Being a CEO and a mum: a woman’s journey in business

DPS Publishing and HelloCare Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Michelle Beech is not only a businesswoman, but a family woman. 

Historically, some mothers have had to choose between their family life, their career and being their own person but Ms Beech, mum of three, said it is possible to have it all if you really want it. 

“My career was really important to me, but so was my family,” she said. 

“I was very lucky the [DPS Publishing] board took a chance on me.

“I was a 37-year-old female with a young child, and them giving me a chance to be CEO is something I will always be grateful for.”

After starting her business career in accounting at an aged care and disability respite company, Ms Beech went on to complete her Master of Business Administration (MBA) and upgraded to a General Manager role.

Three months into her new role, Ms Beech found out she was pregnant with her second child, Isaiah. 

“I was terrified because I thought they weren’t going to give me the chance to be who I think I could be with a baby,” she said.

“I think that is what a lot of people fear, that as soon as you fall pregnant you’ll be passed over for that promotion or people assume you can’t juggle everything. 

“It’s a really scary thing to go through and I was lucky they did support me, but I didn’t tell anyone until I was 22 weeks pregnant.”

Ms Beech said she worked in that role right up until giving birth to Isaiah, even clocking on the day after he was born from the hospital, and then returning to the office full time after six weeks. 

“There’s a guilt a mother feels when they leave their child at six weeks old, but I was very lucky I had Isaiah’s family to help me look after him and a nanny who stayed at home with him,” recalled Ms Beech.

“I had a very supportive workplace, so I had a bassinet at work so he could come to work with me for the first three months.”

In the first five months of Isiah’s life, Ms Beech was working too many hours to maintain her work-life balance and was considering resigning.

While she considered being a stay-at-home mum temporarily, Ms Beech found she still needed the mental stimulation and socialisation a job gave her, which is when DPS Publishing reached out with a part time employment opportunity in a finance role. 

A three-day work week allowed Ms Beech to achieve her business endeavours but also be at home with her family. 

When DPS eventually offered Ms Beech the role of CEO when Isiah was only 18 months old, she had concerns the position was going to be too much.

“How was I going to give my all to a baby, and my all to a company?” she questioned.

Ms Beech declined the CEO role at that time and took on a General Manager role for a couple of years.

When Isiah was older, she then decided to step into the CEO role when she felt better prepared and equipped to commit to the position and not sacrifice quality time with her baby.

Today, Ms Beech has another son, 12-month old Lincoln, and manages the company working both in the office and at home with her sons. 

As a working parent, she stresses the importance of planning to suit your working lifestyle. 

“For example, I don’t have meetings on my days working from home as I know Lincoln is unpredictable with his sleeping so I don’t risk it if I can help it,” Ms Beech said.

She added the COVID-19 pandemic showed workplaces it was not essential for staff to work in the office to produce efficient work but there were still a lot of employers who still insisted staff returned to the office full time. 

“Do I think workplaces are becoming more flexible to women with children? Maybe not so much,” Ms Beech said. 

“Some [workplaces] are understanding, but you definitely will still experience old-school mentalities of needing everyone in the office.”

Ms Beech is living proof a person can raise children and nurture their personal relationships while also fulfilling career goals.

Tips for working parents

Ms Beech’s advice on how you can implement flexibility into your workplace, includes:

• Foster an environment where your staff can confide in you:
  Encouraging staff to reach out when you need the help allows them to feel heard, understood and respected.
  Some staff struggle with asking for help from others or voicing when they are feeling overwhelmed for fear of being chastised or punished for biting off more than they can chew. 
  Reinforce that they are supported, that they are only human and it is more than okay to ask for help.

• Allow staff to be open and honest about their limitations:
  Ms Beech said employees often face failure or judgement from employers and other employees who may say “this is why a mother can’t do this job as your baby will get sick and you will need to look after him/ her”.

• Allow staff to maintain a healthy work/life balance by giving them space to allocate time for themselves to do activities that aren’t work related like going for a walk or reading a book.

It is a given that being flexible with your staff means they are more likely to be more flexible with you, stay in their position and help maintain a healthy and happy work culture. 

While getting the work/life balance is not always easy, if you show compassion and understanding to staff, they are more likely to obtain this goal.

How did you juggle being a parent and a working professional? Tell us your tips in the comments below.