Wednesday, July 27, 2011
work life balance and your relationship
When people talk about work/life balance, the focus is often on work versus family. Where does your relationship (love, togetherness and sex) with your partner fit in to the mix? So often it's easy to feel like ships passing in the night... We're looking for a case study for the Career Mums book (due out January 2012, through Penguin Books Australia). If you've got a story to tell about how your relationship fits in to your work/life balance - perhaps you went through a rough patch and found your way through, or perhaps you and your partner have a terrific plan for making it work - then we'd love to hear from you! We can change your name if that makes it easier to talk. Email kate@careermums.com.au
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Share your story: Negotiating flexibility before and during parental leave
CareerMums is co-writing a book for parents returning to work. It will be published by Penguin later in the year. Here is your chance to share your experience and tips via our blog. We need career mums to provide comments on the following topics:
1. Did you have an idea of how and when you wanted to return to work before going on parental leave, and then change your mind while on parental leave? How did you negotiate what you wanted with your employer and how did it turn out?
2. Tell us about your experience with negotiating flexibility before going on parental leave. How did the conversation go, and how did it turn out?
Please send us your comments via our blog.
Thanks for your time!
1. Did you have an idea of how and when you wanted to return to work before going on parental leave, and then change your mind while on parental leave? How did you negotiate what you wanted with your employer and how did it turn out?
2. Tell us about your experience with negotiating flexibility before going on parental leave. How did the conversation go, and how did it turn out?
Please send us your comments via our blog.
Thanks for your time!
Thursday, April 14, 2011
The state of the workforce
Last week, I met with one of the Big 4 banks to discuss recruitment issues. This bank's biggest challenge is finding quality candidates for a huge number of roles they have across the country - in particular regional areas. Some of these roles include branch manager roles that come with a six figure salary. And they are willing to consider job share.
Basically, their current candidate sourcing channels are not working - hence our discussion. They are looking for alternative channels to tap into people like you. This is one of many business examples that demonstrate that there is a shortage of quality candidates.
What does this mean for you? Better opportunities to negotiate flexibility and the opportunity to find better quality flexible roles that reflect your qualifications and expertise.
Basically, their current candidate sourcing channels are not working - hence our discussion. They are looking for alternative channels to tap into people like you. This is one of many business examples that demonstrate that there is a shortage of quality candidates.
What does this mean for you? Better opportunities to negotiate flexibility and the opportunity to find better quality flexible roles that reflect your qualifications and expertise.
The cost of childcare and going back to work
I have noticed that a common view held by mums is that if your salary does not cover the cost of childcare, it is not worth going back to work. I think this view needs to be challenged for the following reasons:
1. Your experience and desire to work should not be ignored or compromised. You have invested in your education and have built up a strong career. You should not be made to feel like you have to sacrifice your career. The longer you stay out of the workplace, the more challenging it is to return. Childcare is required for a finite period of time (at the most, 4 years). You can access a 50% childcare rebate (not means tested). You may also be able to tap into your extended family to assist your family with caring duties.
2. The cost of childcare should not be associated with your salary only. View it as an expense that needs to be covered by your combined salary (you AND your partner's salary). This expense is necessary to mantain your skills and support your future earning capacity.
I have no doubt that the cost of care is a huge problem for families. The Federal Government offers a 50% childcare rebate but they have no long term solutions for the rising cost of childcare. This is because most childcare centres are privately owned. This in turn impacts on the skills shortage in this country - the cost of care is forcing many people to stay at home rather than work.
If you can make it work as a family, and you want to return to paid work, I would encourage you to do it. I have met and spoken to too many women who have opted to leave the workforce for a longer period of time and have subsequently lost their confidence to return to paid employment.
1. Your experience and desire to work should not be ignored or compromised. You have invested in your education and have built up a strong career. You should not be made to feel like you have to sacrifice your career. The longer you stay out of the workplace, the more challenging it is to return. Childcare is required for a finite period of time (at the most, 4 years). You can access a 50% childcare rebate (not means tested). You may also be able to tap into your extended family to assist your family with caring duties.
2. The cost of childcare should not be associated with your salary only. View it as an expense that needs to be covered by your combined salary (you AND your partner's salary). This expense is necessary to mantain your skills and support your future earning capacity.
I have no doubt that the cost of care is a huge problem for families. The Federal Government offers a 50% childcare rebate but they have no long term solutions for the rising cost of childcare. This is because most childcare centres are privately owned. This in turn impacts on the skills shortage in this country - the cost of care is forcing many people to stay at home rather than work.
If you can make it work as a family, and you want to return to paid work, I would encourage you to do it. I have met and spoken to too many women who have opted to leave the workforce for a longer period of time and have subsequently lost their confidence to return to paid employment.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Interim results from our recent pulse survey
CareerMums continues to attract skilled and flexible workers. Interim results from our latest survey (250+ respondents) again reinforce the high calibre of candidates:
- Over 60% have either a Bachelor degree, Masters degree or MBA. Another 30% are Diploma or Certificate qualified.
