The Roche Report

Today marks exactly one month back at work after my parental leave with Jack. I have started to write a blog post each week that I have been back - and I have to admit that I've had a hard time writing one. I generally work to have a positive message or something positive that I am working towards in my posts (and in my life!) and I have to admit that being back at work has been an adjustment. But, the intent of this blog is to write about the ups and downs of being a working mom and so here I am, writing about the ups and downs of the past month. I will start with the good - coming back to work has been mostly great. I was laughing with someone who I work with that late Friday afternoon the thought came into my head, "Wow, I'm pretty good at my job!" I say I was laughing, because it's almost funny that it felt like a revelation. While I looked forward to coming back, I think that there is always a bit of anxiety as well, especially after a long period away, of ...

I haven't written a blog post in a while; as I prepare to go on maternity leave, the frenzy of wrapping things up, transitioning, and still having time for my family has meant that I have less time to indulge in my passion projects like this blog. Another thing that I had let drop recently, which is one of my favorite things that I do with my team is my Team Roche Book Club - but as I transition more and more to my team, I was able to schedule TWO book club meetings before I go out on leave. This had dropped because I felt the need to refresh myself on some parenting-related reading, including the new release Crib Sheet ; while this book is not necessarily appropriate for the Team Roche Book Club, which focuses on more professional development / leadership development type books, it is on my must-read list for any prospective parent (for the record, so is Emily Oster's other book, Expecting Better ). Both books focus on a data-driven approach to analyzing the common issues that...

Last week, IBM published a study about advancing women in the workplace . One key finding was that in spite of the increased discussion about the importance of gender diversity in the workplace, most companies are not actively prioritizing it as a strategic initiative. Two stats that jumped out to me as I read the study were: "58 percent say fewer women than men want to take on leadership obligations."  "Mindset matters. We asked survey respondents how long it will take for their industries to exhibit an equal balance of women and men across all leadership levels. On average, they estimate 54 years—more than two generations into the future."  54 years!!! W.T.F!??! And do we really think that women don't WANT to take on leadership obligations? IBM's study is likely not new news; but I certainly appreciate that my employer is contributing to the discussion about how to drive gender diversity in the workforce - and this is a topic I am passionate about...

In the din of excitement in starting the year, one of my most personally exciting things is that my husband and I are expecting our second child in June. It’s a boy (!) which introduces a different lens on thinking that I’ve got this whole parenting thing figured out. We are so super excited for this- and can’t wait for the new love and joy that will come in to our lives in June. I can’t wait to see Charlie as a big sister; my in-laws gave Charlie a doll for Christmas that she kisses every morning and brings to us so we can kiss it too- so we are off to a great start! My second pregnancy has been a different experience than my first in many ways. In retrospect, my first almost feels as though I was tackling a research project to figure out the unknown - wanting to have as much data as I could about what it would be like. Also, in retrospect, I spent my entire first pregnancy filled with a sense of tremendous anxiety about how being a parent would change me and how (or whether?) it ...

I read a lot when I was pregnant. I read parenting books, parenting blogs, signed up for parenting email blasts. I read really good and really important things - like how to get my baby to  sleep through the night  (and this book works wonders - she was sleeping through the night at 9 weeks) and  how to calm my baby  - that have significantly improved my parenting experience.  One thing that I didn’t read much about (though I think it is out there and perhaps it just didn’t quite resonate with me until I was actually doing it) was pumping. Before I begin my thoughts on this: a little background. I was unsure about the whole breastfeeding thing and adopted an attitude of “we’ll see how it goes.” It actually probably ranked at the top of my parenting fears. I kind of wanted it to work; but frankly, I also kind of thought the whole thing was gross.  However, I gave it a go, and have actually had a pretty great experience with it, helped by the fact that IBM h...

Before I started my maternity leave, I had recently finished a training program that IBM has called Cornerstone, which is a training program for Associate Partners who are on the executive track at IBM. One of the key messages from the program was to think about who your “authentic self” was and being intentional about being that authentic self both as a leader and at home. Coming out of that training, I have spent a lot of time thinking about being intentional about just who that authentic self is and, really, if I boil it down, who and what I want to be. Some of it includes reflecting on the typical things you would expect to think about from a work perspective (what kind of leader am I, what kind of executive do I want to be, how do I want to be known at IBM, what do I want my team to think of me?). Much of it has also played out on a more personal level, as my husband and I had our first child in November, I have been reflecting a lot about who I want to be as a mom, as a ...