Lee Ellis

Lee is founder and president of Leadership Freedom a consulting and product company focused on developing leaders at all levels. His experience includes 25 years as an Air Force officer with seven of those focused on leadership development. More recently he served for 10 years as senior vice president and co-founder of RightPath Resources, Inc. where his work focused on leadership consulting and executive coaching.

Lee has developed and taught leadership curricula for Fortune 500 companies and he is a retained leadership coach for senior corporate executives. He is a motivational speaker in the areas of hiring, teambuilding, leadership development and succession planning.

Lee has authored or co-authored four books on leadership and career development including, Leading Talents, Leading Teams released in March 2003. He is currently working on a new book based on his personal experience with exceptional leaders in the Vietnam POW camps.
Lee is a retired Air Force Colonel, former fighter pilot, instructor pilot, and a Vietnam veteran of 53 combat missions. In 1967, he was shot down and held as a POW for more than five years in Hanoi and surrounding camps. After the war his career assignments included duty as a flying squadron commander and Vice-Commandant of Squadron Officer School, where he was responsible for implementing the leadership curriculum for 4,000 officers each year.

Lee’s military decorations include two Silver Stars, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star with Valor device, and the Purple Heart for service as a combat pilot and POW. In addition, he was awarded four Air Force Commendation Medals and four Meritorious Service Medals for performance excellence.

Lee holds a BA in history from the University of Georgia and a Masters in Counseling and Human Development from Troy State University at Montgomery. He and his wife Mary reside in Cumming, GA and have four grown children and six grandchildren.