“Returning to the workforce is not without its challenges” says Anne Gadd Grandy, Senior UX Designer. “When I took time off early in my career to raise my children, potential employers felt I wasn’t serious about my job. Later, when I took time off, ageism became a challenge.”
The earnings gap is one of the harsh realities women face of returning to work. According to a recent US Census commissioned report, women’s earnings fall drastically at the time a child is born, and their earnings do not recover until the child is 9 or 10 years old.* Recognizing this gap and the challenges of a pause in career journeys, Visa has recently helped over 2,000 Bay Area job seekers who have left work due to life circumstances or family care prepare for future career opportunities.
With Visa's annual Ready to Return program, women and men are provided both inspiration and enablement with learning resources, networking opportunities and live workshops with an aim to empower. Visa places candidates with jobs and provides meaningful connections to recruitment networks to get them back in the game. Beyond job placement – Visa’s focus is on elevating these individuals and recognizing the value of their talent.
“Ready to Return helped me learn more about Visa’s culture and network. I realized what skillsets I needed to succeed,” says Kimberly Hergenrader, who, after taking time off to attend graduate school, found it challenging to break into the tech world. She participated in Ready to Return in 2017 and now serves as a Product Management Lead for Digital Products at Visa.
When Human Resources Program Manager Seema Manchanda returned to work after taking time off to prepare her young son for school, she knew she wanted to try something new that built on her data analysis experience. She met her current manager at Ready to Return, where she relayed how her data analysis skillset and experience related to her current could bring value to Visa’s HR programs. Seema’s advice: “It is important to be clear about your priorities and what you want. Invest in advancing your skills in the area you are looking to pursue.”
