Staff Profiles - Michael D. Atella, Ph.D, CP

Dr. Michael Atella is a licensed psychologist, practicing for more than 30 years. Since 1992, he has been President of Atella and Associates, an independent practice in Psychology located in downtown Chicago and in Schaumburg, IL. He is in practice with his wife, Tommy Carol Atella, and other associates. He loves his work and is passionate about building into people and helping individuals and organizations grow to their potentials.

He has a PhD from the University of Chicago in Social and Organizational Psychology, with additional emphasis in clinical and health psychology. He did post-doctoral courses at Harvard University Medical School and ongoing continued education. He received his Masters in Psychology from Roosevelt University and his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Northern Illinois University.

Has worked for the University of Chicago/Argonne National Laboratory as the Mgr. of Psychological Services for 14 years, providing 200 management coaching and consulting interventions per year, organizational change and strategic planning consulting. He started an Employee Assistance Program for employee counseling, and conducted psychological assessments for the Medical Department there. He has worked with Motorola managers since 1993 in confidential 6-sigma executive coaching. He is also a substance abuse professional. For more than two decades he has performed security consulting for the U.S. Department of Energy in areas of nuclear non-proliferation and fitness for duty psychological assessments. He has a Q-level national security clearance.

He has led strategic planning retreats for organizations. In this regard, he received a national award by the American Psychological Association (Div. of Health Psychology) for strategic planning and organizational development he has done. He did OD consulting and coaching for other divisions in APA, the Society of Psychologists in Management, the International Council of Psychologists, and other organizations. He recently was honored to be the keynote speaker at the Society of Consulting Psychology Fellows Banquet in Pasadena, CA. He served as the national chair for organizational renewal of the APA Division of Consulting Psychology for 7 years. He uses the term “catalyst consulting” for much of his work and has tried to be a catalyst for assisting organizations, teams, and individuals to make significant change and growth.

He served upon invitation by U.S. Department of Energy on national committees to develop standards for personnel security at approximately 50 national laboratories (including Argonne, Fermi, Sandia, Lawrence Livermore, Brookhaven, etc.). Also served by invitation on a similar committee for developing international standards for Blind Rehabilitation Services, when he worked in this field early in his career. In addition, he served on an APA national committee to develop standards in higher education for the teaching of consulting psychology, in order to apply psychological knowledge to world problems.

Served as a member of the core leadership team in starting up the International Science and Technology Consulting and Training Center, a joint venture with the Chinese Science and Technology Commission in Tianjin, China. Served as manager of the Training Department there. Lived with his wife and children there for 2+ years.

He is an adjunct professor and supervising psychologist in the Wheaton College Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program. He also served as an assistant professor of psychology at Concordia University-River Forest, IL, and he started a counseling center there 25 years ago that still stands today. He has written several articles for professional journals, including on Inspirational Leadership, and on Case Studies in Organizational Hardiness.

He has done leadership training and coaching for two decades in his church and was part of the core leadership team in his church that started a satellite church in Chicago. He will be a Men’s Retreat speaker this June, as he was at last year’s men’s retreat.

He was raised going to Blackhawk hockey games and loves the sport. As a child he watched the Hawks win the Stanley Cup in 1961. He coached his son’s hockey teams from age 4 to 10. His son was playing-coach of the Kunming, China hockey team for 6 years. Dr. Mike enjoyed being asked to be the off sides referee for a game. He also coached his daughter’s girls softball team, a makeshift team of girls who had not been selected to any team after the existing coaches rejected them all and left them without a team. It was a privilege to work with these girls and help them go to the Oak Park, IL village championship finals the first year and win the village championship the next year. He enjoys competition and participates each year in stair climbing races in Chicago’s various skyscrapers.
 

 


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