David Irvine
David Irvine is sought after internationally as a speaker, author, and mentor. His work has contributed to the building of accountable, vital and engaged organizations across North America. David Irvine is the President of Irvine & Associates Inc., an international speaking and consulting firm dedicated to building authentic, accountable organizational cultures that unleash greatness.
David has advanced degrees in human development, science and social work. With more than thirty years of experience as an entrepreneur, workshop facilitator, psychotherapist, professional speaker and advisor to executives, David has developed a unique, personal and practical approach to transforming leaders. Every year, thousands of people attend David’s inspiring and thought-provoking programs on authentic leading and living, culture alignment, and accountability.
As one of Canada’s most respected voices on leadership and organizational culture, David has authored five best-selling books, and has taught courses at three universities and the Banff School of Management.
Speaking topics
- Leading Through Disruption – The Power of Authenticity
A crisis is really a terrible thing to waste.” – Paul Romer, Stanford economist
As we continue to evolve through the COVID-19 pandemic, new challenges lie ahead. The unprecedented disruption that now surrounds us provides an opportunity for reflection, as well as a renewed approach to our leadership. These times of chaos create the perfect chance to explore new ways to connect with ourselves and our staff in a positive, productive, and engaging manner. Let’s be sure we don’t waste this crisis.
Be inspired with a renewed perspective on how to re-engage staff, stay focused amid continual disruption, and stay connected in this time of remote working. This thought-provoking, inspiring virtual session is intended to strengthen your leadership, so you are able to engage your employees and ensure trust with your teams in a new world of both virtual and face-to-face workplaces.
- Leadership: Learn key leadership strategies through the continued disruption that ensure a renewed sense of trust, engagement, and accountability.
- Personal Wellness: Leave with practical insights and strategies to stay strong mentally so you can be there for those who depend on you.
- Authenticity: Discover the true source of leadership power – your authentic self – and how to use this time of chaos to amplify your ability to connect with, and influence, others.
- Authentic Leadership
You’ll leave this thought-provoking, inspiring session with practical insights and strategies for developing leadership in all areas of your life. Based on his book The Other Everest: Navigating the Pathway to Authentic Leadership, it won’t just move you – it will get you moving. You will:
- Gain a new perspective on leadership that can be applied to all aspects of your life, particularly as you get more confident in your abilities.
- Discover the true source of leadership power – your authentic presence. Learn how to make a more significant impact by connecting more deeply with your authentic self.
- Understand how a strong leadership presence can inspire trust and loyalty, engage people, end entitlement, and create sustainable results.
- Increase your ability to achieve the four fundamental leadership tasks:
- building trust
- enrolling people in a compelling vision
- engaging talent
- achieving results through those you serve
True leadership comes from the identity and integrity of the leader. It’s about who you are and how you live. It’s about PRESENCE, not position™️.
Now more than ever, the world needs leaders who are committed to substance over the superficial, character over charisma, and service over self-interest. We need authentic leaders – people whose inner compass guides their daily actions and who inspire trust by being honest and real.
- The Missing Accountability Factor
Accountability can sometimes be seen as a negative, but it’s at the heart of every great organization. Be inspired and learn a new approach to accountability with this session. At the end of it, you will:
- Gain a positive perspective on accountability and what it means to keep our agreements with each other consistently.
- Leave with practical tools to build a sense of accountability throughout your team.
- Understand how to transform blame, entitlement, and fear into courage, personal responsibility, and commitment through the power of agreement.
- Discover how to make conflict constructive. You’ll learn how to close the gap between intention and success, which leads to sustainable results.
- Inspire your employees to think like owners and foster accountability at every level of your organization.
It’s important to understand that working on accountability doesn’t stem from problems in your organization, but from a commitment to constantly improving. It’s not about blame and punishment. It’s about creating mutual ownership and clarity around your agreements to each other, which benefits both you and your people:
- They’re clear about what’s expected of them and what they expect from the people they depend on.
- They can make clear agreements about those expectations – and honor those agreements.
- They’ll view their workplace as a safe, caring, and supportive environment, where they’re inspired to do their best work, can be honest, and are respected.
- These behaviors get realized consistently and repeatedly throughout the organization’s culture.
- Unproductive behaviors (which are usually unknowing) can be discussed openly, and there’s a clear, constructive process to resolve the issues.
