Arranging for Maternity Absence as a Supervisor

A generation or so ago it was traditional for the husband within a marriage to have a career and for the wife to raise the children at home. While this arrangement may have worked well back then, life is very different these days and both members in the relationship usually have busy careers to consider when planning a family.

The prospect of balancing career obligations with child rearing can be very daunting, but especially so if you are in charge of the business. As the boss, you have an additional amount of responsibility and you're the one who makes all the major decisions. It may be tough to imagine how the business can get by without you around, so what's going to happen when you're required to take several months absence on maternity leave?

As the person in charge, your main responsibilities have to be addressed far before your absence, and you'll need to constantly look for ways to manage your time more effectively in the meantime. Time management, as we know, is critical as a business leader and you will now find that you have two babies to watch – your newborn and your business interest!

By formulating a plan on how you'll efficiently manage your priorities, you can set up ideal strategies, goals and rules that will help you perform to the highest of standards at work, and when you're at home, enjoy your time fully.

Ponder on what additional support you're going to need both as a Managing Director and as a mother once your newborn has arrived and you have to go back to work. For instance, what contingency plans can you set up in case your baby becomes sick and a doctor imposes a short period of isolation? Or if you have a nanny, what will you do if (or when) she suddenly becomes ill, goes on holiday or quits? This is something that they don't teach at ante-natal classes, but it pays to explore back up plans before it happens!

Many senior managers and CEOs make use of professional coaching to help them plan a smooth transition leading up to, during and beyond maternity leave.

In senior positions coaching for women is now commonplace and it's certainly a sound investment in your work life integration as well as your business! You may well be used to working with consultants in other areas of the business to help you run your operation efficiently, so why not consider online life coaching as well?

Communication with all stakeholders is paramount – colleagues, employees and most importantly customers. If you inform customers of your forthcoming absence and let them know how you intend to cover for this to ensure a seamless service to them, you will grow their loyalty. Now is certainly the time to nurture the relationships with your existing client base rather than developing new ones, as you will not be able to closely oversee the delicate process of rapport building new clients.

As a leader, you are probably well aware of the importance of delegation. However, if this has not been your forte, now is the time to build up your delegation muscle! As you get closer towards your maternity leave, increase the delegation and make sure that you are training your "number two" in as many areas as you can safely hand over.

In short, your four essential success criteria for planning a smooth transition to your maternity leave are:

1. Seek Support

2. Plan

3. Communicate

4. Delegate

Once you've done what you can to prepare for your absence, relax and enjoy your new "promotion" to motherhood!

Amanda Alexander is the Founder and Inspiration behind Coaching Mums. She’s a distinguished ICF accredited coach, who for almost seven years now, has been bringing a new feeling of hope into the lives of working moms from around the world, showing them how to discard their guilt, rediscover their passions and to have a lot more fun! For amazing articles and truly effective professional coaching tips, sign up to get "Inspire" right away, our absolutely outstanding free newsletter!