Lee Benson
Let me speak to your team and help accelerate your results
Hi, I’m Lee Benson. I grew my company from 3 to 500 employees with 15 consecutive years of 20% compounded average annual growth. Invite me to your next event so I can share my story and Methodology with your leaders.
Lee’s story
In 1982, I became the first employee of a small specialty electroplating services company called Metallic Services. After the company lost all of its business (and most employees) overnight in late 1993, I purchased the business for its debt. We were down to 3 employees, no money, and one great idea.
As we grew Metallic Services, we realized the market had additional needs we could meet. As a result, in 1995, we began to branch out by forming partner companies. I started with Able Engineering in 1995 to safely repair aircraft parts and then Able Aerospace in 1999 to manufacture aircraft parts.
The group of companies steadily grew from 3 to 500 employees with 2,000 customers in 60 countries. We had 15 consecutive years of 20% compounded annual growth on average. I sold the business to Textron Aviation in 2016.
As the companies evolved, I often wondered why some leaders got great results and others did not. They seemed equally smart and capable. My analysis led me to develop an intentional culture that directly connected to our financial results. The first step? Leadership development.
Everything revolved around creating value.
Employees create value for the company, the company creates value for its customers and employees, and when everyone is in a value creation mindset, it ultimately creates value for the community. It has been an incredible journey. I sold Able Aerospace for 9-figures, but I had an emerging purpose: help other leaders do the ongoing work of improving what’s most important. To accomplish that, I started ETW.
While this has become my life’s work, in my free time, I love playing guitar, reading, exercising and spending time with those I care about.
To learn more about Lee and his journey, check out his Wall Street Journal and USA TODAY Bestseller “Your Most Important Number” as well as “Value Creation Kid”
My vision is to improve the health of communities by improving work cultures
Several studies show that 70% to 85% of employees are not happy with their work environments and as a result are disengaged to varying degrees. This energy permeates all aspects of their lives.
Imagine 80%+ of all employees truly enjoying what they do for a living. This is a much healthier energy to take back to their families and communities. The healthier our communities are, the better it is for all of us.
I pursue this vision in two ways:
I help organizations create high performing, energizing environments
I teach youth about leadership and entrepreneurship
I believe competition is a great thing. More competition means more ideas, more innovation, and more thriving businesses. When there are more thriving businesses, the quality of products and services go up and the prices come down. Combine this with more positive energy coming out of organizations and we are really making a difference!
My 6 pillars
Everything I do, and every person or thing I support has to move the following 6 pillars in a net positive direction:
The environment we all live, work and play in is important to me. I feel a strong sense of responsibility to influence the shaping of this environment to make it better for all of us.
Keynote topics
Below are some popular topics Lee has been asked to present, however, feel free to let us know if you a specific topic in mind.
Linking strategy to execution
Do you have a solid strategic plan? Congratulations, you are 3% of the way there! The other 97% is in the execution. Learn about the mindset of the 10% of business that achieve or exceed their strategic goals.
How better work environments create healthier communities
When people are satisfied with their jobs, they are kinder to their family and strangers. When people are treated well, they act better and do better at their jobs. When people do better at their jobs, businesses thrive. Learn how to build an organization that has a positive impact on communities.
How to link your organization’s culture to financial results
When your people are practicing the behaviors essential to your success and collectively setting the right priorities, performance follows. Learn how to develop a value creation mindset in your team in order for the business to see financial results.
How to ethically and responsibly grow your team of 1 to global
The story of how I grew a company from 3 to 500 employees with 15 consecutive years of 20% compounded average growth. Learn from the mistakes I made building this organization and the best practices I now use to coach other leaders.
How to get a solid ROI on leadership development
Money spent on leadership development has significantly increased yet confidence in leadership has significantly decreased. Learn how to develop your leaders without wasting your money on gimmicks and programs that don’t create value for your organization.
"He’s mastered the connection between culture and financial results, and demonstrates this regularly by helping business leaders focus on improving what’s most important in order to win. Lee is humble yet sophisticated, and he understands all aspects of an organization from the factory floor to the C-suite of Fortune 100 because he literally succeeded from the factory floor to CEO himself."
"He recently spoke at our global event, and our attendees haven’t stopped commenting about the simplicity and clarity he brought. He quickly became a crowd favorite for the high value and deep thinking that defines his communication style. I highly recommend him."