- Create a High-Engagement Culture™️
Step back and be inspired with a renewed perspective on organizational culture. In this inspirational, thought-provoking session, you’ll:
- Understand why culture is critical to the long-term success of your organization and how to approach culture alignment.
- Understand how the accountability of every leader in your organization helps create a healthy culture. And why organizational health trumps everything else in business.
- Leave with practical “culture health habits,” and a five-step process to create a healthy culture, from behaviors and conversations to agreements and accountability.
- Discover the power of alignment and why your organization’s culture is the key to:
- attract and retain the best talent
- keep your people engaged
- create a remarkable customer experience
- get a grip on meaningful results
- remain profitable
- reach your fullest potential as an organization
Operational excellence is built on the foundation of a strong, healthy organizational culture. It’s the greatest advantage any company can achieve. Tending to your culture is about intentional actions, daily disciplines, and defined habits. Clarifying your cultural attributes is the crucial first step. Then identified behaviors need to actually be put into practice every single day. Without a clearly defined process for accountability and action, cultural attributes become rhetoric and can breed skepticism and disengagement.
- Caring is Everything
We all recognize and understand the power of caring. But caring – to be sustainable – must come from overflow, not emptiness. In this inspiring, thought-provoking session, you’ll:
- Understand why caring needs to be examined through the lens of accountability so that it sustains, supports, and renews the human spirit.
- Discover why it’s vital to make the shift to principle-centered caring – and how to make this real in your organization and personal life.
- Learn the true work of caring: to empower those you care about in a way that’s sustainable for everyone in your organization and life.
- Get to the root of caring in your life and ways to care that support and sustain your own well-being and the wellbeing of those you love and serve.
Step back and gain a new perspective on caring from one of Canada’s most respected teams on authentic leadership and organizational culture, IrvineStone. This session is based on David’s book, Caring is Everything: Getting to the Heart of Humanity, Leadership and Life.
- The Possibilities of Change
Building resilience, capacity, and accountability amid constant change – while keeping people engaged – is now a fundamental requirement for leadership. But where’s your road map? What are your strategies? Where are your tools?
To thrive, you must use change productively. We’ll leave you with practical insights, renewed clarity, and the confidence to lead yourself and others through managing change. This session, based on David’s most recent book, The Other Everest: Navigating the Pathway to Authentic Leadership , will help you:
- Learn to embrace and lead change with greater clarity and resilience.
- Develop the necessary self-awareness to use change productively.
- Create a roadmap for change that builds clarity, confidence, and compassion, enabling you to lead those you serve through the stages of change.
- Understand how to make change inspiring, productive, and creative.
- Leading with Purpose
If we aren’t mindful, our work as leaders can be mostly spent responding to the demands of stakeholders. While good leadership is about being of service, one of the crucial choices of leadership – and life – is whether to live in reaction to circumstances or whether to lead with a clear purpose that will inspire others. People are drawn to leaders with a compelling vision for the future. Leaders start with why and that must come from within.
In this session, you will:
- Step back and focus on your own why – your reason for being – as a leader. Discover and respond to your inner call, the voice of purpose.
- Learn the difference between an outer purpose and an inner purpose, and how to get clarity and alignment about both.
- Leave with a practical roadmap for clarifying your why.
- Leave with concrete strategies for inspiring a why with those you serve.
Video clips
Speaker testimonials
When I heard David Irvine say that leadership is a personal choice, I had a hunch that his messages would resonate with FCC’s leadership team. I was right.
David is one of very few speakers who connect emotionally with their audiences. His stories are real and leave a lasting impression on those lucky enough to hear him. In today’s world, where change is the norm and leaders are needed at every level, of organizations, David’s messages are powerful.
David’s attention to detail ensures that he can facilitate a positive and realistic outcome when working with people – it has been the key to his credibility.
Our employee team and the store owners who attended the retreat with David are still talking about his presentation and the impact it has had on their lives. David’s message continues to provide sustenance and encouragement for myself, my senior team and, most importantly, for our store owners. The ideas shared with all of us are helping us navigate the corridor we find ourselves in with persistence and optimism. David is truly a friend of the Pharmasave family.
David’s works have meant a tremendous amount to me, both professionally and personally, as I manage my way through life as a father, husband, and leader in one of the most incredible and diverse industries imaginable. I recommend David highly to anyone who believes they are a student of life and career.