Eddie Francis - Ethical Leadership Speaker

Get ready for high-energy, interactive sessions that challenge conventional thinking about leadership while keeping them fully engaged. I don't lecture from a distance. I connect through storytelling, humor, and real-world experience that make complex leadership concepts immediately applicable.

Expect honest, sometimes uncomfortable conversations about self-awareness, accountability, and the gap between what leaders say and what they actually do. I bring authenticity forged through my leadership journey, including navigating career pivots, an ADHD diagnosis at 53, and crisis moments that tested everything I thought I knew about leading others.

Expect to wrestle with questions about ego, clarity paralysis, and how personal integrity becomes your strategic advantage. Above all, expect to laugh, reflect deeply, and leave with a clearer understanding of how radical self-honesty transforms both individual leaders and entire organizations.

For Eddie Francis, ethical leadership isn't a talking point, it's the thread that strings together everything that he does. A communications strategist, ethical leadership speaker, and award-winning broadcaster, Eddie has spent his career helping organizations, institutions, and individuals find their voice and use it well.

Eddie hosts three shows rooted in that mission: "For Our Edification," a personal leadership podcast; "The Way Forward," a talk show on WBOK radio in New Orleans; and "Ethocast," a leadership podcast for the fraternity and sorority community. He is also the author of The D9 Leadership Blueprint: Personal Leadership, Ubuntu, and Collective Impact.

His perspectives on leadership, higher education, and professional growth have resonated widely. Eddie has been featured in The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Huffington Post, Inside Higher Ed, Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, Volt, Watch the Yard, and Careers in Government. He has appeared on podcasts including "ILLUMENATE," "Confessions of a Higher Ed CMO," "The Horrible Boss Effect," "The Fraternity Foodie Podcast," and "The HBCU Nation." Eddie has also contributed to four books: Epic Content Marketing for Higher Education; The 30-60-90-Day Handbook: Checklists for Communications and Marketing Leaders in Higher Education; From Letters to Leaders: The Legacy of Service; and From Letters to Leaders: Perseverance; How to Be a Great Fraternity or Sorority Alumnus.

When Eddie speaks, he explores the dynamics that shape how we lead and follow, covering the leader-follower relationship, followership, personal leadership, leadership in philanthropy, and his career in strategic communications. He has addressed audiences at the American Marketing Association, the Grambling State University School of Social Work, the Big XII Conference on Black Student Government, the Urban League of Louisiana, and Hannon Hill, among others.

Eddie's story begins in New Orleans, where he launched his career as "Fast Eddie," producer of the hit morning show "C.J. & Company" on WQUE—the city's top hip-hop station—and co-producer of the award-winning "Sunday Journal with Hal Clark" on WYLD. He later hosted "I Wanna Work There!," recognized as one of Hannon Hill's top higher ed marketing podcasts of 2024, and "The HBCU Lifestyle Podcast," one of Podbean's top 10 education podcasts.

But he found his true voice in education. As a speaker for Monster's Making It Count programs, Eddie stood in front of more than 250,000 high school and college students across more than 25 states and never really stopped showing up for them. That work carried him into higher education, where he led public relations at Southern University at New Orleans, shaping the university's brand and overseeing a full website redesign. He then helped spark meaningful enrollment growth at Paul Quinn College. At Dillard University, Eddie led the "Write Your Legacy" brand refresh, grew the institution's media voices by 125%, expanded its licensed merchandise program, and guided another website redesign. He later brought those communication instincts to talent acquisition, recruiting for global firm Cielo and for brands like Quest Diagnostics, Staples, Lowe's, Sprouts Farmers Market, and Tyco SimplexGrinnell.

Eddie's work has earned recognition along the way. He is a recipient of New Orleans Magazine's "30 People to Watch," the Press Club of New Orleans' Best Radio Entertainment Feature Award, and two nominations for the AMA Foundation's Higher Education Marketer of the Year.

He holds a master's degree in strategic leadership from Tennessee State University and a bachelor's in mass communication from Loyola University New Orleans. Eddie is a member of the International Leadership Association, the Press Club of New Orleans, and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.

Above all, Eddie is a proud husband to Dr. Halima Leak Francis, a proud dad to Stevie, a dog daddy to Allegra, and a cat daddy Asa.

Because of my tendency to move, I prefer a lavalier microphone and a stage as free of clutter as possible. Bottled water preferred (no particular brand).