So, how was returning to work in a global pandemic after a year off?

I recently wrote an article about my maternity leave which ended by saying I would write about what it’s been like returning to work “in the next few weeks”. That was nearly three months ago and the time it has taken to write this shows what a whirlwind it has been coming back to work. Here are a few of my reflections and some asks I have of everyone who manages others returning to work after time off for any reason, not just maternity.

COVID-19

This pandemic obviously has far reaching consequences and a devastating effect on those who have lost loved ones to the disease or lost jobs leading to financial uncertainty. Rather trivially in comparison, when it came to my return to work my main concern was whether I could cope with full time working from home and if I could fully integrate back into our business remotely. I was genuinely concerned about whether I could be productive and keep myself motivated whilst not seeing people. Turns out it’s not that bad and having everyone working from home has been a great leveller and remover of perceived hierarchy; everyone is juggling work and home life, lots of people have kids pop up in their work calls and nobody is immune to talking whilst on mute! Long may the ability to make connections on such a personal level continue.

COVID-19 has also impacted our clients in very different ways. Some clients are thriving, others were completely closed for months. Some needed increased support for dramatic change in their business, others needed our flexibility to pause projects. Returning to work during this pandemic has heightened my awareness of the importance of client focus to long term business success and I have personally focused hard on spending as much time as possible supporting our clients since my return.

Purpose

Understanding purpose has become increasingly important to me. If I’m going to spend more hours at work than with my family, it needs to be for a good reason. I’ve found myself more engaged with work that has a social benefit, increasing my involvement in promoting diversity (we’ve got 9 nominations for the upcoming TechWomen100 Awards!) and thinking more about the contributions I want to be known for. I’ve also found it easier to say no or question why when an activity doesn’t align to an outcome – as a serial people pleaser (and still someone who wants to be well thought of), this has been very helpful in the juggling act of returning to work. Being able to articulate priorities, what I can achieve, the impact of picking up another task on other commitments and setting clear guidelines on the time needed for tasks has all helped.

Adaptability to change

After a year travelling in 2014, I returned to the same company in 2015 and it felt like very little had changed during that year – familiar faces, similar processes, similar challenges – though there were increasingly exciting customer engagements. Fast forward to 2020, and returning this time couldn’t be more different.

There are still familiar faces, but during my leave there has been a merger, a new global CEO and a lot of new processes. These changes have meant not only having to tackle the challenge of getting back into the swing of things working again, but also building rapport with new people and understanding changing expectations. I’m glad I used my Keep in Touch days towards the end of my leave, so all this change wasn’t a complete surprise on my return. Being adaptable and resilient to change has certainly been key since returning, and is a skill I improved during my maternity leave when change happened every day.

Managing a new work routine

I’ve returned to work on compressed hours, taking Fridays off to spend with my son and share childcare responsibilities with my husband after he’s done 4 days of full time childcare. Of course, our business doesn’t stop on a Friday, but so far I’ve been able to manage commitments and I’ve only joined one client meeting that was arranged before I came back from leave. I have caught up on email on a number of Fridays though.

No big deal, right? The thing is, despite having great support for my decision and new work routine, every time I decline a meeting or set my out of office on Thursday evening, I wonder about the impact this has on my career and people’s perception of me. Will people think I’m less committed? Is there frustration of having to plan around my availability? If I keep having to say “I don’t work on Fridays” until everyone knows my new schedule, am I self-sabotaging? Should I make more exceptions to work on Fridays?

I can’t control other people’s views, but I do know that my decision is nothing to do with being less committed, and that I have to be very strict with myself about what warrants making an ‘exception’. What I can control is my performance and the achievements I make that support the success of the business. I also need to find a way I’m comfortable with to tell people I’m not available, without it feeling like a big deal to me.

Balance

I’m extremely fortunate that my husband is looking after our son full-time. This means that I can fully focus on work without having to juggle nursery logistics, naps, sickness etc. My husband has also always been the chef/meal planner in our relationship – he enjoys cooking, and is exceptionally good at it; I am average at best. These two things mean I am not carrying the mental load for these things whilst working. I don’t think this is the case for most women returning to work after having a child, or indeed for most parents when both are at work and need to juggle childcare. I now understand that returning to work is hard enough after a long time off, let alone whilst trying to balance family responsibilities. I will focus on being more empathetic to others who are returning to work and managing this mental load all at the same time. 

Asks

Here are a few asks for anyone responsible for managing people returning to work:

·      Encourage people to use all of their KIT days if on parental leave. Using them nearer their return date will improve understanding of any changes and smooth the return to work

·      Put effort into celebrating their return and focus on the individual as if they were a new starter that you were looking to impress

·      Without prying, understand the commitments they have outside work and the balance they need to see at work – support them in achieving this balance wherever you can

·      If someone is returning on a different work schedule, ask how they would like to let people know – would they prefer a wide email to be sent out so people know when they will be available or to let people know themselves in one to one conversations?

·      Check in with them more frequently than other team members to start with. Ask how things are going. Check they have everything they need and how the workload is.

·      Get feedback on the process / experience of returning to work and build this is to any changes needed or improvements that could be made to support individuals and help them contribute to company success again as quickly as possible