- Over 90% have between 5-20 years experience in their field of expertise.
The continuing challenge for this group of skilled candidates is finding flexible roles that suit their qualifications and expertise. Consider the roles you are currently advertising for right now. Is there an opportunity to offer some degree of flexibility (this can also mean full time flexible) so you can access this group of skilled candidates?
- Over 60% have either a Bachelor degree, Masters degree or MBA. Another 30% are Diploma or Certificate qualified.
- Over 90% have between 5-20 years experience in their field of expertise.
The continuing challenge for this group of skilled candidates is finding flexible roles that suit their qualifications and expertise. Consider the roles you are currently advertising for right now. Is there an opportunity to offer some degree of flexibility (this can also mean full time flexible) so you can access this group of skilled candidates?
Feedback from recent DEEWR Family Friendly Workplaces Seminar
Last week, around 300 delegates from all major Australian industries and employer groups attended this seminar. I was on a panel discussing key strategies for overcoming barriers to implementing a flexible and family friendly workplace. During the panel discussion, I was very interested to hear about the current challenges of the delegates. Interestingly, it is no longer the challenge of digesting the concept of flexible working. It has moved on and now focuses on the following challenges:
- Knowledge to design flexible roles;
- Training for management on how to manage a flexible workforce;
- Designing specific employee programs for attraction and retention purposes;
- Looking beyond traditional recruitment channels to locate skilled flexible workers.
Talk to us about our HR products and services if some of these challenges are yours.
- Knowledge to design flexible roles;
- Training for management on how to manage a flexible workforce;
- Designing specific employee programs for attraction and retention purposes;
- Looking beyond traditional recruitment channels to locate skilled flexible workers.
Talk to us about our HR products and services if some of these challenges are yours.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Steps an organisation needs to take to embrace flexibility
How do you successfully integrate flexibility into your workplace? Review the successful businesses and see what they have in common. The following are common strategies used by businesses that have embraced flexible work practices. How does your business compare?
Research or workforce planning
Find out who you employees are. Do you know who works for you? Are they happy? What would make them more productive?
For example finding out:
•the proportion of women to men
•the most common age group
•the average retirement age
•the average length of employment
Managers at Pepsico Australia asks their staff the following question once each year: “What is the one simple thing I can do as your manager to improve your work-life quality?”
Policies and procedures
Do you have a teleworking policy, a flexible work policy and a parental leave policy? Are they accessible to all staff? Have they been updated lately?
Do you have procedures to turn theory into a reality?
Cultural change
Do senior level management support flexible work practices? How many senior managers work flexibly? Do senior level management have knowledge or experience with flexible work practices? Is flexibility only being offered to parents?
Regular training and workshops
Managers are continually named and shamed as the roadblocks to flexibility – help them. Look at the trends within your organisation. Do some teams seem to have more flexible workers than others? Why?
How many managers have training in how to manage a flexible workforce? Probably none.
How do you design flexible roles? How do you assess if a flexible role will work or not?
Ramping up technology
Simply having access to email and the intranet isn’t enough. Technology now needs to consider 2 things:
1. Maintaining productivity of workers in and out of the office
2. Connecting team members when they are not in the office together.
Recruitment strategies and channels
As the skill shortens worsens with an ageing population, where do you look? What will recruitment strategies look like? Be open to hiring flexible workers. Look at other channels.
Research or workforce planning
Find out who you employees are. Do you know who works for you? Are they happy? What would make them more productive?
For example finding out:
•the proportion of women to men
•the most common age group
•the average retirement age
•the average length of employment
Managers at Pepsico Australia asks their staff the following question once each year: “What is the one simple thing I can do as your manager to improve your work-life quality?”
Policies and procedures
Do you have a teleworking policy, a flexible work policy and a parental leave policy? Are they accessible to all staff? Have they been updated lately?
Do you have procedures to turn theory into a reality?
Cultural change
Do senior level management support flexible work practices? How many senior managers work flexibly? Do senior level management have knowledge or experience with flexible work practices? Is flexibility only being offered to parents?
Regular training and workshops
Managers are continually named and shamed as the roadblocks to flexibility – help them. Look at the trends within your organisation. Do some teams seem to have more flexible workers than others? Why?
How many managers have training in how to manage a flexible workforce? Probably none.
How do you design flexible roles? How do you assess if a flexible role will work or not?
Ramping up technology
Simply having access to email and the intranet isn’t enough. Technology now needs to consider 2 things:
1. Maintaining productivity of workers in and out of the office
2. Connecting team members when they are not in the office together.
Recruitment strategies and channels
As the skill shortens worsens with an ageing population, where do you look? What will recruitment strategies look like? Be open to hiring flexible workers. Look at other channels.
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