Leif Babin

Leif Babin is a former U.S. Navy SEAL officer, co-author of the #1 New York Times best seller Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win (revised edition published in 2017) and co-author of The Dichotomy of Leadership: Balancing the Challenges of Extreme Ownership to Lead and Win. He is the co-founder of Echelon Front, where he serves as President and Chief Operating Officer, leadership instructor, speaker, and strategic advisor to companies and business leaders across the civilian sector. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Leif served thirteen years in the U.S. Navy, including nine years in the SEAL Teams. As a platoon commander in SEAL Team Three’s Task Unit Bruiser, he planned and led major combat operations in the Battle of Ramadi alongside the “Ready First” Brigade of the U.S. Army’s 1st Armored Division. Task Unit Bruiser became the most highly-decorated special operations unit of the Iraq War.

Leif returned from combat and became the primary leadership instructor for all officers graduating from the SEAL training pipeline. There, he reshaped leadership training to better prepare SEAL officers for the immense challenges of combat. During his last tour, Leif served as Operations Officer and Executive Officer at a SEAL Team where he again deployed to Iraq with a Special Operations Task Force.

Leif is the recipient of the Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, and a Purple Heart. In 2011, Leif left active duty and co-founded Echelon Front, a premier leadership consulting company that helps others to train, build and lead their own high-performance winning teams. Clients include companies and organizations in a broad array of industries, from Fortune 500 companies to successful start-ups. Leif speaks on leadership, U.S. military strategy, and foreign policy matters. His editorials have been published in the Wall Street Journal and he has appeared frequently on a variety of national television news, radio programs, and podcasts.