Family friendly work places are good for employers and good for staff and for this reason, Davidsons takes an active role in understanding the needs of working parents to ensure their working experience is positive and enjoyable.
In creating a family friendly work place Davidsons have introduced a number of measures including -: • Providing flexible arrangements for parents returning to work after having a baby
• Introducing make-up time so that team members can make up hours if they need to leave early to care for children
• Offering flexible start and finish times
• Holding meetings within normal work hours
• Extending social events to families and partners
• Taking an active role in the career plans of working parents An essential part of developing a ‘family friendly’ work place has originated from the creation of the “Parents at Davidsons” forum. This forum is open to all members of the firm and consists of a range of team members from parents working on a part-time basis to parents working on a full time basis as well as team members who may be planning to have a family and are interested in learning how working parents of the firm cope with their work/life balance. The sessions are held on a bi-monthly basis and are an informal way for working parents and those team members interested in having a family raise and discuss issues facing working parents today. Some of the issues covered in past sessions include -: • Keeping a work/life balance
• Time Management
• Firm culture and perception of working parents
• Dealing with your partner
• Caring for children – school holiday and child care issues A key focus of these sessions is to provide opportunities for expecting parents and those team members considering having a family to develop a support network with working parents. The forum also provides a way for Davidsons as a firm to take an active role in understanding the issues facing working parents which is essential to ensure team members of the firm have a positive experience from working at Davidsons. |
