Allison Robinson founded the Mom Project to match working mothers with companies in need of their dormant talent. The photograph is by Gesi Schilling.
The Mom Project is an Inc. Best in Business honoree. The second annual Best in Business awards recognize companies that have made a huge impact on their industries, their communities, the environment, and society as a whole.
Allison Robinson's firstborn son is exactly the same age as the Mom Project, which she launched in 2015. According to Robinson, 40 percent of skilled American women leave the workforce after having children. I decided to tackle this problem because I was sleep deprived. I saw a chance to build a company that could help mothers find work and help the economy.
The work has translated into $300 million in economic opportunity over the past three years by way of job placement and pay increases. The core jobs women tend to find through the Mom Project, which Robinson is quick to point out is more of a platform than a job board, include HR, finance, administrative, and product-design roles. They range from full-time to part-time.
The companies benefit from working with the Mom Project. "We're sitting on data for half a million women," says Robinson. We can help dictate to companies what types of flexibility they should be offering in these roles to be most attractive to moms. She says that the Mom Project's main goal is to help companies understand what it means to be a parent. "We're making them realize that they are still committed to their career."
There's more. The Mom Project set up a scholarship program to give free technology training to women of color after George Floyd was killed. Robinson says the initiative has helped more than 2,000 women into tech certifications and jobs at companies like IBM. Robinson says it's a way to use the success of the core business to invest in the next generation of diverse talent.
Business has been brisk. The shift to remote work and tight labor conditions have made hiring moms more appealing, but they are out of work after the Pandemic. Tiffany Kelly, a graduate of RISE, says it is hard to wrap your head around the idea of being let go from a job because you are a mother. She found a job at People, Inc., a nonprofit health and human services agency, after going through the RISE training.
Working mothers need career advancement and job opportunities. Robinson points out that it costs fifteen grand for basic-quality infant care in America, and that some changes are bigger than corporate America. Robinson has been working with policymakers to promote pro- family initiatives. She says that it has been devastating for women and mothers.
Robinson is going to go on maternity leave again with her third child. She has a good track record and that time should lead to a lot of ideas.
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