John Clarke
2025 Nobel Laureate in Physics | Professor Emeritus, UC Berkeley | Pioneer of Quantum Computing & Superconducting Electronics
Stephen M.R. Covey
World Authority on Trust | Bestselling Author of The Speed of Trust & Trust & Inspire | Former CEO, Covey Leadership Center | FranklinCovey
Stephen M.R. Covey has made trust measurable. As the bestselling author who proved that trust works as an economic driver rather than a soft virtue, he has given millions of leaders frameworks to accelerate results while lowering costs. Former CEO of the world's largest leadership development firm, he brings the hard-won perspective of a practitioner who has built high-trust cultures at scale. On stage, he turns trust into measurable advantage.
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Stephen M.R. Covey biography
Keynote speaker Stephen M.R. Covey is widely regarded as one of the world’s foremost authorities on trust, a New York Times and number one Wall Street Journal bestselling author whose work has reshaped how organizations think about leadership and performance. As co-founder and Global Practice Leader of FranklinCovey’s Global Speed of Trust Practice, he has shown that trust is not a soft social virtue but a measurable economic driver that shapes speed, cost, and competitive advantage. His work as a bestselling author has established a new way for leaders to build trust across teams, organizations, and markets.
His book The Speed of Trust has sold more than two million copies and been translated into 22 languages, making the case that trust is a hard-edged, learnable business competency that accelerates results while lowering costs. His Wall Street Journal bestseller Trust and Inspire: How Truly Great Leaders Unleash Greatness in Others was named the number one leadership book by the Outstanding Work of Literature Awards, offering leaders an alternative to command-and-control built on the belief that people are creative, collaborative, and full of potential.
From CEO to Authority on Trust
Covey speaks as a practitioner who has applied these principles at scale. As former President and CEO of Covey Leadership Center, he increased shareholder value 67 times in three years and led the merger with Franklin Quest that created FranklinCovey, growing the enterprise from a valuation of 2.4 million dollars to 160 million dollars. He nearly doubled revenues while multiplying profits twelvefold and expanded operations into more than 40 countries, building the largest leadership development firm in the world. He also directed the strategy that carried his father’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People to global prominence.
A Harvard MBA, Covey has received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Top Thought Leaders in Trust from Trust Across America. He has taught trust and leadership in dozens of countries to audiences across business, government, military, education, healthcare, and nonprofit sectors.
As a speaker, Stephen M.R. Covey equips executives with frameworks to build high-trust cultures that produce measurable dividends. Audiences learn to establish trust quickly with stakeholders, turn trust deficits into competitive advantage, and lead in ways that inspire rather than control. He pairs rigorous research with practical tools that senior leaders can put to work immediately to speed up strategy execution, reduce costs, and unlock their teams’ full potential. As a leadership speaker, he turns trust into an everyday operating advantage.
Stephen M.R. Covey Speaking Videos
Stephen M.R. Covey - Four key behaviors to build trust in uncertain times
Stephen M.R Covey - The Speed of Trust
Stephen M.R. Covey Keynote Topics
Covey shows how trust shapes the two metrics leaders care about most: speed and cost. Drawing on his experience building Covey Leadership Center into a global enterprise, he helps leaders spot and remove the hidden trust taxes that slow execution and inflate budgets, then replace them with trust dividends that speed performance up. Audiences leave with frameworks for establishing trust at five levels, from individual credibility to organizational culture, and see how leading companies turn trust into a durable competitive edge.
Hierarchical, compliance-driven leadership cannot produce the commitment, innovation, and collaboration that distributed teams now require. Covey presents his Trust and Inspire model, which begins with the belief that people are creative, collaborative, and full of potential. Leaders learn to move from managing compliance to inspiring purpose through three stewardships: modeling character and competence, building relationships of trust, and inspiring others toward greatness. The session gives executives concrete strategies to close the gap between what their people are capable of and what they actually deliver.
In this data-driven session, Covey makes the business case for trust as a measurable competency that touches every transaction and relationship. He shares research on how high-trust companies outperform low-trust rivals in revenue growth, shareholder return, and innovation. Audiences gain assessment tools to gauge trust levels inside their own organizations and learn the specific behaviors that build or erode trust with employees, customers, and stakeholders. Leaders leave with concrete actions to raise trust and capture the business value that follows.
When trust breaks, many leaders assume the damage is permanent. Covey shows that trust can be restored through deliberate action and proven frameworks. Drawing on cases of leaders and organizations that rebuilt credibility after serious setbacks, he lays out the steps to restore trust with employees, customers, and other stakeholders. The session covers how to acknowledge mistakes with candor, demonstrate renewed commitment through behavior, and rebuild relationships stronger than before, essential skills for anyone leading through crisis, change, or turnaround.
