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Kathleen Duffy Ybarra (Duffy Group, Inc.)

Kathleen Duffy Ybarra

Duffy Group, Inc.

Becoming one of most respected recruiting firms in the country did not just happen. It was Kathleen Duffy’s single-minded dedication to helping individuals find joy in their work that became her life mission. She, in fact, embodies her fundamental value: that people deserve to be enriched by the activity they focus at least 500,000 hours of their lives on.

She imparts the same strength of purpose to her entire staff, and the result is one of the strongest recruitment teams, from top to bottom, in the business. Her commitment to serving candidates and clients alike motivated Kathleen to develop the Recruitment Research model which enables Duffy Group to harness marketplace intelligence, work as a discrete (and transparent) partner and deliver quality candidates with up to 50 percent savings over traditional recruitment fees. The ability to scale and customize processes to deliver an optimal outcome benefits both employers and job seekers.

Kathleen is a founding member of the Arizona Human Resource Executive Forum, a professional organization and vital force in addressing and providing current perspectives on complex and challenging human resource and business issues. She is a highly-regarded keynote speaker on recruiting techniques, processes and entrepreneurship. Kathleen was recognized by AZ Society of Human Resource Management with the Al O’Connor Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2016, 2017 and 2018, Kathleen was an honoree of the Sun Devil 100 which celebrates the achievements of Arizona State alumni who own or lead businesses across the globe and exemplify the spirit of ASU as the New American University.

Recently Kathleen was named the recipient of the 2018 ATHENA Award Businesswoman of the Year by the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce.

Kathleen has served as the National District Coordinator for National Charity League and President of the NCL Moon Valley chapter, supporting many Phoenix area non-profit organizations including the Back to School Clothing Drive, Desert Mission Food Bank, St. Vincent de Paul, and Phoenix Children’s Hospital. In 2016, Kathleen was honored for her community service as Panhellenic Woman of the Year; and in 2017, given the Kappa Delta Order of the Pearl which recognizes outstanding contributions to society at the national, state or local level outside of Kappa Delta service.



Selected to Serve on the Steering Committee for 2020 Women on Boards 2017 event, she is a vice-chair of the 2020 Women of Boards 2018 event, a grassroots campaign to raise the percentage of women on US company boards to 20% or greater by the year 2020. Most recently, Kathleen was named an Athena Business Woman of the Year finalist by the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce.

Kathleen earned a bachelor’s degree in Communications from Arizona State University. An avid Sun Devil, she served as Chair of the ASU Alumni Association National Board of Directors and Council, as a member of the Board of Trustees serving on the Arizona Leadership Counsel and the ASU President’s Club. She is also a member of the Chapter Advisory Board for Kappa Delta Sorority and founding Board member of the ASU Greek Alumni Advisory Board.

As President of Duffy Group, Kathleen’s mission is to exemplify “Recruitment Redefined” for each client’s particular needs and continue to build our reputation as the best in the business.