I remember it really well: a summer’s day in 2015. The sunlight was streaming in through my kitchen window. I was sitting at my kitchen table, cup of tea in hand, pondering if and when I’d be able to return to work. In theory, this was becoming an ever-more-realistic possibility – after all, my youngest child was due to start school in the September. I’d have lots of time on my hands, surely? The difficulty was that I had no confidence after a 3 year career break. Who’d employ me? More to the point, I had absolutely no idea where to start looking or what I wanted to do. All I knew was that I wanted to resume my career but on a part-time basis and that my children (then 4 and 6) had to come first.
This is the part of my story that might make you raise your eyebrows a bit; it seems almost too good to be true. As if someone had read my mind, my phone pinged. Astonishingly, it wasn’t a message from the local playgroup organizer, or a Mumsnet alert, or my supermarket delivery. On the contrary; it was exactly what I needed at that point. It was a LinkedIn message from my old employer…
I’d assumed that I was the only one in my position. The only one to feel this nervous about the next step I needed to take. It turns out that not only was I wrong, but that my former company had had the foresight to think about this. They’d put together a pilot ‘Return to Work programme’, and they were reaching out to see if I might be interested in taking part. The programme was designed to help senior level women who’d been out of the workforce return to work. And they weren’t just paying lip service to the idea - they’d really thought hard about it. The programme was a 12-week paid ‘internship’ which would flex around term time and part time requirements with a view to participants securing a permanent or contract role at the end of the scheme. We’d even be given tailored support and coaching to help us readjust to world of work.
I literally nearly fell off my chair, but having recovered, I contacted the company to register my interest and found myself quickly immersed in the recruitment process. The company had thought of everything – that we might need help with our CVs (mine was really out of date and still had marital status, gender and date of birth on it!), help with interview preparation and support during the application process. I was both grateful and relieved - after all, it had been over 10 years since I’d had an interview… I was lucky enough to have the choice of 2 roles on the 12 week programme and joined the company in September 2015, working 4 days a week, term-time.
Once I and my fellow pilot returners joined we were given immense amounts of support to help us to settle in - from a mentor/buddy, through to regular coaching sessions with our cohort to help build our confidence and address any issues we were having returning to work. I learnt so much during the programme, particularly about my own resourcefulness and resilience. Once the programme ended, I secured a permanent, part-time role, where I stayed for over 4 years. My motto became ‘to do anything thrown at me to the best of my ability’. It’s served me well in all my subsequent career moves!
Everyone’s journey back to the workplace will be slightly different, and I appreciate that I was very lucky to be in the right place at the right time. Not everyone will get to participate in a returner programme – in some industries, you’ll have to go out there and actively hunt down your next role. The good news is that 9-2-3 will be delighted to help! That said, I think there are some general life lessons I gained from my whole return to work experience, which’d apply equally to everyone, whether you’re returning to sales or scientific research:
Believe in yourself – you had a great career before your career break and you have many transferable skills to bring to your new role.
Don’t limit yourself – you can return to work and juggle family and your career, there are so many companies out there now who just ‘get’ how important your work/life balance/blend is!
Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone – this is how we grow and we often surprise ourselves with what we can do. I ended up organising and running a conference in Berlin which I’d never done before!
Be clear about your boundaries – I was clear from the outset that I would commute to London once or twice a week but no more.
Don’t undersell yourself on salary.
If you are in any doubt – go for it! If it doesn’t work out the worst that can happen is that you now have a role on your CV after your career break which can be your stepping stone to your next dream role!
If you’re a returner seeking your next role please contact me Charlotte@923jobs.com or my colleagues Helen@923jobs.com or Milly@923jobs.com. We’d love to help you!