Brandeis Online

Sarah Maxwell, PhD is an organizational psychologist and leadership development practitioner with more than two decades of professional experience advancing operational excellence and organizational effectiveness through human-centered approaches to leadership, culture, and workforce development. As Program Chair for the online M.S. in Industrial-Organizational Psychology and Workforce Analytics at Brandeis University, she focuses on bridging behavioral science and applied practice to prepare professionals who can leverage data, organizational insights, and evidence-based methods to improve the modern workplace. Her expertise emphasizes translating psychological research into practical strategies that strengthen leadership capability, support organizational change, and enhance employee experience and performance.

Dr. Maxwell’s career spans internal consulting and enterprise program leadership roles across organizational development, talent management, learning and development, and culture transformation. She has led large-scale initiatives including leadership development programs, employee engagement and listening strategies, post-merger workforce integration, and diversity and inclusion implementation. In addition to her academic leadership, she is the founder of White Owl Advisory, where she provides executive coaching and organizational consulting. Dr. Maxwell earned both her master’s and doctorate in Consulting Psychology from Alliant International University, where her doctoral research examined the effects of mindfulness and perspective-taking on bias in executive coaching relationships. She has presented and published her academic work in the U.S. and internationally.