About The Corporate Refinery

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The Corporate Refinery

“As a little girl, my dad, Jamie, was a pipe fitter at the oil refineries in Long Beach, California,” shares Colleen Hauk, Founder & CEO. “He’d come home from work wearing clothes covered in stains and smelling so strongly of oil, that he had his own laundry hamper in the garage. At that age, I had no idea what an oil refinery was, but I proudly told all my friends that’s where my dad worked. So, when I was ready to choose a company name, the word ‘refinery’ meant something to me.”

“Refineries take something that’s already valuable and transform it into a more refined and usable asset. And that’s what we do at The Corporate Refinery. We work with individuals, teams, and organizations that are already top performers but are looking for that specialized refinement to accelerate and sustain success.”

Because we know that effective communication is the cornerstone to determine organizational performance, The Corporate Refinery’s mission is to refine and elevate top performers and companies by transforming their well-intentioned communications and presentations into ones that deliver maximum impact and accelerated results.

We specialize in eradicating stale perspectives and retooling systems with modern methods that enhance communication and executive presence that together drive performance and sustain excellence across the organization. This creates the shift needed to build a solid leadership pipeline, retain top-tier talent, and positively impact your bottom line.

What separates The Corporate Refinery from other learning and development consulting firms, and coaching and training organizations is how our solutions align growth strategy and leadership competency with today’s real-world factors.

We look forward to creating a partnership to transform your intentions into successful outcomes!

Colleen Hauk, Executive Presence & Communications Expert

Colleen Hauk is a powerhouse keynote speaker, executive coach, and founder of The Corporate Refinery, a premier consulting firm helping companies elevate performance, retain top talent, and accelerate their leadership pipeline through strategic communication and executive presence. Known for blending inspiration with practical application, Colleen equips high performers and organizations to achieve game-changing results.

With 25 years of leadership experience—including 15 years as a corporate executive—Colleen witnessed firsthand how powerful communication can drive alignment, engagement, and growth. She also saw the real consequences when messaging fell flat—or worse, triggered mistakes, mistrust, or missed opportunities.This insight sparked her mission: to transform well-intentioned communication into a strategic tool for influence and impact.

Her background spans business development, education, and shopper intelligence, giving her a rare perspective that bridges hard metrics with human behavior. Colleen has spent two decades studying elite performance, leadership, and communication, and she delivers custom-tailored keynotes and programs that develop both the tactical and soft skills leaders need to thrive.

A bestselling author and the co-creator of LinkedIn Learning’s Improving Your Leadership Communications, Colleen is also a multi-time Forbes contributor. She’s delivered transformative keynotes and trainings for Fortune 500 giants like Dell, Pfizer, Merck, and Panasonic.

Colleen holds a B.S. in Human Services from Cal State Fullerton, a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from Cal Poly Pomona, and a Certified Professional Coaching certificate from Success Coach Institute. She recently served on the Advisory Board for the UC Riverside Women in Leadership Program.

Whether on stage or in the boardroom, Colleen is known for energizing audiences and empowering leaders to connect, command attention, and catalyze change.

Years Of Experience

Companies

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Speaking Events

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Leadership Videos

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Media Appearances

15 Ways Leaders Can Be More Mindful Of Their Communication Styles

Balancing Criticism And Praise: 13 Tips For Company Leaders

11 Signs Of Professional Burnout And Ways To Overcome It

11 Crucial Tips For Workaholics

Toxic Company Culture: 11 Signs To Watch Out For

Personal Development: 10 Activities You Actually Have Time To Do

7 Ways to Stay Productive and Relevant in a Hybrid Work Environment

Colleen Hauk, Speaker, Trainer & Bestselling Author

I Can’t Believe You Didn’t Leave Me: How a Working Mom Learned to Show Up

Guest Interview: Colleen Hauk, Speaker, Trainer & Bestselling Author

Guest Interview: Colleen Hauk: How To Live The “And” Life

NOW IS THE TIME FOR TRANSFORMATION

Schedule a meeting to discover how to deliver maximum impact for you and your organization.

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

From our initial conversation Colleen immediately understood our goal of what we wanted to accomplish in setting up a comprehensive development program for our direct reports. With minimal guidance, Colleen was able to propose pre and post workshop survey questions to gauge the self-awareness of each of the team members as well as to provide the framework for each of the three-monthly workshops we held. Colleen’s naturally high energy, and the flow of the workshop sessions, kept the team engaged and looking forward to the subsequent components of the training.

