Trauma-Informed Workplace Culture Assessment

Trauma-Informed Workplace Culture Assessment

Trauma-informed workplaces understand the presence of trauma, acknowledge the role trauma can play in a person’s life, and promote work environments that support the individual and collective well-being of all staff and clients. They create a sense of belonging, connection, and safety through their attitudes, policies, and practices. As a result, trauma-informed organizations are more resilient and better able to achieve their missions.

CTRI’s Trauma-Informed Workplace Culture Assessment gives you a clear and concise picture of your organization’s current approach to and awareness of the five principles that trauma-informed organizations embody. We will walk you through a multiphase process to assess your organization’s strengths and challenges, and explore recommendations for how you can become more trauma-informed.

The results of an assessment will position you to implement proactive measures to maintain and grow a more resilient and effective organization. Recommendations may include training, policy changes, system enhancement, and leadership alignment processes.

Here’s what you’ll encounter in each phase of the assessment:

Phase 1 | Planning

CTRI consultants will meet with your organization’s leaders to explore their goals and interests. Details related to timelines, methodology, and staff participation will be established. Our consultants will also provide support with crafting a communication plan to inform staff about the process. We often recommend some accompanying workshops to introduce trauma-informed practices, which increases buy-in for the assessment.

Phase 2 | Survey

CTRI will set up a survey for your organization, similar to our online Trauma-Informed Workplace Assessment. Surveys and reporting can be customized to meet the unique needs of your organization. 

The survey will be made available to key staff and departments and can be completed online or using printed forms. Only overall themes will be reported back to the client so that individual responses are kept confidential.

Phase 3 | Focus Groups and Interviews

CTRI Consultants will facilitate a series of small focus groups comprised of employees and leaders. Our consultants will work closely with you to coordinate schedules for this phase. There is also the option of confidential, one-on-one interviews for those who would prefer to not participate in a small group.

In this phase, we might also gather data about the organization through other methods, such as conducting a site visit to gather information about the physical environment, and/or reviewing documentation such as policies and standard operating procedures.

Phase 4 | Data Analysis

CTRI consultants will analyze the collected information and identify themes related to the five principles of trauma-informed organizations. They will produce a user-friendly report that summarizes their findings and includes recommendations for next steps.

Phase 5 | Recommendations

CTRI consultants will first report back and review their findings with your organization’s leaders. Then they will help you plan how to report the findings to those who participated in the assessment. 

The report will contain recommendations for the purpose of transforming the organizational culture to one that is trauma-informed. Recommendations may include a list of things to keep doing, as well as new initiatives including training, policy recommendations, system improvements, and leadership alignment.