WOMEN are an essential part of the diversity mix in organisations. All too often, however, they become disenchanted with working life, and for many reasons, not least to do with family. Fortunately, organisations are beginning to understand the importance of keeping their female employees engaged in the workplace, and are doing so through a range of work-life practices and policies.

“We all know how difficult balancing a successful career with a gratifying home life can be. This can be particularly true for women with family commitments,” says Sue Acton, head of diversity at Barclays Bank. “Having children takes time; so does looking after them. Many women find themselves in the difficult position of being unable to do so without adversely affecting their careers. We believe that this is not only unfair, it is also bad business practice, affecting morale, motivation, product- ivity and retention levels.”

Barclays operates a number of work-life policies which benefit women. These include the company’s career break scheme which allows employees to take up to five years’ unpaid leave for any purpose. They can also take more than one break, as long as the total does not exceed five years.

Kay Nagendra is a civil engineer at Atkins, and in December 2004, when an earthquake triggered a tsunami in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lankan Nagendra’s first reaction was that she wanted to help. “I wanted to play a part in the reconstruction process and an opportunity came up through the United Nations Children’s Fund, which was looking for a water and sanitation officer,” Nagendra says.

With her employer’s support Nagendra applied for the position and was accepted. In July 2005 she left for Sri Lanka on a six-month sabbatical, subsequently extended by three months. Although Atkins lost her services for a short period, the sabbatical has made Nagendra even more motivated and committed to her work and equipped her with new skills she can use for the benefit of her employers.

“Working on the ground with different people with different interests taught me a lot about negotiation, improved my management skills and increased my confidence in dealing with people and crisis situations,” she says. “The experience meant a lot to me.”

Flexible working is another workplace practice that makes women’s working lives easier. At PepsiCo any employee whose role can be completed on a part-time basis or as a job share can take advantage of the company’s flexible hours policy.

“We recognise that the flexibility to perform day-to-day tasks is just as important as performance,” says Jan Woods, the talent development director at PepsiCo UK and Ireland. “The quid pro quo we get from this is that, in turn, our female employees are more than happy to pick up work at the end of the day, and finish work off in their own time.” The company’s summer hours scheme offers HQ employees the chance to take Friday afternoon off if they have completed that week’s contracted hours already. There is also an option to buy and sell holidays.

To be truly effective, work-life balance policies must be embedded in the corporate culture. At Shell, many of the organisation’s businesses and functions adopt a Work-life Balance Charter. It covers policies such as flexible working, extended work hours, and work and rest balance. It states that “extended work hours and weekend work shall be the exception, not the routine”. It also recommends that “tasks given at the end of the day, or week, for completion by the next day, or by the following Monday respectively, should be avoided”. It is not before time. The more organisations, that are prepared to implement a range of work-life balance initiatives rather than making a token effort, or doing nothing, the better it is for working women.

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