Testimonials
In addition to word-of-mouth referrals, Sheffe Consulting Inc. is truly grateful to clients who have taken the time to provide feedback about their experiences working with Nora and our firm, as detailed in the following testimonials:
I’ve been to facilitation sessions around the world and there is no one like Nora Sheffe. She has incredible poise, brings out the best in people and does magnificent work.”
McMaster University
“I’ve been to facilitation sessions around the world and there is no one like Nora Sheffe. She has incredible poise, brings out the best in people and does magnificent work.
“I invited Nora to facilitate a day-long strategy development session with my senior team. We have many incredibly accomplished leaders working at this university and, in my experience, it takes a lot for them to be blown away.
“It was immediately evident that Nora had done a lot of preparation in advance. She was very detailed, kept the conversation focused and put things in the right context. She did a brilliant job at helping us refine our strategy and do our best work. She also delivered a fantastic report. Through it all, Nora made the process very enjoyable for us.
“It was an easy decision to invite her back, this time to help develop a strategic orientation with about 35 academic leaders—the president, VPs, deans, top researchers, and various supporters. I was impressed by how well she read the energy in the room. She led them through processes and techniques that really engaged them. At the end of two-and-a-half days, the progress and outcomes were remarkable.
“Nora knows just as much about our strategy as we do now. She is inquisitive about how we are implementing the strategy and cares deeply about ensuring we are getting results. We do better work when Nora is with us and consider her an extension of our team.”
Mary Williams, VP Advancement
McMaster University
McMaster University is one of only four Canadian university to be ranked among the world’s top 100 universities. The World University Rankings, published by Times Higher Education, consider performance indicators such as research, teaching and internationalization. McMaster also ranks among the top one per cent of universities globally and was recognized with the Global Teaching Excellence Award in 2018.
Regina Food Bank
“The thought of facilitating a virtual AGM for the first time was daunting, but Sheffe Consulting did awesome work and our Board was super happy. It was a supportive process and a great experience from start to finish.
“We heard about Sheffe Consulting through word-of-mouth. We reached out, set up a call and team members were assigned to us. There were interactions along the way and a dry run, which helped prepare us.
“What really stood out was how close to a normal AGM it felt like—from the order of the agenda to the transitions and voting. It was all very smooth.
“In addition to all the documentation we received, the follow-up to wrap up activities was fantastic.”
John Bailey, Chief Executive Officer
Regina Food Bank
The Regina Food Bank is one of the largest food security organizations in Saskatechewan, providing nutritious food, education and support programs, and innovative services to the most vulnerable individuals and families in the broader community. Driven by values that include respect for all and supporting self-reliance, the Regina Food Bank collaborates with community partners to continuously enhance its resources and sustainable practices—and to make a meaningful impact to eliminate hunger and food insecurity as a caring community
The thought of facilitating a virtual AGM for the first time was daunting, but Sheffe Consulting did awesome work and our Board was super happy. It was a supportive process and a great experience from start to finish.”
Nora is a consummate professional and this extends to everything she does—her thoughtfulness, perceptiveness, flexibility, and creativity. She’s remarkable.”
Own the Podium
“Nora Sheffe can facilitate large gatherings of 150-200 people, which she has done for us when we’ve had partnership discussions about major event planning, high-level design and post Major Games debriefs.
“Nora is impeccably well-organized and well-prepared with great attention to detail. She’s skillful at using innovative approaches to challenge and engage us. She’s also diligent at staying current with new technologies and techniques. Nora is quick on her feet, can read the room, and adapts easily if there’s a need to modify the design or change directions in the approach.
“She’s also great at consensus-building—even with wide-ranging personalities. Nora can take different interests, opinions and goals from diverse groups and bring them all together to find a common direction. She enables everyone to contribute so that no one monopolizes the discussion, which makes her a very skilled communicator with a superb interpersonal approach. She also has a great sense of humour, which lightens the mood.
“Nora is a consummate professional and this extends to everything she does—her thoughtfulness, perceptiveness, flexibility, and creativity. She’s remarkable.”
Anne Merklinger, CEO
Own the Podium
Own the Podium is a not-for-profit organization focused on helping more Canadian athletes and coaches win more medals at Olympic and Paralympic Games. The organization drives the high-performance sport system forward through leadership, guidance and a harmonized approach to collaborating with national sport organizations, informing investment strategies and providing funding recommendations.
Oxfam Canada
“Nora Sheffe is really brilliant and I like her style—the way she mixes groups, her interactive approach, and the different ways she can drive an agenda and activities forward.
“Nora facilitated two sessions about sexual reproductive health and rights that brought together domestic and international experts. We worked together to better understand the needs internationally and where the Government of Canada could best focus its funds, and by extension, where our advocacy would make the most difference.
“Getting to the same end point was hard work but the meetings were creative, dynamic and participatory. Nora made sure to include everyone. She gave us a clear vision of where we needed to go and helped us arrive at a consensus.
“The advocacy that resulted from the meeting led directly to greater support and leadership on global sexual and reproductive rights, particularly in the most neglected areas. As members of the coalition that sponsored the meeting, we are very proud of the results we had with the help of Nora’s guidance.”
Julie Delahanty, CEO
Oxfam Canada
is a Canadian registered charity focused on promoting women and girl’s rights and ending the injustice of poverty and inequality on a global scale. Oxfam works in 90 countries around the world directly with communities, partners, and women’s rights organizations to challenge the systems that perpetuate inequality and keep people poor. Oxfam also works to influence those in power to ensure that women, in all their diversity and who are trapped in poverty, have a say in the critical decisions that affect them, their families and entire communities.
