Mum's The Word

- Helen McGuire

Before you begin reading this article, how many mums do you know in senior positions at agencies in this part of the world? And how many of those work at multinationals? I’m no Derren Brown, but I’m guessing the number you’re thinking of is somewhere in the low double figures.

Four women formed a panel at the Dubai Lynx to talk about the lack of mums in the industry, why it’s a problem and how to resolve it. Entitled ‘Mums I’d Like to Hire’, we formed part of a campaign through SheSays and Hopscotch.ae to find skilled women who’d left their roles after having kids.

SheSays is a not-for-profit global organisation that supports and provides a network for women in the agency world, and Hopscotch is a professional women’s community – launched almost one year ago, it was the first organisation to source flexible work for females and support them through free training, networking events and initiatives.

Our aim was to flag the extraordinary pool of talent that’s lying dormant and start clearing a path back to agency life for these women. We asked mums who had been away from their professions in the media and advertising industry to send us their CVs and reasons for wanting to get back to work. We have just closed, and we will filter the best of the best to around five finalists, who will be pushed to the comms industry through Hopscotch and SheSays this month.

So what’s the issue with hiring mums? Well, for starters, in a world where equal parenting policies are rarely implemented, caring for a family often falls to women. That means Mummy can’t be stuck to an office chair from dawn til midnight. Or work traditional hours. Because, you know, kids generally can’t drive or cook their own dinners. Does this mean Mummy can’t work at all? Of course not.