Guest article by Joachim E. Lask, November 2024

Parenting is one of life’s most demanding tasks: patience, organisational talent, and communication skills are just a few of the many abilities that parents develop in the process. However, these skills are not only valuable in the family environment but also highly beneficial in the workplace. The concept of Work-Family Enrichment, developed by Greenhaus and Powell (2006), describes the mutual enrichment between work and family, demonstrating how positive experiences in one role can enhance performance in the other. Scientifically proven, parenting thus offers a valuable resource for the professional world.

Parental Skills as a Competence Centre

Our research (Lask & Junker, 2024) shows that many parents develop essential leadership skills through family challenges and apply them professionally, including clear communication, structured planning, crisis management, and agreement-making. According to studies by the German Economic Institute and the World Economic Forum, these competencies are crucial in an increasingly digitalised and flexible work environment.

PEP4Kids: A Practical Approach for Everyday Life

The workbook PEP4Kids – Positive Parenting Programme for Parents with Children Aged 2-12 Years (Lask, 2016) offers working parents practical support that is helpful both in family life and at work. Foundations such as reliability, self-care, positive relationship-building, clear agreements, and consequences promote the ability to reflect on challenges in a structured way and to apply these skills in daily life – at home or in the workplace.

Making Parental Skills Visible

In many organisations, the value created by parental skills goes unrecognised. The myth of separate worlds between work and private life persists: only 15% of parents report discussing privately developed skills with their managers. As a result, valuable potential for a better work environment, increased productivity, and stronger employee retention remains untapped.

Companies could establish a new mindset that integrates the potential of work and family. A conversation starter such as “What have you experienced recently that could also be valuable for our tasks here?” opens the door to actively incorporating these skills into the professional context – particularly after parental leave.

Work-Family Enrichment as a Competitive Advantage

In our book Parental Skills in Organisations – Resource-Centred Leadership and Collaboration (Lask & Junker, 2024), we explore the scientific background of Work-Family Enrichment and demonstrate how parenting can be a valuable asset for career development. The skills often developed informally in everyday family life – as described in PEP4Kids – provide useful insights for consciously reflecting on and improving one’s behaviour.

Training Leaders in Family-Sensitive Leadership

An effective tool for companies is targeted training in family-sensitive leadership. This strengthens leaders’ awareness of the importance of supporting work-life balance and fosters a culture that views parenting as an enrichment. A three-part training programme focusing on communication, recognition, and fair negotiation lays the foundation to leverage the value of parental skills for the company’s benefit.

Conclusion: Assets That Pay Off

By recognising and fostering parental skills, companies can benefit on multiple levels: increased productivity, employee satisfaction and retention, and enhanced employer attractiveness.

Would you like to learn more about our research or integrate parental skills as a competitive advantage in your organisation?

Literature

• Greenhaus, J. H., & Powell, G. N. (2006). When work and family are allies: A theory of work-family enrichment. Academy of Management Review, 31(1), 72-92. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2006.19379625
• Lask, J. E. (2016). PEP4Kids: Positive Parenting Programme for Parents with Children Aged 2-12 Years. Brunnen.
• Lask, J. E., & Junker, M. N. (2024). Parental Skills in Organisations: Resource-Centred Leadership and Collaboration. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-62564-4

Your Opinion?

More Information in the book: https://backup.hellas-media.gr/en/renaissance-der-familie-2/

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