Creating the space for genuine human connection and transformational growth is at the heart of what we do. We are a team of award-winning teachers and coaches working diligently to deliver an unrivaled leadership development experience to every individual and organization with whom we are privileged to work.
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Tom Hustead, MD, Retired Colonel
PRESIDENT / CEO
Tom graduated from West Point in the top 3% of his class and subsequently from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. As a retired Army Colonel, highlights from his distinguished 24-year career include being awarded Flight Surgeon of the Year for his service in combat, Outstanding Faculty of the Year for his medical teaching, and board selection as Department Chair for a family medicine residency department. As a result of his appointment by the Army Surgeon General to be the “face of military medicine” to recruit and share the Army Medicine story, Tom recognized a need and developed a passion for teaching physicians across the country to be effective, engaged leaders. In his final appointment in the military, Tom was the commander/CEO of a NATO military medical facility at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe in Belgium. Most recently, Tom served as the CMO for the Medical Group at Baptist Health Hardin in Elizabethtown, KY where he still resides. With an emphasis on servant leadership, Tom’s core conviction is that effective leadership is never about him but is focused in creating a culture where the ones he leads can thrive and succeed. Tom and his wife Cheri of 30 years live in Kentucky and have three children.
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Doug Crandall
VP / HEAD OF TEACHING
Doug is a graduate of West Point, the Stanford Graduate School of Business, and has a M.Ed from the University of Washington. He has led multiple units in the Army, and spent time in operations at Amazon.com. For five years, Doug taught Leadership, Advanced Leadership, and Leading Organizations Through Change at West Point, where he won the Excellence in Teaching Award and exceeded the academy average in every area of teaching feedback during each semester that he taught. He’s the co-author of four books: Permission to Speak Freely, Say Anything, Hope Unseen, and Leadership Lessons from West Point. Doug has published articles in the International Journal of Servant-Leadership and written case studies for both Stanford’s and Harvard’s business schools. Before joining The Referent Group, Doug spent over a decade creating and delivering leadership development content for companies across myriad sectors and in multiple countries. He also regularly delivered keynotes for organizations such as Walmart, Gap, USAA, Goodwill, the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business, McKinsey and Company, and others.
