Find speakers by:
Request more info

Michael Abrashoff

Former Navy Commander | Bestselling Author

Canadian Motivational Speaker
Naval Management Techniques that Work for Your "Crew"
Don't Impose Limits on Yourself
Inspiring the Confidence to Question the Norm
Michael Abrashoff Navy Speaker
The Value of Challenging the Plan
Michael Abrashoff
How to Turn Your Ship Around
Canadian Motivational Speaker
Cultivate Trust With Your Team
Michael
Michael Abrashoff Navy Speaker
Michael Abrashoff
Michael
Canadian Motivational Speaker
Naval Management Techniques that Work for Your "Crew"
Don't Impose Limits on Yourself
Inspiring the Confidence to Question the Norm
Michael Abrashoff Navy Speaker
The Value of Challenging the Plan
Michael Abrashoff
How to Turn Your Ship Around
Canadian Motivational Speaker
Cultivate Trust With Your Team

Michael Abrashoff is at the center of one of the most remarkable modern-day stories of organizational transformation. Abrashoff took command of the worst-performing navy ship and crew in the Pacific Fleet, plagued with low morale, high turnover, and abysmal performance evaluations, and — within just one year — made it the best in the fleet using the same crew. The lesson was clear — leadership matters and culture is everything. In his riveting talks, Abrashoff provides a leadership roadmap to help audiences achieve the same results and success with their own “crews.”

A popular keynote speaker for audiences looking to ramp up organizational performance, Abrashoff has spoken to every industry and kind of audience — from board retreats to front line personnel; from sales groups to universities; from Fortune 500s to startups. He inspires audiences to rethink their beliefs about leadership and organizational culture, and tailors the message to focus on engagement, execution, change, safety, diversity, leadership, teamwork, innovation, accountability, and more.

Prior to commanding USS Benfold, Abrashoff served as the military assistant to Secretary of Defense William J. Perry. He also helped draft the air defense plan for naval forces in the Persian Gulf in 1990, coinciding with Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait; and served as the executive officer of the Cruiser Shiloh, where he deployed to the Persian Gulf in support of United Nations sanctions against Iraq. He is currently the founder of Aegis Performance Group, a consulting firm which works with and supports leaders as they address leadership, talent, and performance challenges within their organizations.

Abrashoff is the author of It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from The Best Damn Navy in The Country, which has sold more than one million copies and is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller. He has also written the follow-up books, It’s Our Ship and Get Your Ship Together.

Speaking topics

Presentations listed below include in-person and virtual keynotes, as well as workshops, fireside chats, and other presentation formats.

Need assistance?

Client reviews

  • Mike Abrashoff’s address to our group in Denver was spot-on. It was quite evident that he had worked to include information regarding our company, our markets and in particular, our Project Managers Forum objectives and attendee backgrounds into the content of his presentation. Several people commented to me that they found his story inspiring and relevant. As I mentioned earlier, this was the third time I heard Mike tell his story. It seems that each time I pull something more from the information he shares.

  • You gave a memorable and enjoyable keynote speech that was enjoyed by all. Thank you for making our owners understand that they are the captains of their own destiny and that they need to take all action needed to succeed.  You did a great job setting the tone for the rest of the convention.

  • We have never had such positive feedback so you very much exceeded our expectations.  You were quoted numerous times throughout the remainder of the conference which says people took your message to heart and will put it to work in their everyday jobs – exactly what we aimed for!

  • The “day after” is over and the impact is reverberating throughout the organization. .” I truly appreciate the effort you obviously made to incorporate our issues and to position the call to action for them as leaders of teams. The feedback was clear — your presentation ranked #1 for most valuable . . . count me a fan.

  • Mike Abrashoff’s remarkable story regarding the transformation of USS Benfold was extremely well received and appreciated by our event participants, who found great inspiration and practicality in his remarks. These are challenging times for many and his perspective on leadership and leading during difficult times is timely as well as thought-provoking.

  • The feedback was overwhelmingly positive! I personally have never listened to a better speaker. Your message was tailor made for my team and I look forward to discussing future opportunities with you. Thank you so very much Mike.

  • I wanted to let you know what an amazing speaker and presentation Mr. Abrashoff gave! It was a pleasure listening to him.

  • Your insightful leadership guided us through a thorough, engaging and thoughtful examination of our current “state of the union” as well as our visions and expectations for the future.  We have been inspired by your call for collaboration and are excited to bring your teachings forward with us into the future.

  • Any audience that cares about leadership, culture, change management, performance and teamwork would benefit immensely from your presentation.  Our group enjoyed not only your message, but also your presentation style.  Needless to say, you received very high ratings in our post-conference survey.

  • THANK YOU for visiting City of Hope!  Our team of leaders was inspired by your sessions and many have emailed me or stopped me on campus to share how they can apply relevant learnings.  We have ordered another 100 books and many will be taking the time to read the book in larger teams.  We are creating an internal blog where leaders can share with others how they are creating organizational transformation through grass roots managerial efforts.  Thank you again for helping us drive organizational change and evolving our efforts to build a more accountable culture!

You might also like

Related speakers.