Double interview – What does family-friendliness mean at VALA
17.06.2024
Family-friendly policies at VALA are all about making it easier for employees to balance work and family life. It means understanding that everyone has responsibilities outside of work that can affect their job. This isn’t just about parents with kids; it’s about supporting anyone who has family commitments, whether it’s looking after children, elderly parents, siblings, close friends, or even pets.
At VALA, being family-friendly means practical things like letting employees work flexibly. We want our team to have a good work-life balance, so we encourage them to take breaks and avoid working overtime whenever possible.
We also offer part-time work options, so people can adjust their hours to fit around their family needs. And if anyone needs help, we’ve got support available from different channels like our VALA contacts, the People team, project teams, and colleagues.
We think it’s important for parents to be able to take time off when they need to, so we’re supportive of parental leave. We also provide resources like a sick child care service to help out when kids are unwell.
When we organize company events, we make sure to consider families by scheduling activities at different times of the day. We even host a special event every year where employees’ kids are invited.
We understand that personal celebrations matter too, which is why we let employees use office space for things like children’s birthday parties. And if someone needs time off, we work together to make sure everything’s covered while they’re away.
Overall, being family-friendly is a big part of who we are at VALA. It’s about being empathetic and responsible, and making sure everyone feels supported, no matter what their family situation is.
We interviewed two VALA employees to shed a bit more light into how family friendliness shows in real life at VALA.
Rami, QA Engineer, 6 years at VALA, parental leave coming:
What are you looking forward to most about parental leave and returning to work afterward?
During parental leave, I look forward to spending time with my child, attending various family events, visiting playgrounds and parks, going to music classes, and enjoying some personal time while my child naps.
When I return to work, I expect that AI will be extensively used in testing, and I plan to specialize in this area after my leave.
How have you experienced our company’s support for parental leave?
VALA has been very supportive of parental leave. I took about 6 months of childcare leave with my first child and received nothing but encouragement from VALA. Now, I will take a year off with my youngest child. When I informed VALA of my plans, I received only positive feedback.
What do you expect from VALA in terms of family-friendliness in the future?
Continue in the same manner. Encourage everyone to take as much leave as they want. Organize more events in the future that children can also participate in.
Tanja, People team, 3,5 years at VALA, parental leave behind:
What were you looking forward to most about parental leave and returning to work afterward?
Of course, I was nervous about returning, but the warm, supportive, and welcoming reception quickly eased my anxiety. It was easy to return to my wonderful colleagues. I smoothly and naturally got back to work, even though I stepped into a slightly new role. I noticed that my colleagues had already prepared for my return, which made my orientation easier.
How have you experienced our company’s support for parental leave?
VALA enabled part-time work when I returned from parental leave, which allowed us to start our child’s daycare at a very calm pace. I was able to agree on this arrangement with VALA even before returning from parental leave, and there were no obstacles to this.
What do you expect from VALA in terms of family-friendliness in the future?
I feel that I have never had to justify staying home with a sick child – and there have been several such days. When I mention that my child is sick or that I need to work remotely due to childcare, the response is always very understanding. I am extremely grateful to VALA for being so flexible in this new life situation for me.
