I recently shared a post on LinkedIn about whether maternity leave cover should be retained to provide a handover period upon return. This sparked a lively conversation with varying points of view. One such conversation was with Louise, who shared her positive return-to-work experience with me. Our discussion highlighted best practices in trust, flexibility, and empathy, which she has very kindly given me permission to share here.
Below are excerpts from e-mails we exchanged and subsequent conversation. Thank you Louise!
Name: Louise McDonald, Head of Organisation Development at Manchester & Trafford Local Care Organisations.
Line Manager Support
Louise shared how instrumental her manager’s support was:
“With regards to the support from my manager, he’s been brilliant. He was genuinely delighted for me when I told him I was pregnant. He trusts me implicitly and I have complete autonomy. He’s given me time and space to focus on work and to transition back in. Although we didn’t have specific return to work check in’s, we speak regularly so it didn’t feel necessary. If I’ve ever needed to chat about something I’ve been able to.”
Key Takeaways
Trust: Trust fosters loyalty and builds healthy, open relationships. Showing trust in your team members is essential.
Communication: Regular check-ins are crucial. Schedule times to discuss expectations and support needs if you don’t naturally have touch points in your week.
Flexibility
Louise’s experience with flexible working arrangements was equally positive:
“I’ve been able to decide on a day-to-day basis whether I work at home or go into the office. I can change plans to work from home if I need to e.g after a bad night. If I’ve needed to go and get my daughter from nursery during the day, likewise I don’t need permission. This support for working flexibly as also been needed as I experienced a post-partum related significant flare of a long-term condition. Knowing that I’m empowered and trusted to decide where I work and how I manage my work has been invaluable for my health and wellbeing.
When planning my return, I arranged to come back 4 days a week. At some point before I came back I suggested increasing it to 4.5 days, compressed to 4. My manager, very sensibly, suggested that I should wait until I’d come back, see how I was managing and then increase my hours if I decided to. I’m so grateful that he said that! The thought of doing longer days, reducing the time with my daughter, fills me with dread!”
Louise’s advice for managers who deny flexible working requests is thought-provoking:
"They might not have experienced the need for flexibility themselves, or have no control over the outcome. Ask, ‘What’s stopping you from adding this flexibility?’"
Key Takeaways
Trust: Trusting employees to manage their schedules while maintaining regular communication is vital.
Flexible Working: Genuinely consider flexible working requests. Understand the significant impact flexibility has on employees and be open to trialling suggestions.
Handover with Maternity Cover
Louise had a seamless transition back to work thanks to a well-planned handover period:
“I took 12 months maternity leave and was very fortunate that the person covering my position was able to stay on for a while, so we could have a transition period of 6 weeks together. Without doubt having her around for that length of time was instrumental in making my transition easier. There wasn’t anything I couldn’t find out about through her and it meant that she could continue some of the work she’d started whilst I’d been off, giving me time to focus on getting back into the swing of things. Seeking to retain her support for a further 6 months was my decision and I was also involved in the decision that she’d be in post when I returned.”
Key Takeaways
Involvement in Decisions: Including the maternity returner in decision-making shows they are valued.
Transition Period: In high-pressure roles, a transition period where both the returner and cover work together can lessen workloads and ease the returner back into their role.
Closing thoughts
As you can see, Louise's experience exemplifies best practices for supporting maternity returners. Her involvement in decisions, the empathetic and understanding management, and the trust and autonomy she received are ideal but not always easy to implement. While the type of role Louise has may afford her more autonomy, consider how you can make small shifts in your organisation to build a culture of trust and genuine care.
I asked Louise for her advice to those returning from maternity leave. She said:
"Find a way to have a really honest conversation with your line manager. Identify what you need and ask them what they need from you in return."
If you’d like to find out more about the coaching programmes that we offer, please get in touch for an introductory conversation.
Comments