Developing the Whole Person: How CRG Helps Leaders Live, Lead, and Work on Purpose

Tucked away in Abbotsford, BC, Consulting Resource Group International Inc. (CRG) is a leadership development and assessment company quietly influencing leaders, teams, coaches, and educators in more than 30 countries-while still feeling like a highly personal, values‑driven firm you can call directly for help. From their holistic assessments and online courses to executive coaching and certification programs, everything at CRG is built around one core idea: helping people “Live, Lead and Work On Purpose.”

Leadership assessments and training built around the whole person

CRG began in 1979 when its founders, frustrated by the limitations of popular tools like MBTI and DiSC, decided to create assessments that were more accurate, learner‑friendly, and genuinely helpful for long‑term development. That decision led to the Personal Style Indicator, a proprietary assessment that has since grown into a suite of 12–14 tools used across leadership, career development, wellness, sales, education, and team performance.

Today, CRG describes its work as “developing the whole person, or leader, holistically”-not just fixing a single skill or running a one‑off workshop. “Our heart is that we want people to win the race of life and to feel fulfilled and have meaning and contribute at the highest level,” says President & CEO Dr. Ken Keis. The company’s holistic model integrates personality, values, wellness, purpose, and performance so that leaders and teams can align who they are with how they work, instead of forcing themselves into roles that don’t fit.

At a glance, CRG’s ecosystem includes:

• A holistic assessment system covering personal style, values, leadership skills, wellness, learning and instructional styles, job fit, and more.

• In‑person and virtual leadership development workshops, including multi‑day programs based on their Transformational Leadership model.

• A growing library of online courses that mirror live workshops, from “Why Aren’t You More Like Me?” to values and purpose programs.

• Certification pathways for coaches, HR professionals, and consultants who want to embed CRG tools in their own practice.

From dairy farm to global leadership authority: Ken’s story

Part of what makes CRG stand out in the leadership development and assessment world is the lived experience behind it. Ken grew up on a dairy farm as the first‑born son in a third‑generation Eastern European family, with a clear expectation that he would one day take over the farm. “I just got up one morning and said, ‘If I’m here 20 years from now, is that okay?’ And the answer was absolutely not,” he recalls.

That moment of honesty set him on a very different path: agricultural nutrition and genetics, sales training, and eventually deep work in personality and leadership. Along the way he faced a Grade 9 teacher who told him he wouldn’t amount to anything because of reading and writing challenges—later diagnosed as dyslexia—nearly failing high school before discovering how technology and his own learning style could work in his favour. In the 1980s he was also misdiagnosed with manic depression, only later learning he was actually hypoglycemic. In the 1990s Ken was chosen as a sole‑source provider to lead intensive training programs for Chrysler’s retail division in Canada, until a post‑9/11 corporate shift abruptly ended a multi‑seven‑figure contract. Together, these experiences shaped his conviction that people must take responsibility for their health, purpose, and working lives—and that quick fixes are not enough.

“When I got into this industry, I realized that most people are busy being busy, but not many are doing the deeper work,” Ken explains. His own six‑month coaching journey in 1989 involved driving from Vancouver to Seattle every three weeks and handwriting 50–60 pages of narrative to answer hard questions about his life-an intense process that eventually inspired his book “The Quest for Purpose.” “There are no microwave solutions to purpose,” he says. “You have to do the work.”

What it feels like to work with CRG

For many leaders, HR professionals, coaches, and individuals, a CRG engagement begins with a simple but confronting reality: most people are not as self‑aware as they think. Ken often cites research showing that while 95% of people believe they know themselves, only about 10% actually have self‑perceptions that match how others see them. That gap-an 85% “delusion rate” around self‑awareness-is where CRG’s tools and learning experiences go to work.

CRG’s approach typically follows a three‑stage arc:

1. Self‑awareness – using assessments to reveal personality style, values, wellness, and patterns that are often hard to see alone.

2. Self‑management – helping people use that awareness to adjust how they communicate, lead, and make decisions.

3. Self‑mastery – supporting individuals and teams as they make long‑term, purpose‑aligned choices in work and life.

“Self‑awareness leads to self‑management, that leads to self‑mastery,” Ken says. “If you know you’re a jerk and do nothing, you’re still a jerk.”

Depending on who you are, “what it feels like” to work with CRG might look like:

• A leadership team running a series of assessments and workshops to improve communication, reduce conflict, increase employee engagement, and align around a shared strategy.

• A coach or consultant going through CRG’s one‑year certification, joining monthly cohorts and using the assessments as the backbone of their practice.

• An individual completing the Personal Style Indicator and Values assessment online, then diving into companion e‑courses that walk them step‑by‑step through interpretation and action.

Ken emphasizes that the goal is always to equip people, not create dependence. “Our work, for the most part, is equipping the learner to fish rather than giving them money,” he explains. “We’re the beginning, not the end.”

Snapshot of who CRG serves

Holistic assessments, online courses, and leadership development in an AI world

CRG’s tools and philosophy were developed long before AI and remote work, but the company has embraced technology while doubling down on the human side of growth. The firm now operates virtually, using Zoom and digital platforms to serve global clients more efficiently than the days when Ken was flying weekly from Vancouver to Toronto and Windsor for in‑person programs.

Their newest leadership course, built around 12 principles and 60 specific skills, reflects that blend of depth and innovation. Ken notes that the program took over 1,000 hours to create and draws on AI to help build roughly 2,000 slides, yet the core of the work remains fully human-teaching leaders how to think, choose, and act with integrity in a fast‑changing world.

He also draws a clear line between personality, values, and interests, arguing that responsible leadership development must honour all three rather than slotting people into careers based on type codes alone. The same personal style could describe both a criminal and a police officer, he points out; what makes the difference is character, values, and purpose. CRG’s assessments, from the Personal Style Indicator to the Values Preference Indicator and wellness tools, are designed to be congruent with one another, creating a system rather than a set of disconnected tests.

“In a world where roles, tools, and even industries are changing, the constant is who you are,” Ken says. That belief is why he sees CRG’s work as evergreen: regardless of how AI evolves, leaders will still need clarity about their style, values, wellness, and purpose to make good decisions.

Community, contribution, and giving back

For a firm with global reach and high‑end coaching and consulting offerings, CRG has unusually deep roots in local and community‑oriented work. Ken is an ordained pastor and often describes people as “spiritual beings having a physical experience,” a perspective that shows up in how he serves beyond paid engagements.

Recent examples include:

• A full‑day personality workshop for approximately 40 teachers at a local private school, where his time was donated and the school only covered materials.

• A leadership retreat for 20‑ to 30‑year‑olds with Apologetics Canada that he has run for nearly a decade.

• A long‑standing practice of offering 50% discounts on tools for educational systems and Christian nonprofits, such as a Catholic school network in Melbourne with 66 schools.

Research Ken cites suggests that people’s highest contributions often emerge between ages 60–70, with a second peak from 70–80 as wisdom and perspective deepen. Rather than seeing ageing as a drawback, he frames it as an asset-especially when combined with purpose and self‑knowledge. That attitude mirrors CRG’s own journey: a 40‑plus‑year firm continually evolving its assessments and courses while staying anchored to a clear mission and set of values.

For leaders, coaches, and organizations across Greater Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, and around the world, CRG offers more than just leadership training or personality tests. It offers a structured, rigorous way to understand who you are, align your work with your design, and lead others with greater clarity and integrity-even when the world around you is changing quickly.

To explore CRG’s leadership assessments, certification programs, coaching, and online courses-or simply to learn more about the story behind the company-visit their home base at crgleader.com.