GroupM is boosting support for its people with the launch of a new online Families Hub to provide additional resources for employees and tools for managers to help balance work and home life.
GroupM has partnered with leading workplace advisory Parents at Work, to create a dedicated Families Hub giving all staff access to interactive resources, webinars, podcasts and courses across a variety of topics including Preparing for Parental Leave, Career Life Alignment, Working Dads, Balance & Wellbeing, Raising Toddlers or Teens, Navigating Aged Care and more.
The partnership will also give managers and people leaders access to additional tools and knowledge to successfully support their team members.
It will also provide one-to-one coaching for managers and for people approaching or returning from parental leave, to make the transition as smooth as possible and set employees up for success.
GroupM Australia chief people officer Cindy Grass, said: “Supporting our people is the most important thing that we do as an organisation. We know that juggling work and home life is a challenge whatever your situation, and during the pandemic and our current lockdowns that has only become more apparent. Getting the right combination of work and family is so important whatever life stage you’re at. When we talk about families, we mean that in the broadest terms, as we know that families come in all shapes and sizes. For some people families means their own kids, for others it’s their parents, extended families, or the friends they live with. For many it’s looking after ageing parents or those with healthcare issues. Whilst I haven’t had to home school my children, as they are now 22 and 26, I did raise them as a full-time, single working mum, so I can understand the challenges of parenting and work.
“Parents at Work is a world leading provider of education and coaching services for workplaces, parents, carers and leaders and we’ve partnered with them to launch the new GroupM Families Hub to complement our existing programs and policies to ensure our people feel supported in their work and care needs, helping them to professionally and personally thrive.”
GroupM is committed to creating a family-friendly workplace where working parents and carers can thrive. The new partnership and the GroupM Family Hub sits alongside GroupM’s existing employee benefits package which includes a commitment to flexible work. Since 2015, GroupM in Australia has offered market leading parental leave of 16 weeks, and has a generous personal leave policy which includes a provision for mental health days, domestic & family abuse support, additional leave for birthdays, volunteering, Summer Days (5 additional half days off during Summer), and regular Training Days to support personal and career development.
Throughout Australia’s recent lockdowns, GroupM agencies have supported working parents with a number of initiatives and increased flexibility. This week GroupM is welcoming parenting expert Maggie Dent to provide working parents some advice and reassurance, as well as weekly fun & games sessions for our GroupM Kids.
Ashutosh Srivastava (main photo), GroupM APAC CEO and acting CEO of GroupM Australia, said: “GroupM’s employee promise is that we want all our people to have a fulfilling career. We also believe that work is a part of life, and not the other way round. The future of work at GroupM is more flexible, more collaborative, and more focused on how we come together in ways that are good for everyone’s wellbeing and for how we deliver for our clients. This partnership in Australia offers an additional layer of support and assistance for our people where it’s needed.”
GroupM staff from Mindshare, MediaCom, Wavemaker, Essence, Xaxis and Finecast, gathered to mark the launch this week with a virtual event to share and celebrate inspiring family stories, and experiences from across the business.
