Verbal Defense & Influence is based on the work of Dr. George Thompson, who founded the Verbal Judo Institute in 1983. Since then and until his death in 2011, he trained more than 1 million individuals and published four books (over 300,000 copies sold) on his structured communications methodologies.

Gary Klugiewicz, one of the Vistelar Group directors, worked with Dr. Thompson for years. Then, in 2010, Vistelar became the exclusive licensee of the Verbal Judo Institute’s intellectual property within the United States — with the goal of expanding Doc work into new markets. Within the US, the Verbal Judo Institute operates under the Verbal Defense & Influence brand.

Verbal Defense & Influence trains organizations to use Dr. Thompson’s five universal truths of human interaction to prevent and de-escalate verbal conflict, enhance cooperation and collaboration within a team, and improve customer service and sales. The company also train individuals how to stop verbal abuse, bullying and harassment and maintain mental and emotional safety in the midst of conflict.