Biographies
In 1986, Karen Leland and Keith Bailey founded Sterling Consulting Group, Inc. and shortly thereafter made history by being chosen over more than a dozen European competitors to become the first American consulting company to win a major contract for communication and service training within the British government.
Inc. Magazine chose Keith and Karen as their primary judges for the Inc. Magazine Positive Performer Award, which honors companies that have achieved an outstanding level of business excellence. For a period of five years, Karen and Keith were responsible for selecting the winning finalists from among 500 applicants.
Today, after having worked with some of the most prestigious companies in the world, they are internationally acclaimed experts on increasing productivity through the people side of business, whose speaking and consulting talents have brought them such clients as American Express, Oracle, AT&T, Marriott Hotels and IBM.
Their unique ability to make their research accessible, humorous and practical has led to a thriving business that takes them throughout North America, Southeast Asia and Europe, giving them the chance to both learn and teach world-class best business practices.
Karen and Keith are highly sought after keynote speakers and have presented to a wide range of audiences including: Young Presidents Association, American Management Association, American Marketing Association, The Bakersfield Business Conference and countless corporate meetings.
They are the best selling authors of seven books which have sold over 350,000 copies including Customer Service For Dummies (John Wiley & Sons), Watercooler Wisdom: How Smart People Prosper in the Face of Conflict, Pressure and Change. (New Harbinger Publications), Customer Service In An Instant, Public Speaking In An Instant, Email In An Instant and Time Management In An Instant (Career Press). In addition to distribution within the US, their books have been translated into ten other languages.
Karen and Keith are regularly featured in the news media and have been interviewed by The New York Times, Newsweek, Fortune, Inc. Magazine and Time among others. They also have extensive on-air experience and have been interviewed on The Today Show, CNN, Good Morning America, Fox News and Oprah.
Their latest project was the completion of a ten-year study, which involved over twenty multinational corporations. Based on interviews with thousands of executives, managers and staff, Keith and Karen have identified key criteria that positively impact how people manage conflict, pressure and change in the workplace.
Kaylyn Lehmann is a senior associate with Sterling Consulting Group and has consulted with companies on a wide variety of topics including: Managing Change, Conflict Resolution, Sales, and Train the Trainer. She is also the Technical Editor of Customer Service For Dummies (John Wiley & Sons)
After attending the University of North Texas and majoring in Applied Arts & Sciences, her career began at Outback Steakhouse as a training coordinator. Over the next eight years, she oversaw the opening of 29 restaurants and the training of over 5,000 employees.
Kaylyn specializes in employee retention and customer loyalty. She held the title of Vice-President of Guests for Not Your Average Joe’s, a Boston based Restaurant Company, when they won the prestigious “Hot Concept” award from the National Restaurant Association.
As a consultant and trainer, she has worked with executives, managers, and front-line staff from AT&T, United Airlines, IBM, Johnson & Johnson’s OrthoBiotech, Dupont and the Federal Aviation Administration among others.