Creating a Great Experience for Your Whole Team
Leading a diverse team creates opportunities to learn from each other's experiences, consider a variety of viewpoints, and deliver more robust, creative solutions. Capturing these benefits requires more than a copy-paste leadership approach though. As a manager, you need to meet each person where they’re at to ensure they feel valued and heard.
Welcoming a team member back from maternity leave is no exception. Each person on your team will react a little differently depending on a variety of influences, including how much exposure they’ve had to newborns and the workload they’ve been managing during their colleague’s absence. Carefully assessing and addressing these dynamics will help ensure everyone has a great experience.
Let’s review some of the most common dynamics to watch for and tips on how to navigate them with your team.
Overloaded and ready to reset
One of the most common reactions you’ll see is relief that another set of hands is back to work. Those who’ve picked up extra workload during their colleague’s absence are likely anxious to hand it back to your returning team member. Resentment may start bubbling if the transition moves too slowly. In addition to explicitly thanking them for taking on the extra work, share exactly what they can expect over the coming weeks. A timeline or list of items you plan to shift back to the returned team member can help provide a clear path forward.
Baby talk is a no-go
Conversations involving birth or breastfeeding can be unsettling. For some, it can be seen as an inappropriate topic for the workplace – likened to discussing bowel movements or using sexual overtones. It’s also difficult to know if team members are experiencing infertility struggles or have related traumas in their past. Either way, it’s best to avoid openly discussing too many details in group settings.
Flexibility for one, jealousy for others
The flexibility you’ve provided for the new mom on your team may leave other team members feeling slighted. While you shouldn’t let the optics of unfairness deter you, it’s also important to proceed in a mindful way. When your team member needs to leave early to care for their little one, you can ask that she’s discreet when she exits. If her absence prompts questions, be honest with your team. Make it less about ‘fairness’ and more about balancing empathy for the new mom and respect for their feelings, too.
Fear of miss stepping
Today’s ‘cancel culture’ may have some team members afraid to say the wrong things to (or about) your returning team member – so they’re avoiding it altogether. While well intended, it can slowly erode trust and negatively impact team dynamics. The best path forward in these circumstances is education. Have an open and honest conversation with them to better understand their concerns and consider sending them to our What Not to Say post.
Not everyone on your team will fall neatly into one of these buckets. You might get the sense that someone is struggling with their colleague's return, but you can’t quite put your finger on why. As a manager, the most important thing you can do is be an active listener when they’re ready to share.
And don’t underestimate the power of empathy. Help your new mom out by educating her colleagues on the challenges working moms face – our Educate section has lots of insightful nuggets to share that are workplace appropriate.