DEI
Strategies
In the words of our founder, Natalie E. Norfus, “we solve people problems.” That means that we address a variety of topics relating to how people experience their jobs and each other in the workplace. The firm was formed in early 2019 and was born out of nearly two decades of HR & DEI experience that Natalie gained. Today, we have an alliance of consultants that help bring organizational solutions to our clients in various areas including:
We are a decidedly people-focused team that takes a data-forward approach to understanding the “why” behind workplace interactions, with the goal of developing solutions that align with a client’s strategic objectives. People problems are complex and require a great deal of emotional intelligence, so we approach every situation with the highest level of care and attention to detail.
We take pride in becoming part of our clients’ businesses for the duration of the projects. In this regard, we take time to really get to know the people and business priorities of our clients. We do this because we believe people solutions must be authentic to an organization. We do not provide “off the shelf” solutions or only US-centered strategies for global clients. We understand that strategies have to account for a variety of factors in the different locations in which our clients do business.
We consider ourselves industry agnostic – that means that we have the great pleasure of working with clients that represent a myriad of services, products, and perspectives. More than what our client organizations do, we love working with clients who are:
Ready to be accountable for DEI and other people-centered initiatives, from the C-suite throughout all other levels of the organization
Open to engaging in uncomfortable conversations and facing hard truths that might be uncovered during our engagement.
Willing to properly resource DEI and other people-centered functions so the work does not fall on one or two people to execute.
We have had the honor of working with employees in over 20 countries and our work has led us to the following guiding principles:
The desire for genuine human connections is something that binds us all – regardless of background.
Employees need trusted spaces to raise workplace concerns and reimagined ideas about how work is done.
Organizations must take bold actions to move from good intent to tangible change.
For sustained and meaningful progress to occur, HR & DEI goals have to be set, widely and regularly communicated, tracked, and measured.
We are committed to partnering with clients to break down institutional inequities, increase representation across all levels of an organization and create spaces where people feel that they belong. Are you ready to elevate your people strategies?
Because we view DEI goals like any other business goal, we rely heavily on quantitative and qualitative data to help inform outcomes. In this way, we do not have “off-the-shelf” recommendations or predetermined outcomes. Rather, we partner with our clients to develop customized DEI strategies that can be tracked and measured and align with our clients’ business priorities – all based on the data that we collected. While our outcomes are unique to our client, we follow a disciplined process for identifying DEI goals and supporting the successful implementation of these goals.
We offer a flexible approach to people-centered company culture support that ranges from serving as an outside Strategic HR Department to partnering with clients on discrete HR projects.
Leadership teams with diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences are a proven driver of innovation and can increase an organization’s bottom line. We are uniquely poised to help you fill executive positions through an equitable and inclusive search process that results in a diverse slate of candidates. Through the use of our data, search software, well-developed networks, and disciplined search process, we identify high-quality talent for your organization quickly and effectively.
“What’s the DEIL?” is a podcast for organizational leaders – and those who support them – as they make their way along their DEI journey. In this podcast, Natalie Norfus and Shanté Gordon explore how leaders can create space for authentic human connection through the lens of DEI. We know you’re busy, so we focus on practical strategies and best practices that improve employee engagement, retention, and impact.
“I’ve worked with The Norfus Firm at both Sabra and IsraAID, a non profit whose Board I serve on. There were a number of things we were involved with from DEI training to coaching. And with all the amazing things Natalie & Shante offer, it is their ability to connect that for me is what makes them so successful and inspiring.”
“One of the most impressive things about The Norfus Firm is that they don’t offer cookie-cutter services. Over the years, they’ve invested time in understanding our business and the individuals on our team, and they have consistently tailored their offerings to meet our evolving needs.”
“Working with The Norfus Firm was an empowering and incredibly positive experience. Their exceptionally capable and empathetic staff made them a superb choice for advancing our organization, including executive leadership and mid-management, within the DEI space. They took the time needed to understand our mission and laid the groundwork for a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable organization moving forward. We looked forward to every call and milestone and trusted their perspective and expertise. We were grateful to have worked with them and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to any firm or organization.”
