Communications giant Havas has responded to concerns about themes highlighted in Netflix’s Adolescence by running a 90 minute lunch and learn session to educate and empower its affected employees.
The four part Netflix drama has sparked much debate, not only in workplaces across the country, but also in political circles, about the potentially toxic effect of social media on teenagers, and the so-called ‘manosphere’.
The idea came from the Havas People Team, having seen the series themselves and recognising the amount of conversation it had generated in the workplace.
Series is a wake-up call
“It was a wake up call for a lot of us,” said Rosy Hutchins, Senior People Partner at Havas.
“We have a parents network but I think sometimes the teen years can get a bit forgotten, with the focus tending to be on the early years. Adolescence showed us that we should be talking about these issues and there was a lot of interest when we said we were going to do the session.”
Employers like Havas are increasingly recognising the need to support parent-employees throughout the ages, including grandparenthood.
Demands of parenthood
The demands and pressures of parenting can have a huge impact on employee wellbeing and productivity, and also on attraction and retention of talent; 93% of working parents say that having employers who are supportive to parents is ‘important’ or ‘very important’ when considering a new role.
A further 66% say that an issue with their children would impact their performance at work, according to research from REC Parenting.
Hutchins said:
“It’s a tough economic climate currently. Employers need to look at what we can be doing, beyond simply salaries, to really enhance working environments and make employees feel that they are valued as a whole person, not just a number, so they will want to come and work for us, and stay.”
Empowering employees
The lunch and learn workshop, delivered by content company Happy Marlo Studios, covered:
- Understanding the Digital Landscape
- Recognising Red Flags
- Emotional and Mental Health Impact
- Legal and Social Consequences
- Building Digital Resilience
- Supporting Healthy Conflict Resolution
It also highlighted the gaps in the educational system and its lack of resources, and the opportunity for employers to step in to help plug these gaps with valued support. But only 14% of parents currently say they feel supported by their employee benefits package, according to the same research from REC.
Happy Marlo Studio’s origins are in creating ‘conscious’ content for children but it is increasingly moving into the corporate sector targeting parents.
Parenting worries affect productivity
Founder of Happy Marlo Rebekah Clark said:
“If an employee is concerned about their child, they aren’t able to really switch off and focus on work. They’re going to bring that to work to some extent, especially when you consider that 20% of kids today have a diagnosed mental health problem and many others are affected by day to day worries and anxieties. We know from the work that we do that parents are struggling and looking for support, but they don’t necessarily know where to go.”
As well as benefiting the individual’s wellbeing and the company’s bottomline, there is also the commercial argument in creative sectors like advertising that understanding the next generation better is beneficial.
Need to understand next gen better
“We need to understand children and younger generations better,” said Hutchins. “Some of our products, after all, are aimed at them, so they are our customers as well as our future workforce.”
Another of Happy Marlo Studio’s workshops covers ‘Raising Generation Alpha’ and Founder Clark added:
“There are so many different factors coming together in a perfect storm now that we can’t – as employers and as a society that want to pay attention and take the longer term view – say that this isn’t our problem.”
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