Meet the Founder: Katherine Tuominen, founder of Culture Cure
This month we chat with Katherine Tuominen, founder of Culture Cure.
Culture Cure is dedicated to nurturing individuals to thrive at work by encouraging well-being rituals, strength-based capacity building and positive workplace culture.
Katherine joined the monthly Atto Academy membership community in March 2021.
Learn more about Katherine and Culture Cure below.
Where did you get the idea for Culture Cure?
Having had my fair share of toxic workplace experiences I started to wonder if it was just me.
Everyone I spoke to would say it was normal to have a bad boss, to toughen up or to switch jobs until I found a good one.
I wondered if I was the problem or if I was ‘too sensitive.’
I was curious to know if there were others out there who had experienced this level of toxicity who found the normalisation equally disturbing and how they dealt with the health, career and legal repercussions of this workplace abuse...
What problem is Culture Cure solving?
“1/3 people claim a mental disorder due to workplace bullying”, according to HeadsUp.
For every $1 earned, double is lost in healthcare expenses related to workplace implications on wellbeing, according to BeyondBlue and PWC.
Without financial freedom, they are forced to remain in the toxic workplace (dealing with discrimination and harrasment) often resulting in chronic health impacts incl. depression, PTSD etc. Many organisations advocate for prevention, few address the hidden costs of recovering from toxicity (postvention) which unjustly falls on the individual.
Our affordable and accessible membership gives patrons access to industry experts that offer psychological and legal support. By consolidating services like counselling and legal aid, we can streamline the psychological and career recovery process, better equipping targets for new job opportunities. This inadvertently minimises hidden costs of income lost between job roles and ongoing medical expenses by seeking a comprehensive solution early. Mostly it enables the survivors and targets of toxic workplace culture to restore their life.
While this helps address the symptom we are also addressing the root of the problem through story driven data. Currently there is a lack of qualitative and quantitative data on the impacts of abusive workplaces to the individual's health. Without clear metrics, policies and legislation there can not be accountability. Accurate and inclusive data is integral to inform substantial change.
The stories shared on the platform will be converted to data-driven open-source insights that can end the normalisation of toxic workplace culture by defining patterns between workplace abuse and chronic mental health issues for future prevention.
Everyone’s story matters. By working together as a collective we can ‘cure’ toxic workplace culture.
What were you doing prior to starting your business? Did you start it as a side project or did you go all-in from the get-go?
I didn’t want to rely on external sources for investment and it was important to be financially secure so I could bootstrap the business.
Marketing consulting on the side has enabled me the freedom and flexibility to work on Culture Cure and reinvest funds back into the company.
What was the first thing you did to get Culture Cure up and running?
Research and connecting with people who have experienced toxic workplace culture. I spent countless hours speaking with them directly to hear their stories and understand their pains.
Deeply understanding the problem has enabled me to see patterns that have informed our services.
Was being a startup founder always part of your career plan? If not, what was?
Definitely not! Although, you could argue that every feature film is like a start-up, raising funds, qualifying an audience, building a team and developing the product. I wanted to be a showrunner or creative producer and was ‘on track’ to making this a reality. But for as long as I can remember what I really wanted to do was tell stories that mattered and that’s what I hope to do with Culture Cure.
What would be the one piece of advice you’d give to other female founders looking to take the leap into something new?
Do it!! The world is crying out for radical change, we need solutions to pressing problems (The Sustainable Development Goals is a great place to start). If you’re on the fence but have this itch that you know you’re meant to be doing something more, explore your curiosity, you never know where it may lead. Also, your voice is incredibly valuable and deserves to be heard.
What’s been your biggest lesson so far?
A company can only ever be as great as its leaders. Making aligned decisions that are true to your values can be extremely challenging especially when there are knowledge gaps and lots of different external opinions. Reminding myself why I started this and who I want to help first has helped me stay grounded. Also, it’s important to redefine success on your terms. Sometimes impact can’t be quantifiably measured but it still holds great value and when we’re solely focused on metrics and output, we risk losing sight of the intangible elements that make business more meaningful.
What’s been the biggest win so far?
Although it was a great honour to be featured in Forbes so early on in this journey, the true wins have been seeing my team members evolve and receiving success stories from our community! Our team members were able to hone their skills and discover new passions which led to greater job opportunities. They now know what signs to look out for when it comes to a healthy workplace culture and in turn have been placed in companies that value their contributions and welcome their diversity!
From a client perspective, hearing stories of their recovery and heartfelt messages of thanks means the world and reminds me how important our work is!
What do you love about running your own business?
The freedom to create and make a direct impact on someone’s life.
Also, the way it challenges you in every sense, personally and professionally.
It’s the most challenging and fulfilling thing I’ve ever done (so far! And I’m enjoying the growth it inspires.
What does 2022 (and beyond) have in store for you as a founder? What’s your next step for Culture Cure?
We’re excited to launch the next phase of our application which matches those who have experienced work related trauma with qualified experts such as psychologists and lawyers.
We’re also looking forward to collaborating with researchers, universities and industry leaders to share our insights on workplace culture and its impacts on individuals.
How do you think Atto has helped you in your business?
Atto has helped me refine my concept, establish the foundations of a business, connect with incredible female founders, stay accountable and share industry experiences that can’t be googled.
Mostly Atto has reminded me to create a sustainable business that also prioritises the wellbeing of the founder which is a refreshing and much-needed change!