ABOUT US
Our why and who we are
WHY VCG
was founded
Voyage Consulting Group (VCG) was founded in 2016 to make high-end consulting and leadership development accessible to small and mid-sized, purpose-driven companies.
Our founder, Kelly Byrnes, had worked with some of the big consulting firms as a client throughout her career, and she saw the waste and disruption those firms caused with minimal results. She also saw the effect when profit and management bonuses were their only priority and knew there had to be another way.
Voyage Consulting Group is the other way.
We are different from the big firms…
⬛ We don’t instigate scope creep.
⬛ We intentionally minimize client disruption.
⬛ Clients receive independent, objective insight without fear of improper influence.
⬛ Clients gain customized solutions for immediate execution—not canned reports.
⬛ Clients do not have to pay for three things the big boys have: layers of management that cause roadblocks, salaried consultants on-deck, or ostentatious office space.
Clients have told us how we differ from smaller firms too. They recognize the importance of a seasoned leader at the helm of VCG. They see value in Kelly’s experience as a member of Senior Leadership Teams—she’s been there personally and knows the pressure you face. Our engagements reflect that experience, which makes solutions more realistic and responsible.
Additional feedback shared by clients is they see a difference in our solutions being deeper and truly relevant to business today.
Our clients appreciate that their solutions are not founded on a few models from academia, copied from a book, or focused on an MLM-like sale of tools but are based on real understanding of business, leadership, and the challenges of today.
Photo from Paula Barton, Sweden
WHO we are…
Our Founder
The Founder and CEO of Voyage Consulting Group is Kelly Byrnes.
In 2016, Kelly founded Voyage Consulting Group to help organizations address the people challenges that quietly derail results—things like broken trust, leadership gaps, and misaligned culture. Her clients range from hospitals to tech startups, global science firms to architecture and engineering companies. Whatever the setting, her work focuses on elevating leadership and treating company culture like a gift and a strategic asset.
Kelly brings a unique mix of experiences to the table:
⬛ Executive leadership experience on SLTs
⬛ Cross-functional P&L experience
⬛ Academic credentials as an adjunct professor in the MBA and Executive MBA programs at Rockhurst University (which named her the Adjunct Faculty of the Year)
She’s helped clients beat billion-dollar targets, launch new divisions, and raise engagement by 41%. Along the way, she’s earned praise like this:
“She truly leads by example… Feedback from executives, directors, and board members continues to be outstanding.”
—Global CHRO, Science & Technology Firm
“Kelly knows how business works… She gives you common-sense solutions you can apply right away to get results.”
—VP, Marketing Agency
Kelly is a speaker, author, contributor to four Amazon bestsellers, and published in Harvard Business Review, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and more. In 2025, she released The Basics of Gen AI.
Kelly leads three insightful and innovative communities monthly:
⬛ AI Roundtable: Launched in 2024 as the platform for harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to advance members’ business, team, career—and life!
⬛ Culture Matters: A monthly global conversation about evolving workplace culture (since 2018)
⬛ Leadership Book of the Month: A live LinkedIn/YouTube broadcast (since 2021)
She’s a certified executive coach and holds HR-related credentials SHRM-SCP and SPHR. She earned a B.A. from Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, MBA from Rockhurst University, and Certificate in Disruptive Strategy from Harvard Business School. Oh—and she’s even performed improv in Chicago.
Kelly lives in Kansas City with her husband, a retired fire captain and Air Force veteran. Her volunteer work centers around their parish, education, and rescue dogs.
WHO we are…
Our Crew
Our crew of carefully selected practice leaders have held top HR, OD, or Operations roles and have been part of executive management teams. One was even a priest! Our practice leaders also have been entrepreneurs and intra-preneurs who know how to collaborate, get results, and grow and lead companies.
Our crew inspires Voyage Consulting Group to play by our own rules (e.g., guarantee, no canned programs, simple contracts). Our proprietary processes and frameworks are used in conjunction with other tools to ensure our clients get the insights and solutions impossible to get elsewhere or on their own.
WHO we are…
Our Why and How
Mission
We help leaders navigate their leadership journey for a fulfilling voyage.
Leaders of companies rely on us to help them understand and address people issues that can jeopardize revenue, retention, and reputation.
We are kind of like the lighthouse or rudder on a ship—helping the captain steer the ship through rough waters so they can enjoy smooth sailing toward their chosen destination.
Values: Ethics and Goodness
We live and serve in alignment with strong morals and ethics. We believe in the inherent goodness of people. We operate our business, work with each other, and serve our clients and community accordingly.
Service Philosophy:
Honor + Honesty + Heart
We honor your company and ours as we work together toward your goals. That means work disruption and scope creep are minimized.
Clients trust us to be honest, even when it stings a little. If you’re looking for “yes” people, we’re not them. We never manufacture issues to manipulate longer engagements either.
We bring our hearts to every engagement. Our brains come too, but they don’t come alone.
5 Things you may not know about Kelly…
◼ Business has been in my blood since childhood. As a little kid, my Barbies ran the store, planned the weddings, and worked the swim club for the other Barbies in the neighborhood. After college, I got to help my entrepreneur Dad and his VC friends with some pretty cool ventures.
◼ Being a loser helped me grow. I joined the track team in college but had never done any track events. Knowing I would lose took the pressure off everyone—even the opponents. Players on opposing teams shared techniques to help me improve. It was a fantastic learning experience and sportsmanship at its finest!
◼ I love yoga! I'm not great at it but believe it is the cure for everything. Namaste.
◼ I can perform weddings. If you want a spiritual ceremony but not one by a priest, give me a call! (I am re-learning the guitar too, so maybe I’ll even sing! Okay, not really on the singing.)
◼ Our daughter lives near Yellowstone National Park. Her love of YNP made me fall in love with it too. The big photo at the top of this page and on the Home page were taken by me in 2021.
We hope you enjoyed those five things! What would your 5 Things be?
“Define success in your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you are proud to live.”
Anne Sweeney
Former Co-chair of Disney Media