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Citi

What

This case study examines how Citi maintains a 97% maternity return rate and helps its working parents. It has combined policies and benefits with in-depth training and support for line managers, mothers and fathers.
The organisation recognised that line managers have a huge impact on a woman’s maternity experience. It set up two half day training sessions specifically for line managers covering pre and post maternity issues which are now run on a quarterly basis. It also runs workshops for women pre, during and post maternity. With free near site childcare the workshops have proven an invaluable way of helping individuals connect with a community of women at the same transition stage. Lastly, Citi has now introduced workshops for New and Expectant Dads, helping them plan for balancing their roles at work and home and providing access to information and support.

Why

Citi has invested in its maternity transition programme despite the challenging economic climate, because it believes it will help to deliver business success.  The company is seeking to increase the quality of the maternity experience for women and to equip line managers with the skills and knowledge they need to do a better job in managing the transitions. This work also helps to improve the retention and engagement of women in the longer term whilst increasing their career momentum. Citi’s analysis shows that its female employees going through maternity tend to have over 10 years of work experience. The firm sees this group as a particularly valuable source of talent. It believes that it will not meet its medium term goal of increasing representation of senior women unless it supports them and continues to develop their careers when they are parents of young children.

 

How

For managers it has introduced half day workshops which cover both practical and legal advice. Most importantly they help managers better understand their unconscious biases and offer guidance on how to manage individuals in a more emotionally intelligent and responsive way. It has also put together a useful toolkit which helps to share all this best practice with colleagues outside the UK. For pregnant employees and women returners Citi has introduced three workshops, which it runs quarterly. The half day workshop for pregnant employees covers business planning for a structured transition with their Manager, the psychological and practical implications of becoming a mother, and information on relevant policies and benefits. The mid leave workshop has proven invaluable in helping women frame their return to work strategies. The post maternity workshop addresses how individuals can manage the balance of motherhood and returning to work. In addition to these helpful workshops Citi also provides one to one telephone coaching for women returners and executive coaching on the transition back to work for senior women. It has also increased the profile of its existing phased return to work, for women who want to return to work earlier than 52 weeks. Citi also developed a quarterly series of workshops for expectant dads with an emphasis on helping them to balance work and home commitments and encouraging them to take their paternity leave.

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Citi Materntity Transitions
Contact: Carolanne Minashi,
Head of Diversity, EMEA
Email: carolanne.minashi@citi.com

 

 

 

 

Impact
  • Citi now views maternity as a developmental experience, useful for developing skills applicable to the workplace.
  • The company has challenged the myth that finding balance is solely a working mother’s issue.
  • The programmes for both mothers and fathers have helped to increase dialogue and support for all.
  • The programme has helped line managers to address unconscious bias and
  • Create a positive experience of maternity for the leaver, extended team and other stakeholders and clients.