Parents of Payara: Senior Test Engineer Simon Laden Published on 23 Feb 2023 by Priya Khaira-Hanks What’s life like as a parent at Payara? Due to our flexible remote-working policy, there is a lot that is appealing about combining parenthood with Payara. When your commute is non-existent, it’s easier to be there for those precious moments. However, when your work and home life are blended, there are challenges! We are talking to Payaran parents about the mix of family life and a career at a fast-paced scale-up business. Hopefully you can find some inspiration, or even just a bit of recognition for experiences shared… Name and role at Payara Simon Laden, Senior Test Engineer How old are your children? 1 daughter, 15 months old What is it like trying to balance being a parent and working full time? To explain my current situation, my wife works part time, and I work full time, both from home. Our daughter goes to the nursery in the morning, 3 days a week, and an acquaintance helps to cover the other 2 mornings of the week. We have no family in this country. So, when my partner is not working, she takes care of my daughter at home, until I finish my day and take the relay to offer her some rest.. It can be difficult, as there is almost no “me” time anymore. As soon as I leave my home office, I have to take care of my daughter. It may get easier when my daughter is able to stay longer at the nursery. Do you ever get parental guilt trying to balance the two roles? She was born after the first lockdown, so I have been working from home, more or less full time, her whole life. Even if I am not with her all the time, I am rarely far from her. How does remote working support you as a parent? Working from home helps greatly to support my family: the absence of commute time enables me to take my child to the nursery and back. I also cook and give her meals every day. Fortunately, my daughter is too small to reach my desk, for now. But the Payara ball is really popular and appears to be quite tasty! How does flexible working support you as a parent? The flexibility is very helpful to support my partner when she’s taking care of the child. I can give her a break for a moment, help her to make my daughter take a nap, etc. What advice would you give to working parents considering a new role/company? Make sure that the working hours at this new role are compatible with your parental duties. Don’t hesitate to discuss that during the interview. Do you think the working world needs to change for working parents and how? I was quite naive regarding childcare, but I quickly found out that without family to help, and both parents working, it is very challenging to find a way to care for a child compatible with working hours. Nurseries and childminders often close during the office hours (e.g. 9am-3pm), and work needs to adjust to allow the parent to pick up/drop off their child in time. *** At Payara, we try to meet the needs of parents like Simon with in-built flexibility, adjusting to allow for home routines. Want to find out more about our open roles? We’re recruiting, apply now! Topics: Fish Food, Payara LifeBack to Team Blog