Speaker topics
FAQs on Booking Stephen M.R. Covey
Why Stephen M.R. Covey?
Booking Stephen M.R. Covey brings your audience one of the world's foremost authorities on trust and leadership. With more than two million copies of The Speed of Trust sold worldwide and a lifetime achievement award as a top thinker on trust, he offers credibility and practical insight that few speakers can match. His background as the CEO who grew Covey Leadership Center into the world's largest leadership development firm means audiences get battle-tested strategy rather than theory. His Trust and Inspire model speaks directly to the challenge facing leaders today: moving past command-and-control to unlock the potential of diverse, distributed teams. Contact Aurum Speakers Bureau to bring this transformative leadership expert to your next corporate event, executive summit, or leadership conference.
What is The Speed of Trust about?
The Speed of Trust challenges the idea that trust is only a soft social virtue and shows instead that it is a hard-edged, measurable economic driver. Covey argues that trust directly affects the two most important business metrics: speed and cost. When trust is high, speed rises and costs fall, creating a trust dividend. When trust is low, speed falls and costs climb, producing a trust tax. The book offers practical frameworks for building trust at five levels: self, relationship, organizational, market, and societal. With more than two million copies sold in 22 languages, it has become essential reading for leaders who want to accelerate performance, cut bureaucracy, and build competitive advantage through high-trust cultures.
What is Trust and Inspire leadership?
Trust and Inspire is Stephen M.R. Covey's leadership model that replaces command-and-control with an approach designed to unleash human potential. It begins with the belief that people are creative, collaborative, and full of potential rather than resources to be managed. Trust and Inspire leaders work through three stewardships: modeling character and competence, building relationships of trust, and inspiring others toward greatness. The model responds to a simple reality: traditional hierarchy cannot generate the commitment, innovation, and collaboration that today's diverse, dispersed workforce demands. Named the number one leadership book by the Outstanding Work of Literature Awards, Trust and Inspire gives leaders a practical path from compliance-focused management to purpose-driven leadership.
What topics does leadership speaker Stephen M.R. Covey cover?
Stephen M.R. Covey delivers keynotes on building high-trust cultures, transforming how leaders lead, and accelerating organizational performance. His talks explore the measurable economic impact of trust on speed and cost, practical frameworks for earning trust with every stakeholder, and the shift from command-and-control to Trust and Inspire leadership. He addresses how to create trust dividends that reduce bureaucracy, lead effectively across hybrid and distributed teams, inspire commitment rather than demand compliance, and close the gap between employee potential and performance. His message resonates with C-suite executives, senior leaders, and management teams navigating culture change and the future of work. To book Stephen M.R. Covey for your leadership summit, management conference, or corporate event, contact Aurum Speakers Bureau.
How to book Stephen M.R. Covey as a keynote speaker?
Aurum Speakers Bureau can help you book Stephen M.R. Covey as a speaker for your next event, conference, or board meeting. Simply fill out our contact form to inquire about Stephen M.R. Covey's availability for a speaking engagement. One of our booking agents will respond to your request immediately and contact the speaker to let them know you want to hire them. We will assist you with obtaining speaking fees, booking information, and confirming availability for Stephen M.R. Covey or any other top keynote speaker or celebrity of your choice.
How much is Stephen M.R. Covey speaking fee?
Stephen M.R. Covey speaking fees are determined by several factors, including the event's date, whether it's a virtual or in-person event, the duration, format, preparation required for their speech, and more. The same applies to the cost to hire any other top expert speakers and celebrities. The Speaker Fee Range listed on our website is simply a guideline and is subject to change without notice. If you would like to hire Stephen M.R. Covey to deliver a keynote speech for your event, please fill out the contact form or email us at info@aurumbureau.com with as much detail as possible. One of our experienced agents will get in touch with you and let you know exactly how much it will cost to book Stephen M.R. Covey.
How can I contact Stephen M.R. Covey?
We only work with Stephen M.R. Covey on paid speaking engagements. Aurum Speakers Bureau can assist you in booking Stephen M.R. Covey and will handle all negotiations, contracts, and logistics associated with having Stephen M.R. Covey speak at your event. We will be your sole point of contact throughout the process. Get in touch with Aurum Speakers Bureau today, and we will reach out to any motivational speaker or celebrity you want to enquire about speaking at your event. If you wish to contact Stephen M.R. Covey for any other reason, we will be unable to assist you as we are not authorized to provide personal contact information.
Can I book Stephen M.R. Covey for a virtual keynote?
Yes, Stephen M.R. Covey is available for virtual keynotes and webinars. To book Stephen M.R. Covey for a virtual event, please complete the contact form or send us an email to inquire about the special fees for virtual engagements.
