Blog post explaining Bring Your Parents to Work Day

Ghostwritten for a tech recruiter’s blog

Hands up if you’ve ever heard one of your parents have an exchange with one of their friends like this one:

Friend: What does your son do?
Parent: Oh, he works in computers.
Friend: Doing what exactly?
Parent: (decisively) Computers.

While this is pretty adorable, it is also kind of sad. Our careers represent a huge chunk of the way we spend our time, and the career choices we make can be deeply personal. If we can’t talk to those closest to us about that time and those choices, it puts distance between us.

Companies are starting to recognize this generational divide, and are working to close it. LinkedIn has put itself at the forefront, with its Bring Your Parents To Work Day.

Here is why everyone benefits from initiatives like this.

1. Parents will no longer feel embarrassed about their kids being smarter than they are. They will also be able to brag about you more accurately.
2. Employees get to show off a little, as well as bridge the gap between ourselves and our parents. It also paves the way for future useful career advice! Our folks might not have had tech jobs like ours, but they’ve got decades of career experience to draw on.
3. Businesses do better when their employees feel understood and supported by their families. Happy employees often take fewer sick days and have a higher quality of work.

So whether you are an employer or an employee, consider taking the time to organize a similar event in your workplace.

At the very least, I bet someone will spring for some great snacks. It’s also a chance to dig out that tie you got last Christmas to prove to your mom that you DO wear it to work.

Would YOU bring your parents to work? Tell us why (or why not) in the comments!