Testimonials

“Very informative and opened my eyes to areas of leading that I have been neglecting of late.”

“Very informative program that has helped me greatly. Doug is an inspiration and has taught me better ways to deal with situations, not only in the workplace, but in my home life as well. I wish there were more sessions I could attend. The program was a great use of my time!”

"Today there were new ideas shared and our team became closer as a result. Great team building concepts and techniques."

"Hello Doug, It was a pleasure to meet you and participate in your Leadership Simplified program at our ABWA chapter meeting this evening.  I always want to "sharpen the saw" and your topics were very helpful. I am going to check out your website for your upcoming seminars - they sound like they are right up my alley!  I plan to start reading your book this weekend.  We can never learn too much.  Many thanks!"

“This will be extremely beneficial to my continued growth as a leader.”

“What a fun and enlightening experience! Gave us a really insight into one another that we can move forward with.”

"An excellent program and master example of how to run a training class. As an aspiring trainer, it was engrossing!"

"Doug's Sales Simplified program was very helpful to me. I learned how to have more productive and engaging conversations with my customers. I liked the interactive nature of the presentation."

"Practical, can be used with every business."

"Really beneficial to me. I have learned a lot of things that will be very useful to me and to my team. I would like my staff to attend also. Great program....thank you!"

"Excellent. Extremely helpful. Great examples..."

"I have received excellent value from our coaching sessions together and find myself consciously referencing what I have learned in everyday situations."

"Fabulous, wish I had done this 2 years ago when I started in sales."

“Very informative and is relevant to my work as a team leader”

"Loved it! Thank you for all the inspiration and motivation. Very knowledgeable and professional, funny too."

"Doug offered a new way of thinking about working with colleagues at all levels and at different stages."

“He introduced tools that are immediately implementable. I am thrilled”

"Great program, especially for professionals. Lots of new information to take back to the office."

"Doug's Leadership Boot Camp was outstanding - I am walking away with several ideas and a desire to implement as many as possible. A truly enjoyable and educational class. Thank you!"

"Very rational way of enlightening groups to see eye-to-eye or at least understand where the other party is coming from."

"Doug is an awesome speaker and made it fun for everyone. He really listened to our questions. It was very educational and I will definitely use the techniques."

Doug, Thank you again for the sales training you provided for us. It was phenomenal! I’m really ‘pumped’ to implement the bevy of techniques you shared with us.  Also, I sincerely thank you for the laughter my associates and I experienced throughout the training! I love my job, my career in banking, and having the opportunity to work with my company, but this is a very serious business and we sometimes don’t laugh enough while we’re on our journey. The weight our Senior Leaders carry for us, our clients and the bank sometimes gets in the way of them being able to actually enjoy laughter throughout the day too. When I looked around the room and saw everyone laughing and truly enjoying you and your comments and jokes, it brought joy to my heart for all of us!!!  And we all know we learn and retain so much more when we’re having fun in the process! You are a very Special Person and Leader. I’m looking forward to our meeting again in the upcoming weeks and learning even more from you! Have a wonderful day, Deb “A Big Fan”

"I enjoyed the whole presentation. The importance of paraphrasing was a topic I had not heard in a very long time, but a very good tool."

"Excellent leadership retreat - The team was energized by the content, various team building exercises, and Doug's warmth and expertise!"

"Excellent. I was nervous of the program and the ability to find it useful, but it was great and I really found it interesting and educational."

"Fantastic pace and fantastic company."

"This program really hit the target today in meeting the needs of the organization. Great boot camp!"

“Excellent program, would recommend other leaders from Tervis to take advantage of this opportunity next time. Content was very helpful and I was able to implement a lot of the practices immediately.”

"Simple ideas but very underused tools"

"We have used DVD Consulting for Business Planning and Meeting Facilitation numerous times over the last 7 years. We have been very happy with the results - he is punctual and inciteful. Most importantly, he has helped me grow as a entrepreneur and a business owner. Highly recommended."

"Your techniques and skills helped to consolidate our priorities, while providing a detailed roadmap to implement."

"The coaching sessions you crafted were tailored to the characteristics of the mentored individual. The results have been outstanding."

"The energy of the presenter and engagement of participants was outstanding. The program was well paced and balanced."

"Great job! Amazing presentation"

“Thank you for your incredible coaching and insights this past year. You really helped me focus on what my passion was.”

“I thought that whole presentation was excellent. Specifically, the segments regarding communication and conducting effective meetings were particularly good. I picked up many pointers that I am anxious to use. Thanks!”

"Great presentation!"

"Doug is a terrific presenter. He had quite a challenge addressing our group since we had "newbies" all the way to seasoned speakers. He handled it very well!"

“Absolutely inspiring! After 20 years in business and many, many training events, the programs you have customized for us over the past few years have been the most productive I have ever experienced.”

"Fantastic program. It should have a positive impact on our relationship with our company."

"Good to sit down and draw out expectations  of one another"

"The meeting was very good. We covered many topics and came to consensus on most. Many great ideas were exchanged."

"Great ideas and format. Doug's ideas, material, and suggestions were motivating and eye opening."

