Develop strategies for sharing responsibilities to manage family and work.

Development should include

  • an identification of responsibilities that need to be managed
  • strategies for managing work and family roles
  • an understanding of policies and laws related to work and family roles
  • use of time
  • prioritization of family and work responsibilities
  • ways to handle stress
  • health and safety issues
  • conflict resolution
  • family and work values
  • stages of the family and career life cycle
  • support systems and resources that help families manage responsibilities.

Process/Skill Questions:

Thinking

  • What is the relationship between a family’s circumstances and work productivity?
  • Why is it important to a person, to a family, and to an employer to balance work and family roles?
  • What factors should we consider when developing management strategies related to family? To the workplace?
  • What responsibility does an employer have for a worker’s well-being at home?
  • When is it appropriate for an employer to intervene in an employee’s personal/family life?
  • What is the relationship of community activities and responsibilities to work and family roles?
  • How do management strategies for balancing work and family roles change as the family progresses through its life cycle?

Communication

  • When is it appropriate for an employee to communicate personal/family problems to an employer?
  • What communication skills are needed when developing strategies for balancing work and family roles?
  • How can we communicate to others the importance of balancing work and family roles?

Leadership

  • What leadership techniques can we use to address and resolve conflict regarding work and family roles?
  • What skills help family members become leaders?
  • What criteria should we use to assess our efforts at balancing work and family roles?

Management

  • What management skills are beneficial when setting priorities at work and at home?
  • What training is needed to develop management strategies for balancing work and family roles?
  • What management skills help us deal with issues at different stages of the family life cycle?