Lee Ellis

An author, keynote speaker, and founder of a leadership and team development consulting and coaching company that consults with Fortune 500 in the areas of hiring, teambuilding, & exec. development.

SAMPLE SPEAKER REVIEWS:

"Lee is an inspirational speaker who reminds us all of the cost of our freedom and what courage and service is all about. He was a highlight at our conference and we will use him again with still larger audiences."      - Kenneth Daly, President and CEO, NACD

"I hired Col. Lee Ellis to speak on Leadership at a couple conferences as his story of being a P.O.W during the Vietnam War has lessons for all. Through his experience we learn how to adapt, survive, persevere and have courage in the face of adversity. Col. Lee's story inspired attendees and equipped them with a new paradigm on dealing with challenges. I highly recommend Col. Ellis as a speaker for your corporate and government clients. He is a true American Hero that I feel fortunate to have crossed paths with."      - Michelle Bartolone, CMP, CEO, Meeting Sites Pro, Inc / Global Meetings Group

"Lee Ellis spoke to our HFMA-SC Chapter last October in Greenville, SC at our Fall institute. He was so well received, and I know the audience was attentive to every word he spoke! He presented his book, Leading with Honor, to me as Chapter President. I would definitely endorse him to anyone considering Lee Ellis as an event speaker."      - Ronnie Hyatt, Sr Vice President-Finance/CFO, Bon Secours St. Francis Health System

"Col. Lee Ellis spoke to our board of directors and guests. He was right on target for the audience, and there were long lines to buy his book afterwards. He did an excellent job, and we highly recommend him."      - Dan Wheeler, National Adjutant, American Legion

BIOGRAPHY:

Leadership Consultant and Coach

Lee Ellis is President and founder of Leadership Freedom, a leadership and team development consulting and coaching company, and FreedomStar Media, a publishing company that provides leadership resources and training. His prior experience was as a founding partner and senior vice president of a leadership assessment and human capital management consulting company headquartered in Atlanta, GA. For more than 15 years he has served as an executive coach and a corporate consultant in the areas of hiring, teambuilding, leadership development, and succession planning. His clients include Fortune 500 senior executives and C-Level leaders in telecommunications, healthcare, insurance, energy, IT, automotive, military, and not-for-profit sectors.

Researcher/Developer

As the Director of Career/Life Pathways from 1990 - 1998, Lee led the development team that researched, developed, and validated Career Direct®, a vocational assessment package and two personality assessments with software applications. From 1998 - 2008, he was responsible for product development of three more behavioral and work profile assessments as well as the development and Internet deployment of these resources. Most recently, he has developed and released his latest assessment tool, the N8TraitsTM Profile. In total, these assessments have been used by more than 200,000 individuals and are the instrument of choice in many organizations, including Fortune 500 companies and nationally recognized not-for-profits.

Author/Speaker

Lee's newest book, Leading with Honor, shares his POW experience and the 14 leadership principles that helped him and his compatriots survive. Lee's previous book, Leading Talents, Leading Teams, was published by Northfield Publishing and shares in-depth team development concepts based on their innate gifts and talents. Additionally, he co-authored three books on career planning. He is a conference and motivational speaker on the subjects of leadership, team building, mentoring, and career planning. In addition, he has been interviewed as a subject matter expert on several nationally syndicated radio programs.

Educator

Lee holds a B.A. degree in History from the University of Georgia and a M.S. degree in Counseling and Human Development from Troy State University in Alabama. He is a graduate of the Armed Forces Staff College and the Air War College. Lee supervised, educated, and trained officers for the last 17 years of his Air Force career. He served as the Vice Commandant of the Squadron Officer School, the Air Force's leadership school for captains. He completed his Air Force career as Professor of Aerospace Studies and Commander of Air Force ROTC at the University of Georgia. More recently he has developed and presented leadership curricula in numerous organizations including Fortune 500 companies.

Air Force Officer and Pilot

A native of Commerce, Georgia, Lee graduated from the University of Georgia in 1965 and began a career in the Air Force. During the Vietnam War, Lee's aircraft was shot down over enemy territory and he became a prisoner of war. He was held in various prisons in the Hanoi area for over five years. After repatriation he returned to flying duties with increasing positions of leadership. His assignments included duty as a pilot, flight instructor, staff officer, chief of flight standardization and evaluation, flying squadron commander, and supervisor in higher education before retiring as a colonel. He was awarded two Silver Stars, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star with Valor device, the Purple Heart, and POW Medal for his service in Vietnam. In addition, he was awarded four Air Force Commendation Medals and four Meritorious Service Medals for performance excellence.

Personal: Lee and his wife Mary have four grown children and six grandchildren. They reside in the metro area of Atlanta, GA.

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