Power of the Parent 3: S6 Ep3: Parental Leave Transition Coaching

Something that has become synonymous with supporting parents in the workplace is parental leave transition coaching. And for good reason – it can be an incredible investment in your valued team members who are blending parenthood with a career, that not only supports them personally but can transform their experiences in the workplace. Ultimately, paying dividends to you as an employer in engagement, a sense of belonging and feeling valued.The 3 things we’re focusing on in the episode are:

  1. How are you positioning the coaching?
  2. Building a coaching directory
  3. Clarity on who is doing what
Some of these are steeped in assumptions, and they’re often reserved for a tactical conversation. However, the answers need to feed into your longer term strategy and considerations – so even if they’re things that have been probed before, there’s no time like the present to look again with a fresh pair of eyes.Please do rate, review and subscribe if you find this podcast useful – it helps people find it and ultimately get the calls to action out in the world. It makes Charlotte feel great too. 😆

For further info on Power of the Parent you can head to our website http://www.power-of-the-parent.com or connect to the founder, Charlotte Speak on LinkedIn.

Episode Transcript

Hello and welcome to Power of the Parent, the podcast. This series is a new format and we are going to be focusing on a different topic each week, bringing you three things you need to know about whatever that may be, mainly from an employer perspective. But of course, there’s plenty of reframing that parents could do to benefit from the content as well.

We will be covering everything from parental leave transitions, managing boundaries, what to do when your talent pipeline looks a bit dodgy, tips on gathering feedback, and things like establishing parental support networks.  So let’s dive in.

Today we are going to be talking about three things you need to know about parental leave transition coaching. Now you might be familiar with conversations in the space of returner coaching. It is fairly well talked about and often covered a lot on platforms like LinkedIn, even if your organisation doesn’t offer it.

Or perhaps you already use coaching in your organisation, but you found yourself listening in today because you want to really kind of Belt and braces, make sure you’re maximising the potential it has. In the episode, I want to take you back a step and get you reflecting on coaching as part of your parental support strategy.

And whilst I’m no fan of overcomplicating  things, simply thinking we should offer coaching isn’t where the best laid plans come from, to be honest. So let’s dive in. The three things that I’m going to be talking about are number one, how are you positioning the coaching  two, building a coaching directory and three clarity on who is doing what? 

So number one, how are you positioning the coaching? This is a first decision point that you’re going to have to consciously make because it has repercussions on everything from your budget to your comms. And I’ll be honest, it’s not always a conscious decision that I see people or organisations kind of facing into. 

So are you offering coaching as standard or by request could be a really great entry point into this conversation. You could think of it as an opt in versus an opt out situation because it’s both a strategic and tactical decision that you’ll need to make. So here are some questions to consider to help you shape those plans.

So first of all, who gets access to the coaching? For example, is it everybody who goes through some form of parental leave or perhaps it’s particular types of parental leave that they, that have access to it?  Secondly, what alternatives could you offer if it isn’t offered to everyone, but someone still feels they could benefit from parental coaching support can you provide something, you know, some sort of alternative, maybe like an internal mentor or a buddy fits the bill better  in certain circumstances. And thirdly, on this part, how can you make it easy for someone to access the coaching. So does it become part of a line manager checklist, for example, or think about where you talk about the coaching.

Is it within policy documents? It’s not unusual for a client to share a worry about the connotations of accessing coaching. Does it mean I’m struggling? Does it reflect badly on my line manager and a heap more other things that I’ve had shared with me over the last six years.

Number two, building a coaching directory. So there are going to be a few different ways to set up a relationship with an external coach, and I’m going to bring two such ways to life. So some employers will build a coaching directory, a smorgasbord of trained and insured experts who will bring their own unique approaches, qualifications, and specialisms. 

They will often be individuals or perhaps a boutique coaching practice. Another alternative would be to partner with a larger coaching company who could be the sole provider for all your coaching needs. The coaches still need to have other things like insurance and qualifications because the coaching company representing them will insist on it. 

Now I’ve worked both ways and there are pros and cons to both, which I’m not going to debate right now. But what I do want to draw your attention to is when you’re figuring out ways of working with whoever  you partner with is on a chemistry call.  Most coaches will offer them, they might call them different things, but ultimately they are about making sure the coach feels able to help the potential client and the potential client gets an initial reaction about wanting to work with the coach, and they may even start to look at ways of working or outlining some goals, whatever way you provide access to coaching, I would be insisting on chemistry calls.

And number three, clarity on who is doing what.  Even when an employer is paying the coaching bill, the client remains the person being coached. And sometimes that can feel tricky from all perspectives for a variety of reasons.

To head that off, some things to consider outlining or discussing are a coach is not a mediator between a coachee and a line manager or employer. They would only break confidentiality if there was a threat to life or an intent to harm, or someone had done something illegal. So a coach won’t go and have a conversation on the behalf of a coachee or indeed their employer. 

In some instances, it might be helpful to have an initial three way conversation, then agree how a line manager might be kept updated, if it’s appropriate. But it’s really specific to situations in my experience and usually dependent on the purpose of the coaching so there’s no one size fits all approach. 

And finally, a coach doesn’t replace a line manager. I’m saying this with my chest, particularly for those who use a coach for parental leave support.  A line manager still needs to be doing their thing along with HR support if required. And yes, I am speaking from challenging experiences. 

That’s all for this episode. I’ll be back soon with three things you need to know about burnout in parents.

Thank you so much for joining me for another episode of Power of the Parent with podcast. If you have got a few spare minutes, who am I kidding? Of course you haven’t got a few spare minutes, but if you would like to choose to spend a few of your minutes  giving me any sort of review or rating, I would massively appreciate it.

It does help other people find it. And it also lets me know that I’m hitting the spot with listeners. For more free resources, you can head to the show  where you’ll find a link to the Power of the Parent website. Or do head on over to LinkedIn and give me a follow. Search Charlotte Speak and my grinning face should pop up.

Until next time, take care.