"Doug, your speaking style and content is well disciplined. The format was effective in covering specific content."

"Doug, As you know, we started this year out with some very specific goals that I wanted to achieve for the teams I manage.  To achieve these goals, there were some changes I needed to make with my leadership style.  With this in mind you laid out a path for us to work down that would allow me to attain these goals, making changes as required as new challenges or opportunities presented themselves.  With the amount of changes we made to the way we work this year, I feel we took advantage of the opportunities presented and you helped me to significantly raise the bar and achieve our goals. I truly appreciate all of the coaching and support you have provided to me over the last 12 months, our success would not have been possible without you.  I look forward to continuing our sessions in the year to come!"

"Leadership Simplified will be the start for our team to communicate, have fun and be more productive."

“I thought it was very informative and learned a lot of new techniques I can apply daily to my job functions.”

"Great content. Doug was terrific at adapting message to the audience."

"I enjoyed learning about the various tools that can be implemented to have a more effective and accountable organizational structure."

"I really enjoyed the program. I will be doing a lot of public speaking & presentations in my new role at Trustmark. Your insight, wisdom, and tools are of great value. Thank you."

"I have worked with Doug on a number of consulting engagements. The quality of his work has always been outstanding. He is one of my go to people when it comes to topics on leadership, sales, and coaching. His blog is one of the few that I read on a regular basis. Doug is a consummate professional. I recommend him highly."

"Very detailed, ability to adapt to questions or situations, on the spot feedback on use of skills, reinforcement and critique."

“Outstanding content. Doug is an excellent presenter.”

"Very inspiring. The visual aids and exercises were energizing. We jumped right in to the session and had a fast-paced, learning experience!"

“I found the program to be very useful and effective. Doug is an excellent speaker and teacher. I would absolutely recommend this class. I know I will use these tools throughout my professional career. This course was better than most of my business college classes at USF. I wish I had such a course when I was in college.”

 "I went to Doug's seminar when he was in Kansas City. I was so impressed that I spoke with him about customizing a program for my sales employees focusing on leadership and sales. We worked on a program together and he came into Kansas City. The seminar he put on was invaluable. The tools he showed everyone and the way he interacted with my employees was top notch.  I have challenged him many times since about how to handle certain business situations. Each time he has given me great ideas. I have seen and met many consultants over my career. He is far and above the best and the most helpful. I would highly recommend him and I wouldn’t say that if I did not mean it." 

"Coming from a military background I am a bit skeptical of soft skills coaches. I have also read just about every management/leadership book that exists. TTS hired Doug to help us with our business strategy during a period of rapid growth. His interfacing with our team and direction he provided during meetings was phenomenal. He has managed to mold a group of people who were rigidly formed by military experience into a very effective leadership team. Knowing all the buzz words and techniques is not enough. Doug is a great implementor of these techniques. I highly recommend Doug to help your organization from the boardroom to the 'shop floor'."

"Very valuable; especially in the tech world with all the linear thinkers."

"I REALLY have appreciated each of the weekly topics and how they relate to me as a leader, to my career, and to what has currently been going on at work. Week by week each class builds upon the other creating a foundation of leadership skills. The "foundation" points I have learned actually run through my head during work situations. I find myself engaged during work moments and cognizant of my behavior/ bodylanguage/ paraphrasing, etc. I THANK YOU Doug for helping me become a better leader!"

"The program covered many topics that were lacking in my MBA program. Useful strategies to deal with difficult situations, people and decisions were in every meeting. The practical applications were imediately useful in business and non-business situations."

"I think this program was very valuable. The CD/Homework served as a great base to start. Great job!"

"Purposeful and driven towards success. Deliverables and desired outcomes clearly defined prior to meeting and achieved."

"Great job pushing people to open up, providing a great foundation and solid toolbox for professional speaking. Very creative in providing constructive feedback allowing people to learn and grow."

"I felt this was a robust program. I found you to be direct and engaging. You listened to our challenges and then introduced tools to help us succeed."

"I thought the program was excellent!"

"It is excellent! This program has positively changed the way I handle things in both professional and personal aspects, making things easier for me. I absolutely recommend it! A lot of my co-workers can see the difference since I started this training."

"Fun and very informative. I learned a lot about planning and ways to deal with procrastination."

"Very practical with effective strategies and tools to deploy in any workplace."

"Doug Van Dyke, CEO of Leadership Simplified delivered a wonderful and information presentation to our team. His talk on '10 Tips for Leaders to Motivate Employees' was exactly what we needed to hear. He customized the presentation for us, and we hope to invite him back soon. We believe that Doug Van Dyke is the right fit for organizations seeking to advance leadership and cultural change initiatives. Again, thank you!"

"Excellent use of funds, sums it up nicely."

"Outstanding! Very effective and thought-provoking. All the concepts presented were very easy to implement."

"After going through the Working Agreement process with Doug I have become more aware of my habitual body language, tone and words, and how they affect my working relationships."

