Culture | How to become a family-friendly employer

Being family-friendly in the new world of work means more than flexibility alone. The post-pandemic mindset and talent shortages mean people bring their whole selves to work more than ever.

The focus is on inclusion, equity and belonging, wellbeing, community and climate. Family is up there with these big themes.

Leading employers need to support their workforce with parent and carer-friendly solutions that help employees of all generations thrive. Employers who do this are better at keeping and attracting talent and gain commercial advantages. Having ways of working that suit all your employees includes removing obstacles and reducing stress for busy people, while helping them to perform and progress. It means supporting your people to deliver their work, and feel well, even as their life circumstances change and develop. For parents and carers, a big part of this is managing care and family life. With our post-pandemic awareness, family-friendly means understanding that for your working parents and carers, their wellbeing is directly linked with the wellbeing of their loved ones.

There are three key questions that employees are asking themselves as they revaluate their work and their employer: