We met Ann Fitzpatrick yesterday from WITS where she runs the Re-Enter Programme - an all Ireland course which aims to re-skill and re-train experienced women scientists, engineers and technologists who want to return to work after a career break of a year or more. It's an excellent programme and the calibre of participants is particularly high. Ann is sound and actually a flexitimer herself running this course on a part-time contract basis. I suppose I'm telling you about our meeting for two reasons. Firstly, if you're a female engineer, scientist or technologist thinking of going back to work after a career break, well then you've nothing to lose by checking out this excellent resource. Secondly, it's no surprise that the majority of participants finishing Re-Enter, like Ann, want flexible work and that's where we come in. Our philosophy at Flexitimers is just because you want flexible work doesn't mean you have to compromise your career and do work that is pitched below your skill set. So if you're looking for flexible work i.e. part-time, freelance, interim and contract work well sign up with us because our plan is connect you with high skilled professional work - no dog walking or envelope stuffing. So thanks Ann for the great meeting, we look forward to working with in 2009.

Labels: flexible work, Women and Work

Flexitimers got a mention in yesterday's Irish Independent article (Is the supermum a thing of the past?) on the reality of combining a career with having children. 'Supermum' is no more according to research conducted by sociologists in Cambridge University. Apparently, you simply cannot have it all: time for a high-powered job, children, DH and an exciting social life. The study claims that an increasing number of people believe mums having careers comes at the expense of their children.
I remember having this same argument with my (then childless) sister and my point was that you could do both, but less competently than a childless career woman or a full time parent. Something has to give, there are only 24 hours in a day but it's not just simply down to time, I believe it's head space: if you're thinking about work work work all the time, then you're probably not going to pick up the subtle cues that parenting requires. Conversely if you're at work and constantly thinking of baby in creche (yes we've all done it), and I'm big enough to admit I didn't have the same fire in the belly that day. This doesn't mean that all childless people are high fliers and all stay-at-home parents are fantastic parents, of course it's down to the individual and their own levels of motivation, happiness, self-esteem etc.
I'm just saying from a personal point of view that I felt I had to chose one and I chose parenting - but that was nearly 10 years ago - a time before work-life balance and career flexibility.

Indeed that was before Flexitimers because since then I've realised you can have it all but you can only have one full-time permanent job (parenting) then outside of that you can fit in the part-time, freelance, contract and temp work and have the time and head space to do that really really well. So Cambridge University I'm afraid I disagree, working mums can have it all but you're presuming career is synonymous with full-time permanent work and all us Flexitimers out there know that's simply not the case. And everyone, even the dog on the street, knows that nobody can sustain 2 full time jobs at the same time!

So thanks Susan Daly for your kind mention and hopefully your readers will flock to Flexitimers and have it all too.
All the best
Joy

Labels: flexible work, smart work, Women and Work, work, work life balance