Some of the improvements noticed included the team having an improved growth mindset, performing better research before approaching their line managers for assistance, admitting where they should take responsibility for an issue, and referring back to specifics in Colleen’s workshops when discussing developmental struggles. Overall, 1:1 discussions improved as everyone was now working from the same playbook and understood their own responsibility in their personal and career development instead of looking to their manager and wondering why they weren’t getting ahead. I highly recommend reaching out to Colleen to discuss training needs or concerns as she is extremely flexible and resourceful when it comes to tailoring development programs at any level. New hires found the material as engaging and insightful as did our seasoned, director level veterans.

Valerie BartlettAssociate Director, Eisai Inc.

I must sincerely thank you for delivering excellent and tailored professional learning and career development training for my department. The training you provided expanded the team members’ professional skillset to adapt to ever-changing environments. You took the time to listen and understand our concerns and skillsets necessary for the Team to perform their roles and responsibilities.

The Team improved its leadership, communication, and collaboration skillsets.

The Team is more engaged, productive, and highly motivated with greater personal satisfaction and helped retain our valuable employees.

The training helped me design a career development strategy in collaboration with our team members tailored to their individual talent needs and stages of their careers.

The training has provided my department to build a sustainable and adaptable approach to building a talent management strategy with an engaged workforce.

Olga AlfieriSenior Director, Eisai Inc

I recently had the opportunity to work with Colleen on my company’s flagship event. Due to COVID-19 we were forced to pivot the conference to a completely virtual setting which presented challenges not just for my team but also for our presenters. Colleen was organized, patient and ultimately a team player as we worked together to try to make sure that her interactive workshop was equally as engaging and impactful on screen as it would have been in person. With her help and guidance, we were able to provide our attendees with an incredible experience where she lead the group in a full day leadership workshop that still allowed them to network and work together – attendees were engaged, enthusiastic, and participated all day long. Her high energy and enthusiasm were amazing and we were thrilled with the positive reactions from our attendees.

Hilary SroleProducer, Dynamic Global Events

Colleen Hauk has been my executive coach for over a year now. She has helped me tremendously grow from a regional leader to a national leader in my company. My relationships with my direct reports, their team members, and my colleagues have improved as a direct result of her insights. No matter the topic I bring to her, she has valuable insight and helps me navigate the issues presented. The growth in my leadership capabilities has been exponential and I would not be where I am today without her. I highly recommend Colleen if you seek your growth and development as well as those you influence.

Laura StraznickyVice President, Engle Martin

After hearing Colleen speak at an event, I knew I needed to make a change. I joined The 5-Star Society where Colleen has brought together a group of diverse women to share our life experiences and provide each other with support. It is amazing to see how we all have grown by being part of this team. Colleen provides support, feedback, and great coaching. Even when I miss a meeting, she keeps us connected through recordings and different messaging platforms. Colleen’s experience and guidance has been extremely instrumental to me and this group.

Amy Sinor-AndersonSenior Director, GRAIL

I am rejuvenated and have already implemented many of the suggested practices. I feel my best when I am balanced and this program will get me where I need to be. I highly recommend this to anyone and everyone.

Jenny JenikeBusiness Development Manager, US Foods

Colleen was one of our event’s top-rated speakers.  Her ideas and thinking resonated with the entire audience.  If you’re looking to inspire your audience and provide innovative tips, bring Colleen as a speaker to your event.

Tricia WashingtonProducer, Dynamic Global Events

Colleen made me look like a rock star!  Her presentation was the most talked about element of the day.  She is funny, engaging, inspiring and perfectly adapts her topic to the audience.  I’m not sure how I will top her for my next event!

Chris PetersonArea Director, Zonta

Colleen was relatable, funny, and gave everyone practical advice that could be implemented TODAY. Her passion for helping women be their best selves is real and so inspiring. Colleen made our event unforgettable!

Lindsay ShermanHead of HR, Newmark Knight Frank

Colleen is enthusiastic, personable, and authentic. She delivered an on-point message that spoke to women at all career and leadership levels. Full of practical insights and applicable concepts, her presentation reminded us how we can have it all and keep our careers

Kelly WalshMarketing Manager, Moss Adams

No matter what stage of life you’re in, Colleen teaches things that will apply to you. I always wanted to help others, but it wasn’t until attending these retreats that I knew exactly what that looked like. I am now the proud business owner of Hero Bands and feel like I am making a difference in people’s lives every day. I’m so appreciative of her course and her helping me be a better wife, mom, friend, and business owner!

Elizabeth FraizerCreator, Hero Bands

Colleen is such a dynamic and engaging speaker.  We all felt lucky to have her speak at our Panasonic Lean In Circle meeting.  Her message of the need to develop balance between all aspects of our lives resonated with everyone in the room.  We’d have her back anytime so more of our employees could get the opportunity to experience her presentation.

Alexandra SchriftConsumer Marketing Manager, Panasonic