Parenting in the Supply Chain: Making Flexible Working, Work
Balancing a career in supply chain with parenting is no small task, especially when the industry often demands long hours, tight deadlines, travel, and an “always on” mindset. For many working parents, particularly mothers, flexible working can feel like a lifeline. It’s the bridge that allows them to keep contributing their skills while also managing the realities of family life.
But for flexible working to actually work, it needs to be backed and supported from the top down. Too often, “four days a week” quietly becomes “five days for less pay,” with messages pinging through on your day off, calls scheduled outside of contracted hours, and the unspoken expectation you’ll still pick up the slack. That’s not flexibility, that’s burnout waiting to happen.
Building a Culture That Supports Parents
The solution starts with culture. Businesses need to move beyond seeing flexibility as a privilege and start seeing it as a sustainable, strategic choice that, for many, is a necessity. This means:
- Setting and respecting boundaries – If it’s your non-working day, it should be your non-working day.
- Agreeing on workloads up front – Making sure expectations align with contracted hours so people aren’t stretched thin.
- Keeping progression pathways open – Career development shouldn’t stall just because someone’s working flexibly.
- Normalising senior flexibility – So that arrangements are not only for junior roles, but for leadership positions too.
Creating Parent-Friendly Workplaces
There’s also a physical and practical side to making workplaces truly parent-friendly and one that’s often overlooked: supporting new mothers who are breastfeeding is a perfect example of this. Pumping is a very common part of having a child, yet many workplaces are still not offering private, comfortable, or hygienic spaces to do it. Some mothers are forced to use bathrooms or sit in cars, cutting short meetings or skipping breaks altogether just to manage the need. This isn’t just inconvenient – it’s isolating, stressful, a health and safety concern and in some cases, enough to push women out of the workforce altogether.
Providing flexible break times and accommodation of different needs around things like breastfeeding is a small change that has a big impact. It signals that the business understands the realities of parenting and is committed to supporting women through every stage of their careers, not just when it’s convenient.
Why Supporting Parents Strengthens Teams
Parents bring invaluable skills in addition to their core expertise. Masters in prioritisation, resourcefulness, and problem-solving under pressure, honed not just in boardrooms, but during school runs, appointments, and sleepless nights. When organisations truly support flexible and part-time arrangements and meet the practical needs of new mothers, they don’t just retain those skills; they strengthen their teams with experienced, highly capable professionals who can deliver big results in fewer hours.
It’s also time to address structural barriers, like the prevalence of statutory-only maternity pay across much of the sector, and to make flexible work conversations as normal as booking annual leave. Supporting parents is not a “nice to have.” It’s a strategic imperative that boosts retention, productivity, and morale.
The bottom line?
Flexible, parent-friendly workplaces aren’t just better for families, they’re better for business. If the supply chain industry wants to attract and retain top talent, it must stop treating parenting like a problem to be managed and start treating it like the asset it truly is. Because when flexible working works, everyone wins.
To support people facing challenges like these, Visku has launched a free, cross-industry mentoring programme designed specifically for the supply chain space. It’s open to everyone, no matter your role, company, or background. The aim is simple: to create a space where people can connect, share experiences, and support each other’s growth. By encouraging honest conversations and offering access to mentors you wouldn’t usually meet, the programme helps strengthen the supply chain from within, making it more inclusive, resilient, and ready for the future. Find out more and get involved here.
Author: Carley Lawless, Client Partner, Visku
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