A Good Read

This week, I began to tell you about a newsletter designed to help employees stay informed about issues related to work and family. We still see a lot of coverage of this issue in the news--the juggling, the challenges, ways that employers are responding to the "sandwich" generation (those who are taking care of both their children and their parents). Yet Susan Ginsberg's "Work & Family Life" seems to pull it all together and present solutions so that workers can more effectively manage the intersection of their jobs and personal lives.
    Ginsberg says the newsletter helps employees regardless of their stage of life. Older and younger, singles, couples, with or without children, readers can always find something that will resonate. That the newsletter appeals to those with and without children is a testament to Ginsberg's understanding of the challenges that face all workers. Too often, those who are childless hear "work and family" and they assume that whatever's coming won't apply to them. Unfortunately, a bias does seem to exist assuming that whenever the media starts reporting on work/family issues they're excluding those without children. I firmly believe that family comes in many, many forms; a family of one is as important as a couple or an entire brood complete with grandparents living in the guest room. It is not our right to define what makes a family. Plus, everyone's family is different with a variety of joys and challenges. If during a busy day someone can glance at Ginsberg's newsletter and learn about whey children lie and what can be done about it, well, that employee might relax a little and be able to focus on her work. That's employee development.
    Then there's the worker who's wondering how he can find out more about what's not necessarily included in a training program. He pulls out an issue of Work & Family Life and spots an article in a section called "On the Job Page." There he discovers the answer to his question by reading "How do you learn the stuff no one tells you?" Perfect. Again, a not-so-obvious strategy for employee development.
    Some of the forward-looking organizations that subscribe to the newsletter include Bristol-Myers Squibb, the U.S. Department of Transportation, Viacom, Bechtel Corporation, First Midwest Bank, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and New York Life Insurance. There's even an "Elder Issues Page," which addresses topics that way too many of us are facing. Still, this is the kind of information that's brought to readers in a compact, succinct style, written especially for people under pressure who simply don't have enough time to read everything.
    Next week I'll give you more reasons to consider adding Work & Family Life to your company's employee development toolbox.