“Doug Van Dyke and Leadership Simplified have conducted numerous leadership programs for the Clerk's office and the results have been remarkable. His one-on-one coaching with my management staff has helped these leaders perform at a higher level and lead their teams with confidence and clarity. His ability to effectively interact with a wide-array of personalities simply amazes me. Doug has also performed his 360-degree peer review for many of my leaders and their teams, which provided important feedback to both management and staff. This resulted in better communication, a common vision, and less workplace conflict. Doug’s teambuilding training has increased collaboration and productivity in multiple departments at the Clerk’s office. I am very pleased with Doug’s work. He is a wonderful coach, educator and mentor.”

"Great! Good skills to learn that can be adapted and work on a daily basis."

"I cannot stress enough how much I enjoyed the Speaking Simplified course. It was phenomenal! I learned a great deal and will not forget the golden nuggets of information that were provided."

"Timing is everything. Could not have been a better time for this as we navigate through uncharted waters...together!"

"Excellent, practical, innovative, and useful."

"Fantastic information. I will be able to implement several items we covered immediately."

"Well-structured, with very implementable tools, techniques, and ideas!"

"Excellent use of our time. I am very optimistic about what this program can and will do for us as individuals and as a company."

"Great session, very helpful! What an eye-opener."

"As always, Doug is well-spoken and easy to follow. the program covered a wide variety of topics effectively."

"it has improved my effectiveness and efficiency."

"Well done; easy to understand tool"

"Doug did an excellent job involving everyone. I am amazed how many of our folks stayed with this and didn't find a way of skipping out."

"Excellent, very engaging, kept the audience involved and entertained. Great information!"

"It was a great program to motivate and build stronger teams"

"Thank you for the excellent job you did in facilitating our strategy meeting. As you know, our company is going through some major changes related to growth and we requested your help in leading an all-day, offsite strategy session. We were primarily looking for a high energy agenda that would promote team building. We also wanted the experience to be valuable to our entire team as all company employees would be in attendance. Not only did you deliver what we were looking for, your personality was pleasant and not overbearing as has sometimes been my experience. You were very attentive to the needs of our particular group and the activities that you arranged were both fun and meaningful. As a result, we are now a more closely knit team. Everyone enjoyed their day and we are looking forward to our next similar event."

"Doug is an outstanding instructor and speaker. He gave me deeply impactful tips on how to be an effective speaker."

"The program is very informative and effective. I can apply it directly to my job to be better at what I do. The real-life scenarios were very helpful."

"The name Leadership Simplified says it all... taking simple techniques and learning to apply them. Very insightful..."

“Doug, the coaching sessions with you have been an integral part of my career growth at American Express and have been extremely helpful in putting things into perspective for me. I truly appreciate all that you do!”

"Doug's program on Working Agreements is helping our communication tremendously"

“During a recent weekend, the management team of Samy Company attended a two-day offsite session to map our corporate vision and strategies. We invited Doug Van Dyke from DVD Consulting Incorporated to facilitate the session, and all participants agreed that he did an exemplary job of leading a tough team to achieve the goals stated at the outset of the session. Doug’s entertaining style and experience as a skilled facilitator made him an invaluable asset to the team and a key to the success of the sessio’n. We often refer to that offsite as a defining and successful event in our company’s history. I highly recommend Doug Van Dyke as a skilled facilitator and consultant. The monies spent were well worth the effort and we are continuing to enjoy the tangible and intangible benefits from this event.”

"Very useful information that is relevant and can be applied immediately."

"Great program. Doug always keeps us on time and on track!"

“Doug, Below is the communication I sent to our HR team and VPO. I hope they realize the value in what you provide – I know there are a lot of others within Omnicare that would benefit from your Leadership Development Program. I wish you could see how you have impacted some of our staff.  Their communication has probably improved the most.  I actually saw an email written by one of the participants to an employee that was so motivating I was in awe. She would have never taken it upon herself to send an email like that before. I also witnessed another member of the group give a presentation last week and her confidence level was at an all-time high. We are now having morning huddles in both processing and distribution. I have not had to get involved in email battles for quite some time now. I could go on. We will see where we go from here but I certainly feel that we have leaders now.    Thanks again for everything! Please see below:   All,   Our leaders have completed Leadership Simplified's Leadership Development Program and I have attached their summaries that they turned into Doug on their final day. As I watch the staff now during their daily activities, I can certainly see the positive impact these sessions have had on their performance and attitudes. Judging by their comments they found a lot of value in what they have learned as well. They are acting more like a unit and are working together more efficiently. This allows me to spend more time on important areas of the business and less time providing them with guidance or having to mediate their actions. They are using the tools they learned in order to communicate better with their employees, our customers, and each other. I would recommend this leadership development program to others, either as a team or individually. It has really impacted our team.    Thanks for allowing our team to take part in this training!”

"Amazing!! Thank you for so many great tools!! I thoroughly enjoyed this experience. Doug provides an in-depth approach on how being an effective leader in the workplace benefits not only the workplace environment, but the whole person in the process."

"Informative, fast-paced and fun. Doug Van Dyke's preparation and delivery are excellent."

"Loved it! I wanted to hear more!"