wrote the New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-seller Never Fly Solo on trust and teamwork.

Jim “Murph” Murphy (U.S. Air Force and Georgia Air National Guard). A former F-15 fighter pilot, he founded Afterburner, which teaches businesses to turn strategy into action using fighter pilot planning and debriefing.

Vernice “FlyGirl” Armour (U.S. Marine Corps). Recognized as America’s first Black female combat pilot, she flew the AH-1W Super Cobra during two tours in Iraq. She is the author of Zero to Breakthrough.

Mary Kelly (U.S. Navy). A retired Navy commander and Naval Academy graduate with more than two decades in intelligence and logistics, she holds a PhD in economics and speaks on leadership, productivity, and change.

Oz Sanchez (U.S. Marine Corps). A former Marine Recon who was paralyzed in a 2001 motorcycle accident, he became a Paralympic handcyclist and won gold and bronze at the 2008 Beijing Games, earning six Paralympic medals in all.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Matt Eversmann? He is a retired U.S. Army Ranger first sergeant who led Chalk One in the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, depicted in Black Hawk Down, and is now a best-selling author, Emmy winner, and keynote speaker.

Who played Matt Eversmann in Black Hawk Down? Josh Hartnett.

Why book a veteran speaker for Veterans Day? A veteran speaker offers firsthand stories of service and leadership that honor the holiday while giving employees practical lessons they can use on Monday.

Can Matt Eversmann speak virtually? Yes. He is available for in-person and virtual keynotes.

How much does Matt Eversmann charge? Eagles Talent lists his in-person keynote fee range as $10,001 to $15,000, excluding travel expenses. Fees vary by format and event, so request an exact quote.

How do I book Matt Eversmann? Contact Eagles Talent Speakers Bureau at 973-313-9800 or info@eaglestalent.com, or use the Check Availability form on his speaker page.

Book a Veteran Speaker for Your Next Event

Veterans Day is tomorrow, but the best time to plan next year’s tribute is now. To check availability for Matt Eversmann or any speaker above, call Eagles Talent Speakers Bureau at 973-313-9800 or email info@eaglestalent.com.