The New Strategic Road Map for Attracting and Retaining Working Parents | MIT Sloan Management Review

Various reports show many workers are placing greater value on their wellbeing and overall quality of life. And as mentioned in this article, “for some working parents, this has meant re-evaluating and recommitting to their choice of where to live. Parents’ preference for community stability competes strongly with career mobility once kids become part of the equation.” Said differently, the expectation that workers will uproot and move from the places they love for new work uniquely complicates the career choices of working parents. As working parents increasingly have options to pursue jobs without leaving their community of choice, the authors recommend five strategies for how firms can attract and retain working parents that may not want to move from their desired community. One recommendation is for firms to embrace greater flexibility when adding locations, such as hub-and-spoke or flex-space models. For example, this past November, Deloitte leased 35,000 square feet from WeWork for employee office space. By uncoupling work from geography, firms can realize that geographic diversity attracts and retains workforce diversity, such as working parents, while making economic sense for the company.