Getting to the same end point was hard work but the meetings were creative, dynamic and participatory. Nora made sure to include everyone. She gave us a clear vision of where we needed to go and helped us arrive at a consensus."
Ultimately, the two things
I value most about Nora are that she’s results-oriented and very capable of making all the pieces come together very quickly. "
Coaching Association
of Canada
“I absolutely trust Nora Sheffe 1,000 per cent. She is an outstanding facilitator who knows exactly how to let the theme or topic—rather than herself—be the star in the room. She has fine-tuned her craft, her techniques and her style in ways that demonstrate how expert facilitation is accomplished.”
“Nora always arrives prepared. Whether it’s a day-long strategic planning workshop or a series of meetings where ideas have a chance to percolate over time, Nora has consistently engaged and compelled the CAC board to find common ground. She is very good at analyzing and thinking strategically. As shifts and changes occur, Nora can tweak and turn around a report that conveys exactly the right information.
“Ultimately, the two things I value most about Nora are that she’s results-oriented and very capable of making all the pieces come together very quickly. I have complete confidence in Nora Sheffe and continue to refer her as a resource to other sport and professional organizations.”
Paul Carson
Chair, Coaching Association of Canada
Vice-President, Hockey Development, Hockey Canada
High Performance 2 NCCP Certified Coach (Hockey)
McMaster University
Faculty of Social Science
“I want to thank you for your help, guidance, wisdom and excellent facilitation.”
“People appreciated your expertise, professionalism, and ability to structure engaging virtual strategic planning sessions. Video conferencing is not easy but all the sessions went well.”
“It is a much, much better strategic plan because of your guidance and facilitation.”
Jeremiah Hurley, PhD
Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences and Professor of Economics
McMaster University
McMaster University is consistently ranked in the world’s Top 100 out of more than 1,250 institutions. The World University Rankings, published by Times Higher Education, consider performance indicators such as research, teaching and internationalization. McMaster also ranks among the top one per cent of universities globally and was recognized with the Global Teaching Excellence Award in 2018. In Canada, McMaster ranked first in Good Health & Well-Being, Decent Work & Economic Growth and Partnerships.
People appreciated your expertise, professionalism, and ability to structure engaging virtual strategic planning sessions … It is a much, much better strategic plan because of your guidance and facilitation."
What distinguishes her is the way she can add lightness and fun in a group setting, even if we are dealing with serious or complex issues. With Nora, you are getting someone who is focused on bridging strategies and co-creating solutions."
Canadian Paralympic Committee
“Nora Sheffe has facilitated Paralympic meetings and debriefs with double-digit frequency over the years. She has the ability to be fully present and to ask the right questions. She embeds herself to gain a depth of understanding on multiple levels about our needs and interests.
“We can count on Nora’s experience, strong insight and excellent critical thinking skills. She has the expertise to guide discussions toward a sense of perspective—to help us work through processes and find pragmatic ways to implement solutions.
“What distinguishes her is the way she can add lightness and fun in a group setting, even if we are dealing with serious or complex issues. With Nora, you are getting someone who is focused on bridging strategies and co-creating solutions.
“I have a high degree of confidence and trust in Nora’s ability to show up and deliver with quality and consistency.”
Karen O’Neill, CEO
Canadian Paralympic Committee
Government of Canada
“Nora Sheffe is an excellent facilitator. She is highly organized and skilled in her craft. She was instrumental in both the lead up, during and post workshop in organizing a very complex international workshop with multiple and varied stakeholders. Her attention to detail, ability to reflect back ideas and her creative approach to help synthesize these ideas were extraordinary and ensured that we had a very rich and thought-provoking discussions. The workshop was action oriented which allowed us to have strategic outputs on the way forward and concrete next steps.
Nora also went above and beyond the call of duty to ensure that all of the participants were well cared for and their needs addressed during the workshop.
Nora is one of the best facilitators I have had in my 20 years in the Public Service and I would highly recommend her for anyone that is hoping to have a productive meeting, workshop or international conference. Thanks again Nora for your hard work and an excellent workshop!”
Aoife Gibbons
Deputy Director | Directrice adjointe
Global Affairs Canada | Affaires mondiales Canada
Government of Canada | Gouvernement du Canada
The workshop was action oriented which allowed us to have strategic outputs on the way forward and concrete next steps. "
Nora and her team do their homework and come prepared. They keep us on task and work hard to let everyone be heard."
Volleyball Canada
“Since 2011-2012, we have continued to return to Sheffe Consulting to facilitate Volleyball Canada’s strategic planning sessions as well as provincial, territorial and national team debriefs.
“Nora Sheffe understands how the volleyball community works and brings with her a level of credibility. She is organized, outcome-driven and respectful of everyone’s opinions.
“Nora and her team do their homework and come prepared. They keep us on task and work hard to let everyone be heard.
“We really enjoy working with them.”
Mark Eckert, President and Chief Executive Officer
Volleyball Canada
Volleyball Canada is a national sport organization that fosters the growth and development of volleyball across Canada. Its directors, chairs, committees, and staff oversee and support multiple aspects of the sport: indoor volleyball, beach volleyball, sitting volleyball, high performance volleyball (indoor/beach/para), domestic competitions, international events, coach development, referees, training centres, partnerships, alumni relations, awards, and more.