Baby on board

You can still land a great job after taking time out to have a baby. Here's how. By Karen Miles.

Your career can feel like it's taken a direct hit when you take time out to have kids. But it doesn't have to be that way.

Get yourself work wise with these five essential strategies to landing a top job post-baby.

Assess your skills
The crunch question on every mum's mind is, "Will time off affect my career?" The good news is you've actually been earning your "soft-skills MBA". That's HR-speak for the highly sought-after personality traits and interpersonal skills that round out the perfect job candidate.

Examples of "soft skills" are great communication, adaptability, determination, multi-tasking and so on.

Think about it. If you know how to do the following things then returning to work is child's play:

Organise a company function (read: coordinate the local playgroup or mothers' group). 

Ensure the executives are fully prepped (read: pack a fully stocked nappy bag or backpack just to get out the door).

Book the entertainment (read: bake a Dora the Explorer birthday cake and decorate your house with an "under-the-ocean" theme). Just ask Janie de Souza, 47, a single mother from Melbourne.
 
"Our company was opening its    first office in Tasmania. My job was to seamlessly convert the new office to our corporate colours and signage, using a sign company in Queensland," she says.

"The project was running late and it took frantic reorganising and tracking to get the materials complete, and some serious fast talking to get it through the airlines and to Tasmania on time. But as a mum, you're used to negotiating and project-managing your way through that sort of mess while looking like you've got it handled."

"Communication skills are something you hone with children," adds Regina Fikkers, a mother of three and a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. "Because young children can't use words, you learn about body language fast. In business, people also get frustrated, albeit with less colourful tantrums, if you don't know how to listen to what they have to say."

Extra-curricular activities
The value of volunteering to build skills and networks while you're out of paid work has never been more important. Think tuckshop duty, family business, soccer coach and the roles that incorporated the kids at playgroup or school.

"Community or volunteer work is a smart way to continue work experience if you decide to be a full-time parent," says Kate Sykes, director of CareerMums. "Even though you're not being paid, you're working with adults on projects with business or social outcomes. The volunteer work you pursue may lead to a career change or a boost in self-confidence, one of the biggest barriers to parents returning to work. There's also the added benefit of adult interaction and mental stimulation."

Self-promotion
You've made it to interview stage. Remember that men are generally better at talking up their skills than women are. If you think you could do 50 per cent of a job, apply for it. And when you land the role, avoid the trap of working hard and expecting your efforts to be noticed without regular self-promotion.

"If you don't have confidence in your own ability, don't expect others to," says Emma Walsh, director of   mums@work and a co-author of the Working Parents Toolkit (self-published). "It's about harnessing your strengths and drawing on your experiences to negotiate a pay rise, the next promotion or flexible work arrangements."

"Taking on a job below your skill level may work in the short term," adds Sykes, "but the need for a more challenging and fulfilling role will see those who self-promote move up."

Know what to wear
Update your professional presentation to seal the deal. Image stylist Fran Campitelli explains how different looks work in different industries.

Industry: Media and creative
Style overview: Taking a contemporary approach to dressing, they are aware of current trends. They are seasonal highlight dressers with a focus on their own creative flair. There is seamless integration between work and weekend wear.

Key pieces: Dresses, pencil skirts and long-line knits. Complete the look with highlight accessories.
Labels to look out for: Witchery, Kookai, Leona Edmiston.

Industry: Banking and finance
Style overview: A more reserved approach to style, but with a strong interest in current fashion. You need to convey an image of conservative competence and confidence, dressing in classic tailoring. There are discernable differences between work and weekend wear.

Key pieces: Classic, tailored suits, men's-style slouch pants, pencil skirts, shapely shift dresses. The key item for the season is the vest.
Labels to look out for: David Lawrence, Herringbone, Country Road.

Industry: Academic
Style overview: Relaxed comfort, leaning more towards a conservative approach to styling. They are combination dressers, blending suits with weekend wardrobe pieces.

Key pieces: Flat-fronted trousers, shirts and knits. The key item this season is a cropped, knitted jacket.
Labels to look out for: Sussan, Witchery, Cue.

Industry: Customer service
Style overview: Casual, relaxed, comfort dressing, which floats between work and weekend.

Key pieces: Knitwear, skirts, jeans, trousers. The key fashion piece for the season is the blazer.
Labels to look out for: French Connection, Portmans, Witchery.

Make your mum-status known
You've landed the job, you're a couple of weeks in and you realise that there's nothing more exhausting than inventing new ways to get out of the door unnoticed to pick up the kids.

At work, it's important to be upfront that you're a mum. The terms "flexible workplace" and "family friendly" can mean many things. When you negotiate your return to work, you need to spell out what flexibility means to you, how it would work in your role, and why the company will benefit.

Sharing a little from your personal world can also help your manager or team to appreciate the hard work that is parenthood. Closing the divide that polarises parents and those without kids will create new role models of success, increase your chances for promotion, improve communication and relationships, and build a more people-friendly workplace.

Tip: What "soft skills" can you add to your resume? Use this checklist to get you started:
Conflict resolution
Project management
Negotiation
Communication
Patience
Determination
Willingness to try new approaches
Flexibility
Adaptability
Fun
Responsibility
Self-management
Leadership
Creativity
Diversity

Tip: Just a "stay-at-home" mum? Not so. Make a list of your volunteer activities and add these roles, skills and the outcomes achieved to your resume.

Tip: Look over your resume - what could you add, position better, take credit for? Prepare at least four stories you can share in interviews that detail how you contributed to a project or job's success.

Tip: Make your mum-status known so that you can:

Help workmates appreciate how hard you really work.

Cut down on "mother guilt".

Set boundaries and communicate your expectations.

Provide space to be more yourself at work.

Published: 11 May 2008