Line Managers: Putting Family Friendly Policies into Practice

Many companies now embrace the need and business case for supporting working parents and carers with policies and practices from flexible working to practical help with care. But research and experience show a critical success factor is the capability of managers. A ‘good’ line manager can be decisive in how employees combine work and family and keep career on track. But the lot of the line manager is not an easy one. Managers face conflicts and challenges in delivering demanding business targets, managing diverse teams and implementing family friendly policies. With the right to request flexible working opening to all employees from 30th June and Shared Parental Leave in effect for babies due in April 2015, they have even more on their plates than ever before. Enabling managers to manage these people issues well is often overlooked in organisations. In the research and surveys that My Family Care has carried out over recent years, many employees cite that interpretation and application of policy vary widely (and unfairly) across organisations depending on individual managers’ personal circumstances and values, disposition, management style and understanding of the level of freedom they have to interpret policy. We’ll address: •Some of the common issues managers face •How organisations can get to grips with the needs of their managers •Options and solutions you can implement internally •Services, resources and solutions My Family Care provides