Babies in the Workplace

Baby programs work best when there are clear rules and expectations in place to guide people's behavior. In virtually all of the more than 160 companies with successful programs, there are clear (even if sometimes informal) cultural guidelines related to not disturbing coworkers, to work getting done, about where diapers should and should not be changed, and other issues. The only companies in which baby programs have not worked were ones in which there were no expectations or rules and in which people abused the opportunity, such as by leaving babies to cry for long periods or spending all day playing with their babies instead of working. Setting up a detailed policy is very likely to result in a successful baby program.

It often takes a few days for a new parent and baby in a babies-at-work program to develop a healthy rhythm. Companies that keep this in mind and are patient during this brief transition period reap extensive benefits in long-term increased parental efficiency (as well as the other benefits associated with a baby program).