The Refinery Leadership Partners

What The Refinery Leadership Partners does

The Refinery Leadership Partners is a privately held leadership development and executive coaching consultancy headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, founded in 2002 (some sources cite 2003). The firm designs and delivers custom leadership development programs for large, complex, often multi-national organizations, built on an experiential methodology that combines behavioral psychology, adult learning theory, and visceral, hands-on learning exercises intended to build "leadership muscle memory" rather than passive classroom-style knowledge transfer. Core service lines include Leadership Development, Executive Coaching, Team Alignment, Strategic Planning, and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion consulting; a sub-brand called Refinery Select offers pre-designed programs (The Better Boss, The Real Strategy, Small Group Leader Development Program) at more accessible price points.

The company serves enterprise clients across mining, energy, banking, manufacturing, telecommunications, technology, and non-profit verticals, with named engagements including Teck Resources (11-year partnership), Trevali Mining, Santander Chile, Maple Leaf Foods, a Fortune 500 resource company, a Canadian communications company, Checkfront, HR Tech Association, and Minerva BC. Delivery is performed by a bench of approximately 30 senior facilitators and coaches — many with 20–40 years of senior leadership experience — operating across North America, South America, and Europe. Pricing is fully quote-based and structured as multi-year enterprise contracts.

Effective September 1, 2023, Refinery merged with BBA Engineering, a Montreal-based consulting engineering firm, and now operates as a member of the BBA group while retaining its brand identity. The merger gives Refinery distribution into BBA's industrial client base and positions the firm to embed leadership development into engineering and technical consulting engagements. Refinery Leadership Partners, Inc. remains privately held with no disclosed outside funding.

Name

The Refinery Leadership Partners

Legal name

Refinery Leadership Partners, Inc.

Website

https://refineryleadership.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Refinery Leadership Partners is a Vancouver-based, privately held leadership development consultancy that designs custom experiential programs, executive coaching, and strategic planning for large complex enterprise clients across mining, energy, banking, and technology; since September 2023 it has operated as part of BBA Engineering.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Leadership Development Consulting

NAICS

Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Executive Leadership & C-Suite Development (EDABAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Talent Management & Leadership Advisory (Succession, Performance, Culture) (BPACAJAH), Strategic Leadership & Business Acumen (EDABAAAC), Coaching Leadership & Mentoring Skills (EDABAAAG)

Keywords

• Leadership development consulting
• Executive coaching services
• Team alignment facilitation
• Strategic planning advisory
• Experiential learning programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Vancouver

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Custom Leadership Development Programs: Highly customized leadership development programs designed and delivered for enterprise clients. Programs include discovery process, experiential learning modules, assessments, and coaching. Long-term engagements with ongoing program adaptation.
2. Executive Coaching Services: Individualized and tailored coaching for leaders at various levels. Collaborative, personalized, strategic coaching process for sustainable development and growth.
3. Strategic Planning Consulting: Strategic planning framework services including team alignment workshops, strategy development sessions, and ongoing quarterly check-ins with leadership teams.
4. Refinery Select Programs: Pre-designed programs (The Better Boss, The Real Strategy, Small Group Leader Development Program) offered at more accessible price points than fully customized programs. Modular, experiential design.
5. DEI Training and Consulting: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs including inclusive leadership training, change agent programs, focus groups, engagement surveys, and organizational audits.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Refinery Leadership Partners designs and delivers experiential leadership development programs, executive coaching, team alignment workshops, strategic planning, and DEI training for complex global enterprise clients. Their methodology combines academic research, behavioral psychology, and adult learning theory to build visceral, hands-on leadership skills rather than passive classroom learning. Programs are tailored through deep discovery to each client's strategic context and operating realities.

Product overview

The Refinery Leadership Partners offers a unified portfolio of leadership development consulting services built around experiential learning principles. The core offerings include Leadership Development, Executive Coaching, Team Alignment, Strategic Planning, and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs. The Refinery Select sub-brand provides more accessible, pre-designed programs including The Better Boss (psychological resilience and safety), The Real Strategy (strategic planning with team alignment), and the Small Group Leader Development Program (small cohort coaching). All services emphasize behavioral change through experiential, visceral learning rather than passive classroom instruction, targeting complex global organizations across industries including mining, energy, telecommunications, banking, manufacturing, and technology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Refinery Select Programs: A curated set of programs containing experiential design and results, available at a more accessible price point. Includes The Better Boss, The Real Strategy, and Small Group Leader Development Program.

Quantifiable outcome

• Teck Resources safety standards improved on every metric year after year since leadership program inception in 2010
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• BBA EngineeringcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2023Refinery merged with BBA Engineering, a Montreal-based consulting engineering firm, effective September 1, 2023. This merger combined Refinery's leadership development expertise with BBA's consulting engineering services. BBA is described as 'a recognized leader in consulting engineering services.' Refinery operates as part of BBA while maintaining its brand identity.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Korn Ferry: Global organizational consulting firm with leadership development, executive coaching, and talent management practices. Overlaps with Refinery's executive coaching and team alignment practices as part of a broader talent portfolio.
• FranklinCovey: Large training and consulting firm with established leadership development content (e.g., 7 Habits) and global enterprise delivery. Competes with Refinery Select program-style productized offerings on accessibility and price point.
• Egon Zehnder: Global executive search and leadership advisory firm with executive coaching and team effectiveness practices. Overlaps with Refinery on C-suite coaching and team alignment, but sits in a much broader talent portfolio.

Direct peers

• Development Dimensions International (DDI): Specialist in leadership development and assessment for global enterprises with deep methodology around leadership behavior change and team alignment. Direct competitor for enterprise leadership development programs similar to Refinery's core offering.
• BTS Group: Strategy execution and leadership development consultancy serving Fortune 500 clients with experiential, simulation-based learning. Closely comparable to Refinery's experiential methodology and enterprise consulting model.
• Center for Creative Leadership: Global non-profit leadership development provider offering executive programs, coaching, and team development to enterprise clients. Highly comparable to Refinery's experiential leadership development methodology, and Dan Buchner's prior tenure at CCL further reinforces direct overlap in approach and client base.
• RHR International: Boutique consulting firm specializing in executive coaching, leadership development, and team effectiveness for senior leadership teams. Highly comparable to Refinery's executive coaching and team alignment offerings.

Emerging players

• Marshall Goldsmith Group: Executive coaching and leadership development firm focused on behavior change in senior leaders. Comparable to Refinery's executive coaching stream, though more content-driven and individual-coach-led.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/RefineryLeader
• Facebookfacebook.com/RefineryLeadership
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/refineryleadership
• Instagraminstagram.com/therefineryleadership

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Refinery Leadership Partners