Welcome Back to Remote Work, New Moms

Coming back to work after parental leave, after having a baby during a pandemic, when you and your colleagues are still working remotely — is complicated. Our colleague describes how she’s approaching remote reentry, and we turn to an expert on all things career and motherhood for guidance on handling childcare, boundaries, and professional relationships during this transition.

We’re delighted to have our colleague Erica back at work. She had her second kid in June and was on parental leave until December. She and her husband recently relocated to her parents’ house to get help caring for their 5-month-old and 3-year-old until a new nanny starts. Erica’s grateful for the support — and acutely aware that this transition is still going to test her stamina.

On Erica’s first day back, she talked to Amy Gallo about how she’d been preparing to return to work and what she hadn’t sorted out yet. Danna Greenberg, who co-wrote the book Maternal Optimism, joined the conversation, helping connect the dots between Erica’s experiences and the impossible situations forcing women out of the workforce during this crisis.

Guests:

Erica Truxler is a senior editor at Harvard Business Review.

Danna Greenberg is a professor of organizational behavior at Babson College and the co-author of the book Maternal Optimism: Forging Positive Paths through Work and Motherhood.

Resources:

HBR’s Big Idea series “Work, Parenting, and the Pandemic”
“Anxiety, Depression, and Working Moms in a Pandemic,” by The Anxious Achiever
“How to Return to Work After Taking Parental Leave,” by Rebecca Knight
“Ramp Up Your Career After Parental Leave,” by Lisa Quest
“New Mothers, Let’s Talk About Your Professional Identity Crisis,” by Janna Koretz
“The Upside of Working Motherhood,” from Women at Work