How to Empower Parents So They Stay | Best Practice by Accenture
Retaining talented employees who cannot see a way to balance family life and career is a very well-known challenge in Switzerland. We took on this challenge in a cross-country initiative for Austria, Switzerland and Germany (ASG) and launched the Working Parents’ Network, where we actively encourage an open exchange between working parents at Accenture and leadership to develop ways to successfully reconcile family life and career. The network has expanded from 230 members in March 2020 to over 900 as of June 2021 and has a split of 70% female and 30% male members.
This best practice was first published in the Gender Intelligence Report 2021.
The ASG Working Parents’ Network addresses fathers and mothers and everyone who thinks about being a parent in the future. The network is a source of information about the possibilities as a working parent within Accenture. Furthermore, it fosters experience exchange via regional and virtual events. It also provides a communication and collaboration platform. Together the network members handle topics like managing projects or ongoing work assignments, part-time efficiency or working locally vs. virtually. Parents can share individual and similar challenges they experience. The members have easy access to Accenture’s services for parents and receive support through role models within the company who are both successful parents and growing their careers at Accenture at the same time.
Strategy & Consulting Manager and Lead for Working Parents’ Network at Accenture, Switzerland
One of the core offerings at Accenture is the Working Parents Buddy Program. It is designed for all (future) working parents and offers an opportunity to connect with and hear from senior Accenture leaders who have experience in balancing work and family responsibilities. What’s more, the Buddies offer direct support to find the right role within the company when an adjustment is needed, especially when getting back to work after the parental leave.
With the Working Parents Buddy Program, we can offer attractive benefits for our colleagues but also the company:
“The feedback from our colleagues is fantastic and the Working Parents Buddy Program enjoys great popularity as we can offer a glimpse behind the surface where colleagues can see and learn different models on how to handle work, life and family through common identification points.”
Jana Esmail, Lead for Working Parents’ Network
Every family situation and the respective needs are different. To support our colleagues in multiple life and caring situations, Accenture covers the consulting and agency fee from an external provider to search for a day-care at short notice or guidance in parent-related topics. This ranges from professional care takers or institutions to look after their children, but also supports the finding process of the right nanny or an au-pair.
Accenture offers all employees the ability to organize their working and private time in a way that best suits their individual situation. This includes the possibility to change to part-time and flexible arrangements, part- time sabbaticals, unpaid leave but also the possibility to buy additional holidays – up to 40 days – if needed. This can all be implemented with the newly introduced contract tool, where employees can independently modify the level of percentage from 100% to 40% and adjust their work contract accordingly to their life situation. On top of that, Accenture goes the extra mile and provides new parents with more days for their newborn and extends the maternity leave by up to 16 weeks but also the paternity leave up to 20 days, which is double the amount of days proposed by law.
Our workforce in Switzerland consists of over 400 parents of children aged between newborn and 18 years. To enliven the cross-company exchange, the Swiss team organizes local get-togethers. The quarterly breakfast is a serial winner among the network participants as new joiners are introduced and able to make fast connections. The next highlight is a baby & children first aid course for the network during which, parents will be instructed on how to handle critical situations such choking, treating burns and much more. Roughly 150 colleagues have signed up for this event already.
Working parents are not a new phenomenon and over the past years, we have learnt that we can only win together and encounter the changes per life phase by leading an open dialogue with role models to prove the compatibility of family and work. A particular success factor is leadership awareness and role models in leadership positions who have been in the same situation and are even able to set an example for our male colleagues to take parental leave.
To achieve the necessary cultural and mindset shift and to engage employees at all levels takes time and requires a proof of concept, but the payoff is worth it: a happier workplace and thriving working parents.
We would be happy to share more on our Working Parents’ Network. Please contact Jana Esmail at jana.esmail@accenture.com.
This Best Practice was first published in the Gender Intelligence Report 2021.
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