Until workplace culture becomes more parent friendly, we will never get to gender equality. 

Closing the gender gap has become a strategic priority for an increasing number of organizations, who strive to source more diverse candidates, and implement training and mentoring programs to address the talent pipeline issue. While attracting more women is critical, retaining them and helping them climb the leadership ladder is also important.

In Tech, women make up 32% of the workforce, and only 24% of leadership roles, according to LinkedIn’s Gender Equity in the Workplace 2022 report. The data also shows that “the barriers for women start as early as the manager level. The representation of women between Senior Individual Contributor and Manager drops by 9 percentage points to 35%”. 

More companies are investing in leadership development programs, based on the assumption that the lack of representation is due to female employees lacking the skills or capability to be promoted or given stretch assignments.

But what if this was not a skill or capability issue? What if fewer women than men become first-time managers because by the time they’re experienced enough to do so, they are also starting a family? In Europe, the average age of first-time mothers is 30.2 (Statista), which is also the average age of a first-time manager (Korn Ferry).

And whether we’re ready to admit it or not, the truth is that parenthood does interfere with women’s career progression.

Not only does it slow their progression down, the lack of supportive environments at work also drives them to quit. The Women in the Workplace 2022 report by McKinsey & LeanIn.Org reveals that women leaders are leaving their companies at the highest rate ever.

Some even drop out of work altogether. During the COVID-19 pandemic, 2 million mothers left the labor force (International Labour Organization), setting us back 40 years in the span of 18 months in terms of women’s participation in the workforce. This shows how fragile the progress we’ve made is, and how creating workplace cultures that embrace parenthood is critical to retaining women.

Despite that, few organizations talk about what they can do to accommodate parents' unique experience and how they could transform their culture to become more inclusive. Addressing working parenthood is still mainly thought of as a nice-to-have component of employee experience strategies, when it should be a core focus area.

For those who do prioritize it, the majority of efforts generally focus on the length of parental leave and corresponding compensation. To be fair, significant progress has been made there over the years, making it more equitable between primary and secondary caregivers. Even national policies keep moving forward in most western countries. The recent example of Finland bringing legal parental leave to 160 days for each caregiver shows that we are moving in the right direction.

But what happens after parental leave? How are new parents, and particularly mothers, supported in their transition back to work?

Having a child - especially for the first time - generates a great deal of physical, mental and emotional stress, on both birthing and non-birthing parents. While they are experiencing this stress, new parents are expected to perform in high-demanding roles, while juggling a new set of responsibilities at home, and navigating a major shift in their identity. They are often isolated, misunderstood, and subjected to societal injunctions that can make them feel inadequate. Not to mention the fact that leaving a child under the care of someone else comes with its own set of anxieties. 

Even when new parents return to the same company, in the same role, Tech moves so fast that things might be totally different from when they left. Their team might have been reorganized, their boss might be different, everything from products to processes and even acronyms might be new. The stress of having to relearn everything without the consideration and adjustments usually granted to new joiners can be difficult to handle. 

The challenges of being a parent to a young child can be misunderstood by a majority of non-parent coworkers, even those who mean well. And the stigma associated with talking about it and asking for adjustments is persistent, making it harder to speak up. 

Exhaustion, pressure to perform and the lack of a safe outlet where to express challenges and needs are perfect ingredients for burnout, whatever the context. The first 90 to 180 days of returning to work after having a child are especially challenging. This is when parents - women especially - are particularly vulnerable and at risk of experiencing mental health issues. 

So what can you do about it? 

Most organizations strive to craft a brilliant onboarding experience for their new joiners. The same amount of attention and effort should go to creating a safe, empowering and rewarding return to work experience for new parents. A positive reintegration will set them up for success in the long run, and create the right foundation to keep them engaged.

Here are 10 ways you can make their first 90 days a smooth experience:

• Consider offering fully paid part-time work for the first few weeks. Now, this might not suit everyone, so make this an option, not a rule. Don’t forget to adjust workloads for employees who chose to go part-time. 

• Offer additional paid days off, to accommodate for medical appointments and/or child sickness.

• If this is not already in place, consider implementing flexible hours and remote or hybrid work. This can help any of your employees manage their time more effectively, particularly those with caregiving responsibilities.

• Craft a specific onboarding program for anyone who returns from an extended leave. The goal is to create engagement, allow the new parent to build connections, and show them what has changed while they were away. Include one session dedicated to presenting the benefits and policies they have access to. Employees are not always aware of everything they are entitled to.

• New parents’ experience returning to work is highly dependent on how aware, open, and supportive their manager is. Make sure that they receive appropriate support and training. Consider providing coaching as an option here.

• Managers should also co-create a ramp up plan with their returning team member, to allow them to reintegrate their role progressively. For the first 90 days at least, their quantitative and qualitative goals should be adjusted accordingly. Have managers carry out regular check-ins and ask about the adjustments or support they need. They might evolve over time and will differ from one person to another.

• Set up at least one career conversation to discuss longer-term career goals and agree on a development plan.

• Make sure that compensation is really fair throughout, particularly when variable pay is involved. For people in sales roles for example, consider the time it takes to rebuild a pipeline and reestablish relationships with clients when building commission plans. 

• Build time into the onboarding program for soft physical & mental wellbeing activities (yoga or meditation for example). This is a nice extra for parents whose schedules are already packed and who have to deprioritize time for self-care.

• Hire a specialized external coach who will support new parents in their transition.

Whichever step you decide to start with, keep in mind that each parent, each child, and each experience is unique, so it’s important that you foster a safe environment for your employees to share their concerns, and that you listen to their specific needs. 

There are many other ways, beyond these, to make your workplace culture more parent-friendly, but if you nail the first 90 days, you’ll already be making a huge difference for new parents, and you’ll encourage more women to stay.