Rob Waldo Waldman

Rob Waldo Waldman Speaker Biography

Decorated Combat Air Force Fighter Pilot
and Best-Selling Author, Never Fly Solo

Lt. Col. (ret.) Rob ‘Waldo’ Waldman – The Wingman – is a Hall of Fame leadership speaker and author of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller Never Fly Solo. He teaches organizations how to build trusting, revenue producing relationships with their employees, partners, and customers while sharing his experiences as a combat decorated F-16 fighter pilot and sales manager.

Combat Veteran

He is a highly experienced combat veteran with over 2,650 flight hours and sixty-five real world combat missions, having flown both in Iraq enforcing the “No-Fly Zone” and in Yugoslavia during Operation Allied Force in 1999. Some of his military honors include five Air Medals, two Aerial Achievement Medals, four Air Force Commendation Medals, and two Meritorious Service Medals.

Never Fly Solo

Waldo overcame massive claustrophobia and a fear of heights to become a fighter pilot and believes that the key to building a culture of trust lies with your wingmen – those who help you to overcome obstacles, adapt to change, and break performance barriers. In business and life, you should never fly solo!

Sales Management Expert

Waldo is a graduate of the U.S Air Force Academy and also holds an MBA with a focus on Organizational Behavior. After leaving the military, he became a top producing sales manager with several companies before starting his speaking career.

Hall of Fame Speaker

He is an inductee into the professional speakers Hall of Fame, a prestigious award that honors those who have reached the top echelon of platform excellence, and has been bestowed on less than 200 speakers worldwide since 1977. Waldo is also a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) and his clients include Hewlett Packard, Verizon Wireless, New York Life, Siemens, Home Depot, Oppenheimer, PayPal, and Johnson & Johnson. He even helped lead The Denver Broncos to the 2014 Super Bowl!

Wingman Foundation

In addition to his speaking business, Waldo is also founder and President of The Wingman Foundation, a 501(c)(3) whose mission is to build funds and awareness for soldiers, veterans and their families in need. Voted one of the Top 40 under 40 Business Leaders in Georgia, Waldo has been featured on Fox & Friends, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, The Harvard Business Review, Investor’s Business Daily, The Atlanta Journal Constitution, INC. Magazine, and Business Week.

Rob Waldo Waldman Speaking Topics

Wingman Leadership

The key to building a high powered organization that encourages innovative thinking, loyalty to the mission, and a relentless commitment to excellence lies with its leadership. In this high energy workshop, I highlight the difference between managing people, and leading them to be responsible, empowered, and confident wingmen. As trusting and reliable wingmen, an organization that leads to win has four distinct characteristics: Shared Vision -- Each and every wingman in the organization knows exactly what they are fighting for. They are committed to the mission, and understand exactly how their unique role in the organization is essential to its success. Values Based Culture -- Integrity, accountability, mutual respect, and teamwork serve as the foundation for all relationships internally with co-workers, and externally with partners and clients. Effective Communication-- Leaders listen aggressively and communicate their vision with passion. They promote open communication and connect with the heart and soul of their wingmen. Train to Win Mindset--Successful leaders command flawless preparation, not flawless execution! They encourage their wingmen to expand their capabilities, and consistently reward high performers who take calculated risks and ‘push the envelope’ in order to grow.

Never Fly Solo!® : The Leader's Flight Plan to Win in Business and Life

Today in our super charged, highly competitive world of rapid and constant change, those who build trust and work as a team will dodge the missiles of business and win. Waldo’s keynote demonstrates you can win in highly competitive environments through disciplined training, dedicated teamwork, and courageous leadership. This program isn’t about combat and crushing the enemy. Rather, it’s about focusing on what really matters in business - unwavering trust in meeting the needs of your customer and most importantly, your co-workers. The key to building a culture of trust and winning lies with your wingmen — those trusted and reliable partners who passionately support the team and help you to overcome obstacles, adapt to change, and achieve success. When the mission really counts, you should never fly solo.

The Power of Trust

Amidst our constant struggle to adapt to increasing time constraints, limited budgets, and a relentlessly changing economy, we often forget to maintain a focus on what truly drives any successful business transaction — relationships. Today, managing these personal and professional relationships is often the most challenging part of our every day life.
The key to building and sustaining these relationships is to develop them based on mutual trust. Connecting with people on a human and emotional level, and developing a reputation as a trusted resource is one of the most important traits you can have in business. When you combine trusting relationships with a product or service that truly provides value, you win in business…and life!

Top Gun Sales Execution”Peak Performance Sales Strategies to Win in Business!

When it comes down to the execution of an aerial combat mission, second place is never an option. Winning must be the primary objective, and every tactic and strategy has to support the overall vision of the entire unit. Regardless if it is a training mission or real world combat, fighter pilots plan, brief, execute, and de-brief each and every mission with the same commitment to excellence and passion for success. We “Fight Like We Train,” and every mission counts!
In business, the same rules for success apply. Winning or losing a sale may not cost you your life, but it can mean the life and death of a critical relationship with a key client or strategic partner that directly impacts your bottom line. In business, your reputation means everything, and each member of your sales force has to have the same dedication to the mission and train to win, every single day. Each sales mission must involve detailed planning, relentless preparation, competitive analysis, briefing, and de-briefing to maximize your chances for success in a rapidly changing environment. This is not about flawless execution, but rather flawless preparation!

PUSH IT UP!

An engaging motivational keynote speaker, Waldo's high energy, customized, multi-media motivational keynotes are a perfect way to kick-off or close your annual sales meeting, partner conference, or association convention. The missiles of our economy are effecting us more than ever. The key is not to get shot down! Waldo puts you in the cockpit of a high performance jet and shows how you can overcome fear, adapt to change, build trusting relationships with your wingmen, and take action that leads to results in business and life.