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The former Navy Commander and author tells his story about organizational transformation and innovative leadership
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"Mike's personality and message was both inspirational and educational. Several conference attendees have told me that he was the best speaker we've ever had. He certainly was the best way to close out our Symposium! I think we were all ready to take on the world after that address! Thank you for also recognizing those in the audience who had served in the armed services. It meant a lot to them".
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About Mike
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At the age of 36, the Navy appointed Abrashoff as Commander of USS Benfold – at the time, he was the most junior commanding officer in the Pacific Fleet. The immediate challenges that faced him on this underperforming Naval war ship were staggering: unacceptably low performance evaluations, exceptionally low morale, and high turnover. Very few thought that circumstances on this ship could improve. In many ways, however, the USS Benfold was actually an extreme example of the same types of problems facing many organizations today.
First off, Mike Abrashoff established a system of management techniques that he calls The Leadership Roadmap. At the heart of this leadership approach on Benfold was a process of replacing command and control with commitment and cohesion, and by engaging the minds, hearts and loyalties of workers – with conviction and humility. “The most important thing that a captain can do is to see the ship through the eyes of the crew.” According to Abrashoff, The Leadership Roadmap is a practice that empowers the individual to share the responsibility of achieving excellent results. “It’s your ship,” he was known to say. His former sailors to this day still remind him of it.
By every measure, these principles helped achieve breakthrough results. Personnel turnover decreased to an unprecedented 1 percent. The number of military promotions tripled, and the crew cut down operating expenses by 25 percent. Soon, Benfold was regarded as the finest ship in the Pacific Fleet and won the prestigious Spokane Trophy for having the highest degree of combat readiness. Most important part – this transformation took place with the same crew. What had changed was the ship’s culture and Abrashoff’s approach to leadership.
Keynote speaker Mike Abrashoff recounted the leadership lessons learnt from the turnaround of USS Benfold in his book, It’s Your Ship. It became a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller, with over 800,000 copies sold to date. This extraordinary interest in Abrashoff’s leadership journey and the organizational lessons of Benfold led to two follow-up books – Get Your Ship Together and It’s Our Ship. Those books delved deeper into the ways these principles have been put into action by business leaders in their own organizations.
Prior to commanding USS Benfold, our brilliant speaker Mike Abrashoff was the Military Assistant to Secretary of Defense William J. Perry. He also helped draft the air defense plan for the naval forces in the Persian Gulf in 1990, coinciding with Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait. He served as the Executive Officer of the Cruiser Shiloh, where he deployed to the Persian Gulf in support of United Nations sanctions against Iraq.
With a distinguished past, the notable speaker Mike Abrashoff became the founder of GLS Worldwide. This is a consulting firm which works with and supports leaders as they address talent, leadership and business challenges within their organization. The firm challenges leaders at all levels to re-imagine their leadership thinking. They push leaders to create new ways to elevate individual, team and organizational performance.
See keynotes with Mike Abrashoff
Mike Abrashoff had to change his leadership mindset when he took over the near-worst performing ship in the Navy. The situation was dire. If performance did not improve, sailors could have gotten injured…or worse. In response, Mike quickly adopted a new set of principles to guide a new way of leading.
His focus was on building trust and authentic ways of engaging. It was about listening to and empowering his crew who then went on to make the USS Benfold the best ship in the entire U.S. Navy. These very same principles are the foundation of success for organizations that embrace working virtually. In the short term, many organizations have found virtual work arrangements actually increase the effectiveness of employees.
Audience takeaways:
Keynote by Speaker Mike Abrashoff
Keynote by Speaker Mike Abrashoff
Keynote by Speaker Mike Abrashoff
Keynote by Speaker Mike Abrashoff
Mike was a perfect addition to our event, his talk really helped drive the clarity of our message. He and his staff took a great deal of time to ensure we were on the same page.
Shannon Taft
Mike's personality and message was both inspirational and educational. Several conference attendees have told me that he was the best speaker we've ever had. He certainly was the best way to close out our Symposium! I think we were all ready to take on the world after that address! Thank you for also recognizing those in the audience who had served in the armed services. It meant a lot to them.
Maureen Richmond
Very genuine, sincere and caring!
Amanda Schumacher
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