2017-Nov-16
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Starting a Family? We’re Making Your Journey Go Smoother
Starting a family is an adventure—and some adventures are more dramatic than others. For Cisco’s Rhiannon Spear, the experience of pregnancy was extremely challenging. She struggled to focus and lead her global team during a time of transition. Sickness was her constant companion during the first trimester.
“Those nine months were the worst time of my life, physically and emotionally,” she says.
Given her workload, Rhiannon was nervous about telling her manager that she was pregnant. How would it reflect on her commitment to work? How would others cover for her while she was off? But when Rhiannon finally plucked up the courage to share the news, her manager took it well. Instead of focusing on the work impact, she congratulated Rhiannon on becoming a parent. Before Rhiannon started maternity leave, her manager spent two hours with her discussing work and non-work matters.
“My manager was crazy busy but she still saw this as important,” Rhiannon recalls. “It meant a lot to me.”
During the meeting, compelled by guilt, Rhiannon said she’d be back at work after six months. But her manager urged her to put such timelines out of mind—to instead take the maximum time allowed and to see how she felt after that. Her manager also asked what level of contact Rhiannon wanted during her leave.
After having her daughter Eloise, Rhiannon’s boss sent her flowers and a card on behalf of the team to celebrate the new arrival. Rhiannon ended up taking a full year off. During that time, her manager stayed true to the level of contact and discretion she had wanted. When Rhiannon returned to work, a lot had changed. She now had a new role and a new manager, but he’d made a point of reaching out to her and putting her at ease. Best of all, Rhiannon worked a three-day week—making life easier for her family.
“The management team made it very clear that the job was designed as a three-day job—not a full-time job crammed into three days,” Rhiannon says.
Becoming a Parent
Stories like Rhiannon’s underscore the need for flexibility and support from your leaders and team as you create your family. Starting in November, we offer both. Cisco has introduced a new Becoming a Parent program that expands the minimum time that U.S. employees can take off. We’ll roll out the program in phases to the rest of the world subsequently.
We’re also replacing traditional maternity and paternity roles with main caregiver and supporting caregiver. You’re a main caregiver if you spend the majority of your time caring for your new child during those early days of bonding. Or you’re a supporting caregiver, being there when your family needs it most. These roles are open to any gender. And we’re giving three days off to grandparents so they can bond with a grandchild.
Advice to Others
Rhiannon’s advice to leaders in situations like hers? She says managers shouldn’t make assumptions. Rather, they should listen carefully to understand what support the employee is asking for, and treat each person as an individual. And employees in turn should be open and honest with their leader.
“The more your manager knows, the more they’re able to help you,” Rhiannon says.
Today, Rhiannon works four days a week and still needs some of that flexibility from her manager. Her daughter has trouble sleeping and gets emotional when left at nursery school. If Rhiannon needs to leave work early, she’ll log on again at home to finish her work.
“I’m happy to go above and beyond because I feel I’ve been very supported—and am still supported,” Rhiannon says. “It goes back to Our People Deal.”
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