How We Can Work Together
Ongoing Advisory Support
Fractional/Retained Partnerships
Project-Specific Engagements
Designed for clients who need a trusted HR thought partner and expert input on a more limited basis. This flexible support option is offered through access to The Advisory Line—a subscription-based service offering timely guidance on day-to-day HR questions, compliance concerns, and sensitive situations. Whether it’s a quick check-in or a sounding board before taking action, we deliver responsive, practical support when you need it.
Project-Specific Engagements
Fractional/Retained Partnerships
Project-Specific Engagements
Ideal for clients seeking focused expertise to address a defined HR need or milestone. Project-specific engagements are tailored to support initiatives such as handbook development, compliance audits, policy design, workplace relations matters, or performance programs. We scope each engagement to align with your goals, timeline, and organizational needs—delivering clear outcomes and practical results.
Fractional/Retained Partnerships
Fractional/Retained Partnerships
Fractional/Retained Partnerships
Best suited for organizations that need consistent, embedded HR leadership without hiring a full-time internal resource. Fractional or retained partnerships provide ongoing strategic and tactical support across a range of partnership levels—allowing us to support you at just the right capacity. We work closely with owners, executives, and internal leads to drive people strategy, build infrastructure, and guide day-to-day HR operations with continuity and care.
Featured Appearances
PracticeCare Podcast, Carl White
The HR Basics Every Practice Must Have
Growing your practice without the essentials of HR in place is a risky choice. Some essentials are required by law. Other essentials are strategic pillars that will help you grow. My guest today works with physicians and practice leaders to add HR smartly to their practice, and she’ll tell us what these essentials are. Debbie Rabishaw has more than thirty years of HR leadership experience, much of it in healthcare and healthcare-related practices. She partners with physicians and practice leaders to navigate HR compliance, people operations, and growth in a highly regulated environment. As the founder of Next Step Advisory, Debbie provides fractional HR support focused on practical, real-world solutions that strengthen teams and support sustainable practice growth.
Charity Therapy Podcast, Episode 164
How to Evaluate Executive Director Performance
Debbie joined host Jess Birken of Birken Law to tackle a listener question every nonprofit board eventually faces: what to do when you've hired a new Executive Director, skipped the onboarding, set no goals, and now want to fire them. The conversation digs into what the board-to-ED relationship should actually look like, why performance improvement plans fall flat when expectations were never set, and why employment law applies to every organization no matter how small.
Just a few of our our valued clients . . .
Our Founder
Debbie Berkowitz Rabishaw is a proven human resources leader known for her practical problem-solving and forward-thinking, empathetic leadership. With over three decades of progressive HR experience, Debbie has guided numerous companies in achieving their human resources objectives. Her extensive background includes supporting and leading HR in multi-state workplaces across the US and in India, with experience in start-ups, PE-backed firms, family-owned businesses, non-profits, and privately held companies.
Degrees and Awards
- Multiple 'Top 50' HR Professionals Awards presented by OnConferences
- Power 50 Award, National Diversity Council
- Certified by HRCI as a Senior Professional in HR
- SHRM California Law HR Specialty Credential
- SHRM Workplace Investigation Specialty Credential
- BS, Business Administration, Gies College of Business, University of Illinois
- MA, Human Resources, Carl H. Lindner College of Business, University of Cincinnati
Testimonials
"When I stepped into my role as Chief People Officer, I knew my strength was in strategic project work, change management, and building and evolving scalable people programs, but not in the day-to-day HR operations, benefits administration, compliance, and critical tactical work that keep the lights on. I needed someone who could come in right where I was, bring structure to the systematic chaos, and help me build confidence in the foundational HR functions our organization depended on.
Debbie Rabishaw at Next Step Advisory was that person.
Debbie stepped in seamlessly with deep operational expertise, calm judgment, and an incredibly practical approach. She brought structure and clarity to the core HR functions while respecting and supporting the broader strategic direction we were building. Rather than operating in silos, Debbie worked as a true partner for me, translating complexity, anticipating risk, and creating stability that allowed me to focus where I add the most value.
What sets Debbie and Next Step Advisory apart is her ability to balance precision with perspective. She is thoughtful, unflappable, and deeply knowledgeable, and she brings a steady confidence that builds trust quickly with leaders, teams, and People executives alike. The result was a People function that felt both strategically ambitious and operationally sound. She was a perfect complement to me and served as a safe sounding board more times than I could count. If you’re a People leader looking for a partner who complements strategic leadership with best-in-class execution, I can’t recommend Next Step Advisory highly enough."
Ali Farrell
Global Head of People Strategy and Experience (CPO) @ Beghou
"Our independent physicians' office hired Debbie to help us with HR. We had grown over the years and as physicians with no background in HR, we didn't know what we didn't know. Debbie was exceptional in her attention to detail as she evaluated our practice for any areas of vulnerability, made sure we were in compliance with state policies, lent opinions on how we could streamline our processes and built out our systems for hiring and performance evaluation. I had previously worked with a different HR company but it felt so impersonal, overwhelming and burdensome. I really wanted someone who would get to know our company, help get us up to speed and set us up for the future. Debbie was exactly that person and I anticipate that we will continue to use her consistently in the future even once her scope of her work has been completed."
Tara Brito
Physician and Practice Leadership @ Oak Park Pediatrics
"Our small firm was growing and we needed help. Debbie helped us first get all of our employment policies and practices to be comprehensive and compliant. She then helped to automate many processes to reduce our burden and ensure compliance. Now she is helping us grow and maintain a productive workforce.
I can't say enough good things about working with Debbie. Debbie helped us level-up our employment practices while working with our values and goals. It is such a relief to have Debbie's expertise on board. Her calm, warm demeanor also makes it enjoyable to work with her. Any employer would be lucky to have Debbie on their team."
Amy Duerk
Partner @ Adams, Duerk & Kamenstein LLP