Stephen M.R. Covey

In this thought-provoking presentation, Stephen M. R. Covey challenges conventional wisdom about business. From his informed perspective as a highly successful CEO, he demonstrates how there are two important measures in business: SPEED and COST. The level of TRUST in an organization significantly affects these measurements. He shows how to increase speed and lower costs, turn a Trust Tax™ into a Trust Dividend™, and transform the way you do business at all levels.

Learn how great companies create cultures of high trust that produce extraordinary organizational dividends, enabling them to operate at a different-in-kind “speed” in business. What do Wal-Mart, Berkshire Hathaway, and other great companies know about capitalizing on the matchless speed of high trust? How do companies convert the high Trust Taxes™ of low trust into abundant Trust Dividends™? What can any influencer do within any organizational setting to achieve similar speed, benefits, and results?

Stephen teaches organizations to measure TRUST and understand that establishing, growing, extending, and restoring TRUST are the leadership competencies required in the new global economy. This increases business acumen and allows for better, faster, and more profitable decisions at all levels.

“Leading at the SPEED of TRUST” practices significantly lower costs and increase speed, profits, and influence. In this fast-paced and engaging presentation, Stephen M. R. Covey demonstrates the leadership benefits of TRUST from the perspective of a CEO and teaches how to establish and grow a high-trust, high-performance organization.

Stephen M. R. Covey predicts:

“The ability to establish, grow, extend, and restore trust with all stakeholders–customers, suppliers, investors, and employees–is the critical leadership competency required in the new, global economy.”

TRUST, more important than VISION, you ask? Yes! No matter how grand a vision, the high cost of low trust can stop you from reaching it profitably.

TRUST, more important than STRATEGY? Yes! While high trust can’t make a poor strategy succeed, the high cost of low trust can derail an otherwise great strategy.

TRUST, more important than SYSTEMS and STRUCTURE? Yes! No degree of re-engineering and quality control can overcome the sabotage and tax of a low-trust culture.

TRUST, more important than SKILLS? Yes! No matter how skilled a group, the high cost of low trust can disrupt its potential success. Nothing repels talent like a high-control, low-trust workplace.

We call it the “SPEED of TRUST™.” Leading at the SPEED of TRUST is both more financially rewarding and more fun and energizing.

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 reveals TRUST as the hidden variable that can become your most leverageable tool, giving you a distinct strategic advantage.

The two most critical jobs-to-be-done for organizations today are to win in the workplace and to win in the marketplace. As we consider the people we lead, the natural question that follows is: How big is the gap between performance and potential?

The vast majority of the workforce today possesses far more talent, creativity, ingenuity, intelligence, and ability than their present jobs require or even allow them to contribute. The fact is, most organizations are over-managed and under-led.

The traditional Command & Control style of leadership, prevalent to some degree in 92% of organizations today, is incapable of inspiring the level of commitment, innovation, collaboration, belonging, loyalty, and performance needed to deliver on these two critical jobs-to-be-done in today’s ever-changing, disruptive world.

The antidote to Command & Control is Trust & Inspire. A Trust & Inspire leader models authentic, inclusive behavior with humility and courage. They are not only trustworthy; they are trusting, and their people deliver on that trust. They inspire others to willingly give their hearts and minds, not just to work, but to contribute meaningfully to something that matters. People don’t just want to be motivated; they want to be inspired. Contrary to what most people believe, inspiring others is a learnable skill.

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 identify and remove the hidden trust taxes that slow execution and inflate budgets, then replace them with trust dividends that accelerate performance. Audiences leave with frameworks for establishing trust at five levels, from individual credibility to organizational culture, and learn 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. These are essential skills for anyone leading through crisis, change, or turnaround.