The Parental Leave Playbook – 10 Touchpoints to Transition Smoothly, Strengthen Your Family, and Continue Building Your Career

AMY BEACOM, EdD, is founder and CEO of the Center for Parental Leave Leadership, the first consultancy in the U.S. to focus exclusively on parental leave. Drawing on over 25 years in executive leadership development and coaching, Amy consults with Fortune 100 companies, international organizations, working parents, and more to transform the way our companies and our country engage with the parental leave transition. SUE CAMPBELL is a writer, author, and coach who has worked with the Center for Parental Leave Leadership since its early days, helping to communicate the transformative impact of their core mission. Her writing, often focused on issues important to parents, has been published in many outlets, including Prevention, Good Housekeeping, Scary Mommy, and Mamalode.

Author's Note ix Introduction xiii Chapter 1 Parental Leave Is a Mess--Let's Fix It! 1 Chapter 2 The 10A Transition Touchpoints Framework 13 Phase One Preparing for Leave: Work Focus 31 Chapter 3 Phase 1: Preparing for Leave Overview 33 Chapter 4 Touchpoint 1: Announcement 39 Chapter 5 Touchpoint 2: Assess 51 Chapter 6 Touchpoint 3: Action Plan 67 Chapter 7 Touchpoint 4: Acknowledge the Transition to Parenthood 97 Phase Two During Leave: Parent Focus 109 Chapter 8 Phase 2: During Leave Overview 111 Chapter 9 Touchpoint 5: Appropriately Keep in Touch 115 Chapter 10 Touchpoint 6: Advocate 125 Chapter 11 Touchpoint 7: Arrangements for Return 143 Phase Three Returning from Leave: Working Parent Focus 155 Chapter 12 Phase 3: Returning from Leave Overview 157 Chapter 13 Touchpoint 8: Acknowledge the Transition to Working Parent 163 Chapter 14 Touchpoint 9: Adjustment 171 Chapter 15 Touchpoint 10: Access to Career Development 189 Rounding Out the Human Experience 205 Chapter 16 Additional Challenges and Resources 207 Appendix 1: Values Exercise List 219 Appendix 2: Free Resources from the Center for Parental Leave Leadership 221 Appendix 3: An Emerging Working Parent Support Ecosystem 223 Appendix 4: Recommended Reading 233 Endnotes and General References 237 Acknowledgments 253 About the Authors 257 Index 259