You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles
Making maternity leave work for everyone
Sonya Holmes explains how a standardised approach to ‘keeping in touch’ days can help women on maternity leave as well as their employers
The birth of your first child can change your outlook on most things. It had an even bigger impact on my professional life than I’d anticipated, as head of HR at Fortem.
Before taking a year’s maternity leave, between August 2017 and August 2018, I was in charge of overseeing Fortem’s maternity policies.
Having now experienced these policies for myself, I have returned to work with a new perspective on them.
Here’s a summary of the important things I learned about my work during the year I spent away from it.
Just five months before my baby was due, I was promoted to my current role. Throughout those months, I worked closely with Mick Williamson, managing director of Fortem, putting everything in place for the year I’d be off, and preparing for my return.
This time spent planning for my maternity leave was invaluable.
“As a result of having been on maternity leave, I am now far more aware of how it feels to be away from a team and a business”
We covered everything we needed to organise before I left, and set objectives, which we’d be able to use to measure progress when I got back to work. As we hoped, this did indeed help me to assess what had changed over the previous 12 months, and to understand where I needed to focus my attention.
As a result of having been on maternity leave, I am now far more aware of how it feels to be away from a team and a business.
Fortunately, all of the preparation we’d done beforehand meant I managed to transition easily back to work. I felt confident about returning, as I had a clear idea of what I’d be going back to.
One thing I hadn’t fully appreciated until I was away was how long a year out feels when you’re not at work. Although an awful lot can happen in a business during 12 months, the time tends to fly by. I now know just how important it is for women to be able to remain connected to our organisation while they’re on maternity leave.
Although Fortem’s maternity policies are strong – for example, we offer enhanced maternity pay (three months full pay and three months half pay) – I think there’s more we can do to standardise our approach to keeping in touch.
I used all 10 of my ‘keeping in touch’ (KIT) days and found them very helpful; however, as is the case in many organisations, individuals’ experience of KIT days can differ significantly, and my thoughts turned to how we can offer better return-to-work experiences.
I’m now working on guidance for all managers within Fortem’s business, which will help the organisation to take a standardised approach to KIT days, and to ensure they are useful for everybody involved.
This means employees on maternity leave will not be called in simply to attend certain meetings immediately ahead of their return, but will also be offered training opportunities, experience within changed areas of the business, and bespoke quarterly business update meetings, as well as being able to spend productive time with their team and clients.
“Employees on maternity leave will not be called in simply to attend certain meetings immediately ahead of their return”
This standardisation would lead to our employees feeling more confident about where they will stand during maternity leave, and having a better idea of what they will be coming back to.
Crucially, however, individuals must also feel that they are in control of this process – they are not obligated to re-engage after three, six or nine months away, or to take their optional KIT days after a certain amount of time.
Although I’d always been very connected to Fortem’s business, my colleagues, including Fortem’s leadership team, appreciated I needed space to focus on my new baby. All of our employees on maternity leave need to know there is no rush for them to get back in the loop – they can be involved where they want to be.
“Individuals must also feel that they are in control of this process”
Fortem won Employer of the Year at last year’s Women in Housing Awards. We have fantastic female talent within the business, and the more we can do to ensure that individuals are able to engage and stay connected to work, while also respecting their time with their new additions, the more likely we are to meet their aspirations and expectations, and retain them over the long term.
I was able to strike the balance that was right for me during maternity leave, and that helped me to return to work fully committed – and even more determined to ensure that every mother who works for Fortem is able to say the same.
Sonya Holmes, head of HR, Fortem
