Catholic Charities of Oregon

I worked with Deb when she convened and led a two-day strategic planning process for the Catholic Charities Network of Agencies. The five organizations participating (as well as the Archbishop) were pleased with the outcome of that visioning work and the appreciative inquiry work she led us through was very helpful in building bridges and mending fences.

Deb signed on to be We Care Tucson’s interim executive director at a very challenging time, and she managed to get the organization on steadier footing faster than expected. She has established a groundwork for the next phase this organization is entering. Deb has made a positive and lasting impact on We Care Tucson, and I would happily endorse her services for any organization

Deb’s workshop on Appreciative Inquiry was engaging and informative.               My team felt empowered throughout the day to practice effective communication tools to build their muscle in listening and solution discovery. Deb is inspiring! She helped our team members discover more about themselves and their interactions with each other.  The day was more than I expected. Furthermore, the staff now use the tools and skills to be more effective with fellow team members, volunteers and girls!!!

Thank you again for all of your excellent work in launching CTI with a Vision, Mission, Core Values and Strategic Framework.   Thank you for all your support and guidance throughout the entire process  including training a team of residents and staff in Appreciative Inquiry, designing our board workshop and facilitating the entire time so we ended up with clear direction and action projects.   It all went so well due to your expertise, patience, going above and beyond, and leadership.  It has been an unforgettable engaging and inspirational professional experience working so closely with you.

I highly recommend Deborah Maher, and DFM Consulting Inc.  The workshop she designed and ran to launch our organization far exceeded my expectations.  In one and one half days she lead us through a highly engaging, highly productive process that resulted in consensus on our organization’s Vision, Mission, Core Values, Strategic Initiatives, and action ideas for each initiative.  Participants left feeling energized, and with a sense of common purpose and direction.  It is a pleasure to recommend her as an expert organizational development and strategic planning consultant.

The ability to use the power of story to see other points of view is essential in shifting the paradigm from fear and conflict to one of possibility and inclusion. I asked Deborah to speak to a statewide meeting of the Arizona Association of Conflict Resolution of which I was a board member. She presented a compelling workshop on the essentials of Appreciative Inquiry and how its principles can be applied in conflict resolution and everyday life. I highly recommend Deborah as a speaker for your group. You will walk away inspired to act.

Southern Arizona Legal Aid, Inc., has been providing free civil legal aid to low income Arizonans since 1951. Over the years the organization has faced and overcome many challenges, but none like the most recent with – challenges to program funding, a multi-generational workforce, and retiring institutional knowledge. Deborah designed and facilitated our annual All Hands Staff meeting with staff from different geographical areas.  She gave us the skills and the tools we need to remain positive, productive and resilient during these uncertain times. Deb was patient, listened to staff stories, and offered insight on how the organization might accomplish goals. The outcome of that training has led to a more cohesive organization where employees work together with mutual respect and optimism about the organizations future.
Thanks Deb.

Deborah is a skilled professional with a broad array of innovative tools and techniques for helping clients achieve results. I had the good fortune of working with Deborah while at SRA Touchstone Consulting. 3 days prior to a 2-day conference on IT standards that I was facilitating, I came down with flu. Deborah quickly stepped in, organized the sessions around appreciative inquiry, and facilitated the conference. Her approach yielded tangible agreements around government-wide standards, and what could have been a disaster turned into a productive 90 person conference. Deborah is an active continuous learner and works with numerous organizations that strive to turn theory into practice in organizational development and design.

Ms. Maher was the key creative thinker and expert implementer of my organization’s strategic planning and implementation process. Thanks to her moving and shaking us, we have experienced tremendous shifts in a positive direction. With her assistance, we have created a continuously learning organization that values and engages its staff, where our staff realizes that leadership resides at all levels of the organization. Staff now exhibit increased initiative, innovation, and follow-through, and this has created improved service for our customer organizations and has increased our organizational flexibility to respond to changing demands. Ms. Maher is highly recommended.

Deborah lead us in a restructuring of our organization and business plan. She was able to get community involvement into the process and help us create a plan to move our program for homeless youth and families forward.