Sarah Skelton’s Post

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Lower-income working mothers exhibit a similar desire for career progression as their middle- and high-income counterparts, a recent study conducted over the summer by the University of Phoenix and parenting platform Motherly found. However, barriers to career development leave them feeling disenchanted; 55% called their current role “just a job, not my career,” 65% said having a career “sounds like a luxury,” and 64% said while they would like to pursue a career, it feels “out of reach.” (Emilie Shumway) #humanresources #hr #career #careergrowth #careerprogression

Knowing the nitty, gritty details of what lights you up and feels purposeful vs. what drains and feels stifling is more that just fluff. It’s imperative when it comes to making future decisions that align with the reality of your situation and what makes you feel alive. “Even amid the Great Resignation, 43% of those who left their jobs during the pandemic later acknowledged that they were better off in their former roles, with one in five individuals returning to their previous employment. Additionally, 41% express a willingness to consider returning if the opportunity arises.” — Christine Michel Carter’s article in Forbes Wow. Do these stats surprise you? If you need a way to start learning about what sparks you, you can take the free Sparketype[.]com personality test and find out which of the 10 archetypes sparks you! Want to go deeper? I offer 1:1 clarity sessions, plus team-building workshops for you and coworkers to connect and learn about yourself and each other! #sparketype #certifiedsparketypeadvisor #1on1sessions #teambuilding #interactiveworkshops

Did you know that most lower-income working moms describe a career as ‘out-of-reach luxury?’ While lower-income moms showed a similar desire to excel as their middle- and high-income peers, a multitude of factors hold them back, a University of Phoenix study found. Thanks for sharing Emilie Shumway is an editor for HR Dive. #women #moms #lowincome #career #finances #workforce

Leaders - curious how you can support your talented working mothers more effectively? Talk to them. → Open the door for them to feel comfortable talking about their responsibilities outside of work. Invest in them.  → Understand what their career goals are and offer guidance on how they can achieve them. Help them prioritize better. → Working moms are best at doing things that actually move the company forward because they know their time is well spent. Help them figure out what the needle-moving projects, initiatives, and tasks are so they can make a deep impact. Don’t make assumptions. → Just because they have a lot of responsibilities at home doesn’t mean they don’t want to have visibility at work. Offer them high-stakes initiatives if they’ve proven their value and deserve it. We need to focus on retaining our working mothers rather than giving them reasons to want to leave the workplace altogether. And one of the fastest ways to have a mom leave the workplace is if they don’t feel valued or supported by their manager/employer. These are all things that are in a leader’s control and can be easily added to an already existing weekly 1:1. The goal isn't just to accommodate working mothers—it's to ensure they are as integral and influential to your success as any other member of your team ✌🏼

I am writing to share my journey when I embarked on the path to rejoin the corporate world after a long period of career break. I had a taken a break after my second child to provide better support to my two children which was required during Covid times. When I started looking for a job again, I realized it is not easy to re-enter the corporate world after a break. Inspite of so many companies claiming to run back to work programs, there are hardly any opportunities for mid to senior level employees and that too in support functions. Most of the programs are for employees with technical backgrounds and hence, were not relevant for me. Although getting a job was tough, there are many hurdles after starting a job which are physical, mental and emotional. The turmoil that I still face is- 1.   Impact on Career. Since coming back to work after a long break, I had to make compromises with my career and join at a salary and level which was lower than what I was at earlier. 2.   Managing both work and personal life. With 5 days a week work from office, its problematic for managing both children and work, especially when kids are young and both the parents are working. Part of me is ready and a little excited about going back as I like my job and co-workers. The other part of me has really loved this 24/7 time with my kids. 3.   Working Mom Guilt - It’s endless and taxing. Some moms feel guilty for not being with their children while others feel as though they aren’t giving work, their all. And many fluctuate between both. For every mom that wants to scale back their responsibilities, there is another mom who is ready to take on more. Managing the nuances of returning to work, while managing personal life is a heroic feat. Even I am on a see saw most of the times; being happy for going back to work but also worried about my kids at home and not being able to give them enough time now. Though women are perfectly equipped to handle the challenges, having the support of employers is not only encouraging, but also critical. Companies that commit to supporting back to work employees must ensure that they whole heartedly run the back to work programs where essence should be to be reinclude women who have a high calibre back into workforce. But practically many a times women end up with a disadvantageous deal where they are offered job roles and salaries which are much lower than what they were getting before the break. There are forums giving women the space to tell their stories and collectively learn from and grow with one another. The question is, are employers and managers are listening too?How we as professionals especially in HR teams can better manage this situation also keeping in view so many women who have resigned in the wake of Work from Office being followed now and they will look at joining back the workforce at some point of time…….  Please pour in your ideas and suggestions.. #diversityequityandinclusion #workingmom #backtotheoffice  

