Being a working parent is unbelievably fulfilling, but it is never an easy task. Attempting to juggle personal, professional, and family lives is a challenging endeavor, one that can rarely be successfully completed without adequate support. Because of this, companies are often reaching for extravagant solutions like motherhood coaches and “flying nannies” in an effort to do the right thing. But what if your business simply can’t offer the most groundbreaking benefits? Fortunately, there are many ways you could prevent employee burnout and stress, and improve the lives of working parents. Here are just some of the most efficient methods that might help:

Offer more flexible schedules

If there’s one thing a working parent always needs, it’s more time. Even though you can’t exactly change the number of hours in a day, simply offering more flexibility in terms of schedule can be quite helpful to your employees, as a traditional 9-5 workweek isn’t quite suitable for most parents. As the advancement of technology has also enabled other forms of working such as virtual teams and working from home, offering working parents a remote or hybrid work model could also be of great help. In addition, aim to provide maternal and paternal leave, as well additional personal time off, if at all possible.

Don’t negotiate vacations

It’s not uncommon for employees working in high-performance companies to voluntarily give up their holidays in an effort to catch up on missed work and complete all their responsibilities on time. This can be a dangerous practice for any professional, but especially a working parent, as it could easily lead to attrition, burnout, performance decline, and family issues. For that reason, you should find ways to encourage hard-working employees to take a break, such as sending emails as reminders to plan for holidays. Motivating your staff to take advantage of existing benefits is much easier than introducing new “work-life” programs, and it could help with employee engagement, efficiency, satisfaction, and retention as well.

Call attention to helpful apps

While flexible working schedules and some much-needed time off can be beneficial to all working parents, there are some forms of support that managers and leaders simply can’t offer. In those instances, it would be best to guide your employees towards helpful resources that might make their lives a bit easier and more balanced. For instance, you can recommend the wonderful Mumli motherhood app to all working moms. Made specifically for mothers who need some additional support, this application is great for sharing personal journeys, collecting and organizing important information, finding additional resources on parenthood, and even connecting with like-minded moms, thus offering encouragement throughout all stages of motherhood.

Categorize communications

A simple way to discourage the “always-on” mode and improve the work-life balance of working parents is to categorize communications, especially those outside of working hours. For example, you could include the words “Urgent”, “Not urgent”, “Information only”, “For Monday”, and similar into the subjects of your emails. These labels allow your staff to effortlessly sort through their responsibilities, immediately knowing what has to be done urgently and what can wait until after family obligations. Encouraging all managers and supervisors to do the same can have quite a significant impact on your employees’ perception of work and their overall satisfaction, without negatively affecting their productivity and efficiency.

Advertise existing resources

Many businesses will already have certain employee resources in place, whether that’s available in-office daycare, counseling opportunities, employee assistance programs, or HR teams trained in employee support. Unfortunately, most workers don’t know these resources exist or simply aren’t certain how they could improve their situation. Others might even believe accessing these benefits will come with certain consequences for their careers. To avoid this, make sure the existing benefits are accessible and visible to everyone in the company, such as through bulletin boards, newsletters, or company-wide emails. Ensuring that working parents utilize helpful available resources could aid in reducing common stress and strain, leading to happier, more motivated, and more productive employees.

Create a supportive space

Most employees shy away from discussing personal issues in the workplace for fear of appearing unfocused or unprofessional, particularly in high-pressure environments, and many managers might be hesitant to start personal conversations, worrying they might be inappropriate. But in companies where teams are tight and working hours are long, personal and professional lives can often become indistinguishable. You can easily avoid common work-life problems and make your staff feel more supported just by opening the door to personal conversations in a business-appropriate way. For instance, even asking about career concerns during performance reviews or checking in on your working parents outside of business hours could make them feel appreciated. And employees who feel valued at work are more likely to show loyalty to the company as well.

The life of a working parent is undoubtedly a stressful and challenging one. Whether you’re a sympathetic coworker or the leader of a company, using the methods mentioned above for offering help and support to working parents is the most efficient way to enhance their work-life balance and lead to happier and more satisfied team members.