About Creative Organizational Design
Creative Organizational Design was established in 1979 to provide customized training services. As a part of these services, we offered psychological and other kinds of skill and aptitude assessment tools as well. Soon our clients began asking us to provide other types of employee testing tools. Our expertise enabled us to help our clients select the most appropriate tools for their requirements.
Our business model changed and, almost 50 years later, we have become Canada’s largest independent supplier of pre-screening assessment tools and solutions. We now offer over 5000 titles designed for pre-screening job applicants, assessing the readiness of current employees for promotion, and for developing leaders and teams. We are your one-stop shop for assessments that will support your current HR functions and organizational success.
Over the years, our Principals have written many HR-related articles on employee testing, which have been published in many professional journals. These are posted on our website for our customers to enjoy and may be re-printed with permission.
We provide services for all sorts of clients ranging from small businesses to national and international chains and organizations. We’re eager to help you find the solutions that you need to help you to select and retain the very best employees. Please contact us by phone or email for friendly, knowledgable assistance.
The Creative Organizational Design Team
David Towler
President
COD’s President, David Towler, holds undergraduate degrees from Trent University and the University of Alberta, and a Master’s degree from Norwich College of the University of Vermont.
David has taught at the intermediate school level, provided corporate classroom instruction and taught Labour Market Language Training courses for adult immigrants under contract for the Federal Government.
His background includes roles as Human Resource Manager for a large western jewellery store chain and Manager of Customer Service for Canada’s largest aerosol manufacturer.
He has been published in and interviewed by a number of national dailies and publishes frequently in HR.com, LinkedIn, and this website too.
David’s experience in people management, corporate management, education, instruction and psychology provide him with a well-rounded set of skills, which have all been brought to bear in managing Creative Organizational Design. His years at the helm have provided him with a uniquely in-depth knowledge of skills and aptitude assessments, product availability and expertise in their application.
Dr. John Towler
Founder
He is a faculty member at the American College of PreHospital Medicine (USA), Breyer State University (USA), and Renison College and the University of Waterloo, where he served as Principal and Chief Executive Officer.
Dr. Towler has taught at the universities of Alberta, Waterloo, South Florida and Purdue and has been a visiting professor at the University of Lancaster, Memorial University, The University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, The University of Liverpool, and Reading University. He has taught at every level from elementary school to graduate school.
He has published more than 150 professional articles, 8 textbooks, hundreds of popular articles, and has conducted research for Labour Canada, The Humanities and Social Science Research Council of Canada, the US Office of Education, and the US Department of Health, Education and Welfare.
Dr. Towler’s articles have appeared in: Athletic Business, Biz-Zone, Business Advisor Magazine, Canada One, Canadian HR Reporter, Exchange Magazine, Kansas City Small Business Monthly, Kennebec Business Monthly, North American Die Casting Association, Sandybay (US), Small Business Canada Magazine, Victoria Business Magazine, www.digitalsouth.com, www.HR.com, www.workz.com.
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Our Latest Articles
Our July Newsletter Is Now Available!
Our July Newsletter containing many new tests and a very informative article about the forthcoming worker shortage is now available. Click here to see it.
The Worst Labour Shortage In US History Is Coming (And What Employers Need To Consider)
On Sunday, July 12th 2026 the Washington Post’s Jon Marcus published “Why recruiters can’t find workers and new grads can’t find jobs (it’s not AI)”. In it, he states that, it’s the “largest labor shortage the country has ever seen,” and that it “could hobble the...
The Best Pre-Screening Tests Aren’t What You Presume
Personality is highly predictive, largely immutable, and can be accurately measured. Personality tests can be used for recruiting, leadership, team building, conflict resolution, personal development, and more. They’re reliable, effective and flexible, and they generate actionable, usable, real-world results. There are many personality assessments that are built upon personality research, but which tie personality traits to work-style and on-the-job behaviours. They’re designed to identify skills and aptitudes like trainability, cognition/critical thinking, reliability, communication style, ability to withstand stress, follow rules, and culture fit, rather than just personality ‘type’. They offer employers deep insights into people’s capacity for leadership, interpersonal skills, developmental opportunities, managing conflict, and more.
When A Single-Use Assessment Isn’t Enough
These days there are, literally, thousands of assessment options available, and an entire industry in place to support those in hiring-mode. When employers need to confirm an applicant’s skills and abilities or develop the competencies of an existing employee, the world’s their oyster.
Whether it’s a basic skill like reading comprehension or numeracy, knowledge of HVAC or inventory management, accounts payable/receivable, or the ability to spot quality imperfections, there’s a plethora of reliable and accurate measures to choose from. Savvy employers who want to help ensure that they get it right the first time, identify and separate the winners from the losers, and save tens of thousands of dollars by avoiding a bad hire, will need something more than a Microsoft Word or Sales Aptitude test.
That’s where tools like the AtmanCo Assessment Platform come in! It’s an all-in-one platform designed to respond to your hiring, leadership, and talent development challenges. It is a comprehensive psychometric assessment that provides easy-to-interpret results you can use to boost performance and foster happiness at work that can be leveraged throughout an employee’s work-life.
Functional Illiteracy – The Little-Discussed But Big Problem For Employers
People with low literacy skills face considerable challenges in a modern, complex work environment that demands adaptability and continuous learning. It is a considerable problem for employers, and costs them a lot in terms of productivity, mistakes, re-work, customer service, and workplace safety. Unlike complete illiteracy, functional illiteracy (as its name implies) enables the poorly literate to ‘hide’ their dysfunction because they’re able to get by without their poor reading skills being obvious.
The Amazing Power of 360-Degree Tests
Many of us have a fairly poor ability to understand how others perceive us or accurately assess our strengths and weaknesses. 360-degree tests are an excellent and effective way to ‘fix’ problem employees who are sometimes blithely unaware of how their behaviours impede the performance of those around them. 360-tests ‘hold up a mirror’ to help people see exactly how their work behaviours and skills (or lack thereof) are viewed by those with whom they interact.