Stephen M. R. Covey is a cofounder of CoveyLink and the FranklinCovey 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 also coauthored Smart Trust: The Defining Skill That Transforms Managers Into Leaders, which shares enlightening principles and anecdotes of people and organizations 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 C Chairman.
The SPEED of Trust is red-hot relevant. ... keep reading Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
Covey convincingly validates our experience at Dell-that trust has a bottom-line impact on results and that when trust goes up, speed goes up while costs come down. This principle applies not only in our professional relationships with customers, business partners, and team members but also in our personal relationships.
Covey brilliantly focuses on that overlooked bedrock of democratic capitalism -- trust. Like the air we breathe, we too often take this critical intangible for granted. As Covey makes clear, we do so at our ultimate competitive peril.
In life and business, relationships are important - but they are empty unless they are established and based upon trust. Trust is the fundamental building block for a brand, and it is the glue for any lasting relationship. It is amazing how Stephen M. R. Covey establishes the essence of what trust is and how it can be established and kept. What a service to the business world and society as a whole!!
Stephen M. R. Covey has done it! He has articulately zeroed in on the leadership challenge of the new millennium -- the ability to cultivate and leverage trust.
