Get Started

GET STARTED

WITH YOUR SIX-MONTH ACTION PLAN

Creating a caregiver-friendly culture doesn’t happen overnight. Below are the first steps you can take in the next six months to strengthen the support for family caregivers in your workplace. Download this action plan at the bottom of the page to track your progress.

Month 1: Gather Information

Focus your first month on gathering information from your caregiver-employees about their caregiving needs and educating your employees about caregiving and the resources available to them. The information you learn about your employees will inform the strategies you will implement in the coming months.

Conduct a Care Survey

Use tools like SurveyMonkey or other online surveys to ask your employees about their knowledge of caregiving in the workplace, the resources available to them, and what types of resources or benefits would be helpful.

Conduct a Self-Assessment

Use the self-assessment tool in the practical guidance section to see how your business stacks up on being a caregiver-friendly workplace.

Educate Your Employees on Current Caregiving Resources

Many employees don’t know what resources are available. Distribute memos and other resources that are currently available.

Months 2-4: Create the Right Structure and Educate Your Employees

Continue to educate your employees about caregiving to help them better understand what their colleagues may be experiencing. Experiment with implementing new strategies to provide caregivers with flexibility. Use these months as a pilot period to see how strategies, such as flex-time and telecommuting, work for your business.

Create or Revise Existing Caregiving Guidance

By writing down how your business will approach working caregivers, it provides employees with a sense of security.

Plan a Series of Educational Events

Sponsor caregiving experts to speak to your employees to educate them on various caregiving topics.

Institute Telecommuting or Flex Work Opportunities

Depending on your business, these strategies provide flexibility to working family caregivers.

Months 5-6: Review, Revise, and Expand

After you have educated your employees about caregiving and adopted some new strategies, it is time to conduct another caregiving survey. This survey will help you understand the impact the new strategies have had and what other steps you need to take to help support your employees. This is the time to develop more robust programs and strategies, such as a cross-training program, to help caregivers succeed.

Conduct a Second Care Survey

Talk to your employees about some of the changes that have been implemented to see if they had an impact. Make sure to ask your employees what caregiving related benefits they would find useful.