Susan designed a 16-week board relations and governance course for the Longwood Fellows – the program prepares high potential individuals for future leadership roles in public horticulture. It proved to be an outstanding program – engaging, full of discussion, and extremely helpful. Susan is wonderful to work with too – a true professional in every sense of the word. Thank you, Susan!
Tamara Fleming

Director, Longwood Fellows Program

Susan’s facilitation of our strategic plan was thoughtful and professional. She took pains to ensure that it wasn’t just a cookie cutter approach, and took into account our organization structure and culture. When the final plan was approved, the board members uniformly expressed that the plan is substantive, clear, concise, and reflects well the goals of the school. In addition, Board members were impressed with both process and her guidance. I look forward to other opportunities to work with Susan.
Kate M. Ransom

President and CEO, The Music School of Delaware

Susan’s uncanny ability to see the complete picture and reduce it to workable parts, plus her talent at motivating even the most hard core holdouts, combine to make Susan a consultant of the highest caliber. Among Susan’s secret weapons are her grace and marvelous good humor so carefully wielded that one hardly realizes that a deadline or rigorous assignment has been issued. Susan thinks strategically and instructs strategically.

Judith Lewittes

Chair, Development Committee, Park East Synagogue

Susan Pallas Detwiler is among the most thoughtful, detail-oriented and energetic colleagues I have ever enjoyed working with in my career…. she works extremely well with volunteers and professionals alike, and her extensive knowledge of the field provides excellent support to our clients. She is intelligent, creative and dedicated.
Susan Sherk

Independent Consultant

I have known Susan Detwiler for years. Her friendly demeanor and intelligent questions make intense working conversation or meaningful discussions. I have seen firsthand her pragmatic consultant approach that delivers results time and time again particularly in the arts and culture arenas. When the Delaware Arts Alliance (DAA) needed to revamp its strategic planning, Susan was the natural selection. DAA’s strategic plan covering 2016-2018 reflects her thorough and down to earth approach. A concise and working document that guides the organization’s decisions on daily basis are a testament of a job well done. She remains as a top-notch option as DAA moves forward. Recommending her is a no brainer.
Guillermina Gonzalez

[Former] Director, Delaware Arts Alliance

I am excited to praise and recommend Susan Detwiler. It is harder than ever for nonprofit organizations of all sizes to successfully operate today. In my decades of experience, I have seen few who can expertly analyze and lead organizational development efforts as expertly as Susan. She has a great ability to cut through the subjectivity of Board and staff members with challenging questions that are unbiased but insightful. Susan’s calm demeanor and supportive approach builds trust and confidence from the start of the process. You really feel that she is part of the team throughout the engagement. Susan is equally effective working with small or large organizations. She is skilled at group dynamics, involving everyone and getting honest self-assessment from members. If you are seeking the intervention and leadership of an outside professional to take an honest look at your organization and develop a solid strategic vision, you will be well served by retaining Susan Detwiler.”

Pete Booker

The SmartDrive Foundation

Thanks to Susan’s wealth of experience and expert advice, I was able to effectively manage the organization and realize numerous accomplishments that heretofore were merely dreams. As we move into our next season, that experience and advice is still paying dividends.

I am passionate about the arts, and music is my life. At this stage in my life when giving has become more important than getting, I have nothing but praise and heartfelt gratitude for Susan Detwiler who has so greatly contributed to our organization’s development, my professional growth, and the ever-increasing smiles on the faces of the students and families we serve.

Gerald Chavez

Executive Director, Wilmington Youth Jazz Band

Kudos to Susan Detwiler for her superlative job in crafting a strategic planning initiative for the Gershman Y! Her analyses were spot-on and her process was comprehensive and inclusive; she involved many important members of our community as well as our board and staff, which has resulted in strengthened relations with key partners. Susan was extremely creative in devising techniques that assured a cohesive document that represented the views of our board, and she very patient when extra time was needed to complete the project. Both her process and the resulting plan gave us a solid framework to build on for the next three years and a living document that will not sit on a shelf but will be referred to on an on-going basis and updated annually.

Maxine Gaiber

Executive Director, The Gershman Y