Today we’d like to introduce you to Catherine Mattice.
Hi Catherine, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
I have dedicated the last 15 years of my life to one mission – building a community of thriving individuals, starting at the place they spend the majority of their time: the workplace.
During my time as the director of HR for a non-profit organization, I experienced the physical and psychological effects of a toxic work environment – both as a target of the behavior and as the HR representative. I saw firsthand how costly toxic behavior is to individuals and organizations. While working there, I obtained my master’s degree from SDSU and dove into the world of workplace bullying. I discovered a debilitating problem that needed to be solved, and despite so many telling me not to build a company focused on solving that problem, I did it anyway. From the humble beginnings of working out of my apartment in OB, I have grown Civility Partners into the team it is today and has helped organizations across the globe build positive workplace cultures.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
When I started my work around workplace bullying more than a decade ago, the response I received was not always welcoming. I would reach out to local associations, hoping to speak at their local chapters, only to be met with responses like, “No, bullying is not a thing. We already talked about harassment.”
Then I applied to speak at the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) Conference a couple of years in a row, and they kept denying me. However, after a few attempts, they finally granted me an opportunity. I was scheduled to speak as the final presenter on the last day of the conference. Since I didn’t expect many people to attend, I brought only 20 handouts. To my astonishment, the room quickly filled up with over 300 enthusiastic attendees. At that moment, I felt validated as people recognized the importance of the topic I was addressing.
Reflecting on my journey today, I am grateful for the opportunities I have had to speak at numerous associations and media outlets across various industries. I have had the privilege to discuss topics close to my heart centered around fostering positive work cultures. Along the way, I became a trailblazer in the HR industry, advocating for the importance of addressing workplace bullying when it was hardly even a topic of discussion.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about Civility Partners, Inc.?
Civility Partners is a full-service HR Consulting Firm focused on partnering with organizations to create a positive work environment where employees are happy and thriving. Seriously, it’s our mission as an organization. We are passionate about reducing the pain we know thousands of people feel each and every day they are at work. Our genuine care for the well-being of employees fuels our work.
We have grown to a fleet of trainers/facilitators and consultants working nationally and internationally to make the world a better place. Our training programs provide the tools needed for each individual in an organization to be respectful and inclusive. We are passionate about and insist that our trainings inform and stimulate the mind while also opening one’s heart to foster closer working connections between coworkers and departments company-wide. Our training programs take a courageous, compassionate, and even entertaining approach to the very challenging topics found within toxic workplaces.
The comprehensive journey we embark upon with our clients goes well beyond a one-off training, however, and often involves a multi-pronged strategic plan that supports ongoing progress on the demanding road of sustainable behavior (and thus culture) change. Working with Civility Partners is like having access to a wise friend that has your back no matter what may be facing your workplace and can save you from unforeseen harm.
For example, the IT Dept at UC Berkeley was shocked when a woman came forward publicly about the harassment and discrimination she experienced, and many women followed. Civility Partners was hired and conducted a climate survey and found, among many problems, that on a scale of 1-5 (5 = bullied daily) that women averaged a score of 4 while men averaged a score of 2. After one year of work together, Civility Partners conducted a second survey, and both scores had dropped to an average of 1.2 on that same scale of 1 to 5. This is just one example of how I and the Civility Partners’ consulting team successfully work our magic. We consider this as one of our biggest accomplishments as a team. Visit UC Berkeley’s website for more on our work together: https://civilitypartners.com/case-study-culture-change-2/.
What sets us apart from other firms is our transformational coaching program. While most HR professionals don’t know how to effectively manage workplace bullies and are often frozen by lack of understanding about how to help the situation, we actually get energized by mining the gold that is hidden behind a leader’s reactive exterior. I am an executive coach who specializes in coaching abrasive executives and leaders who are typically highly valuable to the company because of their skills or ideas but are causing pain and trauma in those around them.
We believe that elevated self-awareness becomes the rising tide that raises all boats, and Civility Partners seeks to have the largest impact possible with each of its clients so we can bring organizations to new heights.
Since every organization in every industry is driven by their employees, our message and mission is applicable across many fields. We have worked with universities, healthcare organizations, hotels, manufacturing centers, and many other industries to provide tangible tools for sustainable culture change. Our services include personalized assessments, custom training, coaching, strategic culture change consulting, and fractional HR services. Ultimately, we collaborate with organizations to provide custom services that fit best with their needs.
We love surprises, fun facts, and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
I’m a bionic woman – I have 17 metal plates and 64 screws in my face. I was hit by a 120-ton trolley going 30 miles per hour. I don’t remember much, but according to the police report my dog bolted across the tracks, and I ran after her – I can only assume I didn’t realize the trolley was right upon the intersection. Next thing I remember is staring at the ceiling of an ambulance and feeling scissors going up my jeans and then up my shirt as the EMT cut off my clothes to see what the damage was. After 12 surgeries, 16 metal plates in my jaw and face, 42 screws, and “chicken wire” to hold my eye socket together, I’m lucky to be in the 30% of people who come out of trolley and train accidents completely intact. My surgeon joked that I’m also lucky enough to be one of the few who can claim I have a screw loose one day, and I’ll need surgery to screw it back in.
Leaders must absolutely be resilient, positive, and adaptable – and this scenario proves that I am those things and more. The surgeon told my family I would not be back to work for 6 months, but with no one else to pay my bills, I returned within 30 days. I was able to achieve that through my positive mindset. I knew I was lucky to be alive, and positivity is all I had to carry me through it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://civilitypartners.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/civilitypartners/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CivilityPartners/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/catherinemattice/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/CivilityCP
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjYrRSATjJA9ihYRDey4GTA
- Other: https://linkedin-learning.pxf.io/LGRKa
Image Credits
Society of Human Resources Management
