About

Mike Abrashoff Former Commander of USS Benfold | Author of It’s Your Ship | Leadership and Accountability Speaker

It’s Your Ship

What can a leader do when performance is poor, morale is low, and the team must deliver with the people and resources it already has?

Mike Abrashoff faced that challenge as commander of USS Benfold. By listening to his sailors, earning their trust, and giving them ownership of the ship’s success, he helped turn an underperforming crew into one of the Navy’s best. His story gives business audiences a memorable way to think about leadership, culture, and results. The Sweeney Agency

Why Book Mike Abrashoff?

Mike makes accountability feel achievable. His message starts with what leaders and team members can influence today: how they listen, make decisions, solve problems, and support one another.

Audiences hear the story behind It’s Your Ship and leave with practical ideas for building trust, empowering people closest to the work, and improving performance without waiting for perfect conditions.

What Makes Mike Different?

• A real turnaround story led by the same crew under intense operational demands
• A message that gives people at every level responsibility for results
• Leadership lessons grounded in listening, trust, and ownership
• Practical ideas for teamwork, change, and execution
• A keynote he can tailor to the audience’s priorities The Sweeney Agency

Why Is Mike Right for Your Audience?

Mike is a strong choice for leadership meetings, company conferences, sales kickoffs, and organizations that want people to take greater ownership of outcomes. His story speaks to executives and frontline teams alike because everyone has a role in improving how the team works.

Book Mike when your audience needs to:

• Build a culture of trust and accountability
• Give people more ownership over decisions and results
• Improve engagement
• Work together more effectively under pressure
• Focus on changes within their control
• Raise expectations of what the team can achieve

Audience Takeaways

Attendees will leave:

• Ready to ask better questions and listen to people closest to the work
• More willing to take responsibility for solving problems
• Equipped to recognize and use their team’s ideas
• Clearer on how trust and ownership support execution
• Motivated to improve results with the team they already have

Keynote Programs

It’s Your Ship: Achieving Breakthrough Performance

Mike shares how trust, engagement, and shared ownership helped transform USS Benfold. Audiences consider what they can change in their own teams to improve performance. Ideal for leadership, culture, accountability, and teamwork events.

No Limits: Don’t Let Goals Become Limitations

Mike challenges audiences to look beyond merely reaching an assigned target and question the limits they have placed on their own performance. Ideal for sales kickoffs and teams ready to raise their ambitions.

Go Deeper with the Leadership Roadmap

For groups that want to put the keynote into practice, half-day and full-day programs explore the habits of high-performing leaders, teams, and organizations. Ask about the format and facilitator for your event. The Sweeney Agency

Why Contact The Sweeney Agency Now?

Tell us what you want people to do differently after the event, and we’ll help you assess whether Mike’s message is the right fit. We can confirm his availability and current fee, discuss the best program and format, and help plan a presentation around your audience.

Is Mike Right for Your Event?

Tell us about your audience, the results you want to improve, and the leadership behaviour you want to encourage. We’ll help you assess the fit and plan the next step.

To check availability and fee of this speaker, call 1-866-727-7555 or email [email protected].