Meet the Macclesfield businesswoman behind new menopause in the workplace awareness company
A new enterprise co-founded by a Macclesfield woman aims to spread the word of menopause awareness and education for UK businesses.
Mission Menopause aims to engage, educate and empower women and employers through developing awareness of menopause within the workplace.
Their programmes are designed to meet the specific needs of an organisation, while remaining totally inclusive to all employees.
"We are absolutely adamant that the conversation needs to include everybody," said Co-Founder Elissa Dobson.
"As we say, every person is different, so is every business."
The company believes that becoming partners with organisations - for as long as they are needed - and being their expert partners on menopausal aspects is key to raising awareness and educating people in the workplace.
"Once I'd personally started the peri-menopause journey, I recognised that for both individuals going through the menopause, and also for managers and senior leaders, if they're not educated and made aware of menopause then we'll never make the change required, to better support women in the workplace," Elissa added.
"Both my co-founder, Caroline and I have extensive corporate backgrounds and are accredited Executive Menopause Coaches, so although we are not offering any clinical advice, we are organisation focused to deliver education programmes and guidance on working practices to meet the individual needs of the workforce."
Their range of programmes which are on offer include 'Menopause Awareness in the Workplace' for all employees, senior and managerial staff and menopause champions.
They also offer menopause consultancy to help employers develop policies and guidelines, and one-to-one coaching for leaders and women in the workplace.
Co-founders of Mission Menopause, Elissa Dobson and Caroline Walters first connected online when completing their in-depth Executive Menopause Coaching qualification.
"We recognised the kindred spirit in each other, both wanting to be part of making a positive change for women experiencing the menopause and organisations who will be affected by the impact of the menopause on their staff," Elissa also said.
"We decided to start the venture of Mission Menopause together, becoming co-directors, and only physically met for the first time in May.
"We are a great example of what can be achieved in the new world of hybrid working!"
"We must encourage a safe space in all businesses to talk about menopause, especially now when retention and recruitment is key in many industries. For example, the NHS employs 77% women and they're losing staff faster than they're able to recruit, so being able to retain experience and skills in the workplace is absolutely essential."
"We have to enable women to feel safe to speak up, to say they may feel like they're struggling with something but that doesn't need to be a negative experience if they've got the right support and understanding around them."
"A change I would like to see nationally is a recognition that if a woman does need to have time off or a tailored adjustment within their working environment, it's not perceived to be a negative thing."
"What we should be doing is supporting women, who are generally at the peak of their career, to be retained in the workplace because at present ten per cent of working menopausal women are leaving their jobs due to the impact of menopause.
"That's approximately 333,000 women a year in the UK who are leaving, but with support and education, we should be able to stop or reduce that unacceptable loss of skills and valuable individuals."
A common misconception about menopause is that it is an age-related issue.
"Yes, on average in the UK the menopause hits at about 51 years of age," Elissa agreed.
"However, it is a hormonal change and I speak to many women who have started their perimenopause journey in their early thirties or due to the effects of surgery or medical treatment.
"Unfortunately many women feel isolated and in a world that does not fully understand what they are going through.
"It is not directly an age-related issue and it is not all about hot flushes, there are over thirty different symptoms and everyone will have a different combination of those symptoms. Some people may only have mild symptoms and yet some will experience extreme symptoms."
Elissa has previously lived in Australia, but came back to her roots in Macclesfield 25 years ago, and wants to put Macclesfield on the map for being menopause friendly.
"There's some great organisations here already, women's gyms, social groups, the Macclesfield Menopause Group on Facebook," Elissa concluded.
"We are happy to have a conversation with any organisation who would like to know more or feels they would benefit from some Menopause Awareness training.
"It's a really exciting time for women, for menopause education and for businesses based in Macclesfield and across the UK.
You can find more about Elissa and Mission Menopause here and here.
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