CASE STUDY
Building Respectful Workplace Skills in a Research Environment
*Note the company is not named per the client’s request, as they are on a university campus.
CHALLENGE: Survey scores showing poor communication and relationships
A Northern California university-affiliated research organization reviewed results from both an inclusion-focused department survey and a campus engagement survey. The feedback from both showed the need for stronger respectful workplace behaviors and healthier working relationships in a complex, high-performance environment.
The organization determined they needed to select a training partner who could address respect and inclusion in a way that would resonate with researchers and leaders.
Leadership selected Civility Partners because of our ability to tailor content and deliver a high-impact program. As the client shared: “Civility Partners had what we needed in terms of flexibility to create tailored content and partner with us to deliver a high-impact program.”
THE WORK: Delivering a tailored, high-impact training program
Civility Partners has partnered with this organization for nearly a decade, delivering mandatory Respectful Workplace Training for both individual contributors and managers.
The program focuses on self-awareness, respectful communication, and how to address disrespectful behavior from colleagues, peers, or managers. Key elements include:
- Highly customized content and scenarios that reflect the organization’s real environment (not generic examples), and that were built in partnership with the client.
- Manager-specific facilitation as manager attendance increased, ensuring the content stayed actionable. Dr. Toni Herndon, quickly shifted prompts and content to make the content relevant to managers without losing the core learning goals.
- Tools and resources participants continue using in team meetings and ongoing discussions.
- Learning design that builds self-awareness without shame, supporting behavior change.
- Strong program management. All of our training programs include ongoing check-ins and debriefs to discuss data collected in anonymous polls and from anecdotes provided by learners during sessions, and the post-training evaluation forms. Debrief sessions also include insight from patterns or issues emerging in sessions.
- Successful pivot to virtual delivery, enabling more sessions and reducing travel costs during COVID. The virtual sessions were done so well the organization determined virtual training could continue, enabling delivery of more sessions.
OUTCOMES: Passing Audit with a Better Workplace
While survey results weren’t comparable year-over-year due to changing vendors, leaders report clear behavioral and cultural shifts, including stronger accountability regardless of seniority.
In one notable incident, two junior scientists raised concerns about a senior scientist’s behavior. After investigation, leadership issued a formal warning stating the individual could lose their job if the behavior continued. As leadership noted, “reputation no longer acts as a shield.”
Participants report practical, positive learning experiences and takeaways:
- Group Discussions & Collaboration.
“I loved the environment that was created where I felt comfortable to share my thoughts. Walking through scenarios and seeing other people’s thought processes was helpful, boosting the core of collaboration and respect.”
- Scenario-Based Learning and Practical Application.
“I enjoyed all the parts when we confronted our colleagues and their experiences. The different approaches and interpretations of the situations that were proposed are fun to see.”
“I found the scenarios to allow for a deeper understanding of how to identify a red flag and how to navigate it.”
- Peer Perspectives and Group Dialogue
“Hearing the perspectives of my colleagues that were different from how I interpreted things was really helpful.”
“It was genuinely valuable to be in a mixed group with people from different parts of our organization. Hearing perspectives from outside my own division made the scenarios feel more real and highlighted how universal some of these challenges are.”
- Self-Reflection and Personal Awareness
“At the end when we were discussing good culture points, we had to pick one that we felt strong in vs one that we can cultivate more. Reading it through made me realize that there’s always room for improvement in all the areas.”
“The moments that led to greater self-awareness are the most useful for me.”
- Cultural Awareness, Respect, and Inclusion
“Great reminders and tools to have a common language of respect, and understanding cultural differences and how neurodivergence play into interactions. I’ve learned to find out where people are coming from so there’s no miscommunication.”
What The Client Loves About Working With Civility Partners
According to our conversation with leadership, they really appreciate our:
- “You get us” customization that makes the training feel relevant and credible in their environment.
- Proactive communication + strong debriefs/data, helping them stay ahead of issues and continuously improve the program.
- A true thought-partner relationship, where Civility Partners helps them adapt while also explaining the “why” behind design choices, so suggested changes strengthen the learning impact.
