When she was growing up, Karen Matterson wanted to be a dancer. Then, during her collegiate years, she studied human resources and started her career in the banking industry. And now, as SVP and chief people officer for Global Payments, she works to put the best people in roles where they can flourish.
She has spent her life seeking to make all the right moves.
Matterson shared her path to the C-suite during the keynote session at the 2019 Terry Women’s Initiative Student Conference. In it, she offered succinct advice for those looking to get ahead.
“You are as good as the person sitting next to you,” she said. “Be authentic. Speak your truth, even if it makes people uncomfortable. An important part of my brand is getting things done.”
Matterson joined Global Payments in 2008 as an HR director. Prior to that, she worked for several organizations, including Georgia Federal Bank, The Coca-Cola Co., Blockbuster and John H. Harland Co. Throughout her career, she took on progressively challenging roles with increased responsibilities and was quick to answer when the CEO of Global Payments approached and offered her the position of chief people officer.
“I was about to retire. I already had the second-highest position in the company,” she said. “Be ready to move quickly when opportunity knocks on the door. Two days later, I said yes. I told myself, ‘I hope this turns out to be the best job I never wanted.’”
As CPO, she has traveled around the world, forged significant relationships and led a diversity and inclusion initiative within the company. “I thought I had to be outside the corporation to find significance,” she said. “I didn’t.”
She finds herself in a different world than she envisioned while attending a performing arts high school, where she had dreams of becoming a dancer. But in college, while studying human resources management at Georgia State, she worked as a teller at Georgia Federal Bank.
“Every day, I would come in, and my boss would tell me, ‘One day, I’m going to hire you to work for me as an HR recruiter,” she said.
That day came sooner than expected, and she secured a human resources position before completing her BBA degree. Still, Matterson questioned how she would succeed in an unfamiliar field.
“As I moved up the ladder, I was never really sure I wanted the top position in the company. The odds were stacked against me,” she said. “Only one-fifth of chief positions are held by women, and only one out of 30 are women of color.”
And she cited four traits that help people grow in the workplace: “Confidence, agility, relationships, and education: C.A.R.E.”
Matterson’s journey to leadership success wasn’t typical, but along the way, she discovered her purpose and remained unapologetically genuine.
“Be kind to all people, don’t judge and show genuine interest when listening to others,” she said. “Relationships get you where you want to go.”