Did you know that most lower-income working moms describe a career as ‘out-of-reach luxury?’ While lower-income moms showed a similar desire to excel as their middle- and high-income peers, a multitude of factors hold them back, a University of Phoenix study found. Thanks for sharing Emilie Shumway is an editor for HR Dive. #women #moms #lowincome #career #finances #workforce

Sunday was Mother’s Day in the UK and spending the day with my sons had me thinking over my life choices leading to this moment. Getting to work with JLR last year was one of the best things to happen to me since I moved to the UK. But because life happens, what was supposed to be a temporary commute for about five months has turned into a costly year long commute. The cost to me is, having to spend more hours of the day away from my kids than I have with them in their waking hours for many week days. And this is even with hybrid working and a supportive and easily approachable manager. I have missed out on the opportunity to be at most of their school activities and to do regular school mom things. The MOM GUILT is so strong. But this is not a ‘woe is me’ post. I recently reached out to my manager, Neil Corfield detailing how I’d like to restructure my working hours (so that I get to see my boys awake on my days of commute). This was his response and I hope he doesn’t mind me sharing. 😊 “A lot of thought gone into this although unnecessary!! Just do what suits you. I trust you to manage your workload accordingly. Important to manage your work/life balance.” 🥹 Having a manager like this makes the 2 hour commute more bearable and makes me more committed to #JLR. On Friday, the school was having a Mother’s Day crafts session between 12.30 and 1.30 so my plan was to pop in during my lunch break and be back by 1 for a meeting. I mentioned it in our catch up call and the team said ABSOLUTELY NOT, stay until the end, we’ve got you. 🥹 It means the world to me that my team saw me and supported me when I was trying to be both a mom and a manager at the expense of the more important life experience. Culture included, there are some things that make working at a company more attractive to a mother/ woman. When we get some of these right, we will be able to attract more women to the automotive industry and feed the pipeline to have more women in senior leadership positions (a huge gap currently, esp. for women of colour). Will share more on this when I round up my #IWD activities. cc. Judith Richardson Dave Williams Michelle Harman Luke Westwood Julie Rahman Anyway, thanks to my manager and my team, these were my Mother’s Day cards and gift this year. And what it has done is remind me to keep close what means the most. For all the unseen struggles, #HappyMothersDay and Happy #InternationalWomensDay . #WorkingParent #AutomotiveCouncil #WomeninAutomotive #WomeninLeadership #InclusiveLeadership #InspireInclusion

What mom really wants and what she is getting from her employer can be completely different things. Moms, the superheroes of the world, deserve more than just the bare minimum. The working moms in your organization yearn for workplaces that embrace our multifaceted identities and value our unique perspectives. They crave an environment that acknowledges and respects the realities of raising a family while pursuing professional goals. It's not about asking for the moon; it's about creating a workplace culture that empowers them to shine. But the truth is, many moms still find themselves falling short of what they truly desire. The support, flexibility, and understanding we need might be elusive in some work environments. This dichotomy between what women want and what they're actually getting can lead to frustration, burnout, and an unfortunate loss of talent. And hey, that's not good for anyone. So come join the movement and let LUMO help you create a new standard of workplace culture that prioritizes both personal and professional fulfillment. Together, we can create a world where what moms desire and what they actually receive are perfectly aligned, leading to a happy and successful workforce. 🎨: @Alyssa Klein (@DJ_Diabeatic) #LUMO #workingparents #movement

It was an honor to contribute to Alana Semuels’ article for Time on job sharing — an innovative, yet underutilized DEIB tool for workplaces. Job sharing truly can be done in nearly any job and industry and while it seems complicated, is simple in practice with sustainable embedded training and practices. At a time when women are feeling more stress than they did in 2022, savvy employers can not only retain, but recruit women while enabling them to advance into senior levels. Although primary caregivers and the disabled community may benefit the most, job sharing is for everyone, and the reason for job sharing should be agnostic. Companies like Ford Motor Company harnessing the practice they’ve benefitted from for years with internal tools to leverage the productivity, retention, and results on a larger level is very encouraging. #FutureOfWork #Jobsharing #Jobshare #FlexibleWorking #WorkLifeBalance #DEIB #retention #inclusion Kelsey Sevening Jina Hwang, Ph.D. Sophie Smallwood 🚀 Irenka Krone-Germann