When someone on your team is facing the life-changing event of receiving a child, you play an important role as manager. Your contributions in support, attention and planning matters greatly before the child arrives, while your report is on parental leave and when they are returning to work.

By dedicating yourself to open dialogue and careful planning you invest in a better experience for your report and ensure that they will return to work happy and motivated. This best practice is a list of how to’s to help you do exactly that.

Your objectives as a manager

💚 Show that you care Lots of ambitious people have mixed feelings about parental leave. Some feel that they are letting their employer down and worry what their manager thinks about them. By showing that you care for the person and their long-term impact at AutoUncle, you help defuse this.

• How can you express that you really care about supporting?
• Do you have experiences of your own that you can share?
• How can you help your report express any concerns they might have about taking leave?

📝 Reduce the sense of uncertainty with written plans Start conversations early, pay attention to details and make sure plans and agreements are put in writing.

• Who takes over your report’s responsibilities while they are away?
• What does the hand-over process look like before leaving and when resuming work?
• How can you give your report a sense of ownership of the process?

🧑‍🍳 Adapt to your report’s preferences There is no right or wrong way to be on parental leave so take initiative to talk about what kind of parental leave plan works best for your report.

• In which period(s) is it optimal to be on leave?
• What things (if any) would your report like to be informed about or involved in while away?

👌 Make sure practicalities are in order

People Operations and Finance are helpful partners in dealing with all the practicalities of leave, compensation etc. Get involved so that you know that things are in order.

Practical guideline