Making a job share work

"One of the most important aspects of job sharing is sharing what you learn."

Meet Gillian 

I’ve worked in Payroll for over 13 years, although I’d never worked in-house before joining Grant Thornton. My last role was at a smaller company in a more managerial position, spending a large amount of my time training others and people managing. Whilst I enjoyed the role, it was quite stressful and - with two young children at home - I couldn’t be the flexible parent I wanted to be. I worked part-time, but it was a full-time position and in hindsight, now I’ve experienced it, that could have been a job share.

I decided last year to look for a more suitable part-time role that would allow me to give the focus I wanted to my children and family. That’s when I came across the role with Grant Thornton. 

I’ve really enjoyed my first few months at the firm. Even though both Laura and I work largely remotely, we feel part of the team. We both bring different skills and experiences into the role too which has helped us settle in. 

When we started, Laura and I were given the freedom to find a way of working that worked for us, and that was really important – what works for one job share won’t necessarily be the best solution for another.

One of the most important aspects of job sharing is sharing what you learn. If training has happened on a day that Laura isn’t in for example, I will make sure to bring her up to speed. 

But it’s more than just training; it’s sharing insights that colleagues may share on calls or bits of information we pick up, so I always write everything down that I have learnt or discussed so I can share it with Laura as well.

Meet Laura

I started my career in tax disputes and investigations as an A-level entry trainee  in 2002, qualifying via ATT and CTA and progressing to tax manager. Whilst working on employment tax disputes, I took on a payroll BTEC to fully understand the process end-to-end.

I took maternity leave and some short career breaks before deciding to focus full-time on my family from 2019. As my family circumstances changed, I was ready to re-enter the workplace focusing on payroll again and I started looking for career opportunities. When I saw the job-share at Grant Thornton, it felt like a great way to get back to work with a well-known firm.

When searching for an employer, it was important that I found somewhere that truly understands work life balance, for example, needing flexibility to do the school run during a part-time working arrangement. I absolutely have that here, which is great, and it works both ways. There are times when we’ve been in a busy period, and I can flex my working days or hours during the week to help the team deliver on deadlines.  

At first, I was a little apprehensive about how the job share would work and handing over responsibility to someone else for part of the week, but it’s been a great experience! 

Gillian and I bring different skills to the role; Gillian has helped me with her previous payroll experience, while I’ve shared tax knowledge and understanding of how professional services firms work. 

We both work mainly from home, so open communication is key and makes it work. As we both work on a Wednesday, we have this day together to exchange updates and work alongside each other (albeit virtually). Having this day is key to the success of the job share.

We are very purposeful in our time together, making the most of the days when we are both in the office. We also work out loud, so that the other person can see what has happened or been discussed when they return to work.