Interview: How to Improve Health Outcomes for Women and Families in Work AND Reap the Benefits
About
In this session, Kate Ryder, founder and chief executive of Maven Clinic, which works with employers to deliver personalised and comprehensive support for women and families throughout the journeys of fertility and family-building, pregnancy, parenting, paediatrics and menopause, shared how employee engagement is an essential component of better workplace outcomes.
Ryder encouraged employers to “really listen – whether through the conduit of ERGs, or via employee surveys, to what their employees are saying.”
Questioned by Dr Nighat Arif, Ryder said: “Recent research (That Works for Me, 2023) shows that less than a quarter (24%) of women go back to full-time after having children, and of that 24%, 79% ended up leaving anyway due to not being able to maintain a full-time role, 90% of Maven members return to work following parental leave.”
And as Dr Nighat Arif added: “These are societal issues, not women's issues. It's everybody's issue. As circles, women tend to be constantly put into a square. The time has come to say no. And that's why having conversations like this are vital, so women are never seen as weak or 'a problem' because they’re having a menstrual cycle or menopausal symptoms.”
Speaker
Kate Ryder
Ms
Kate Ryder is the founder and CEO of Maven Clinic, the largest virtual clinic for women’s and family health. Maven offers virtual care and services across fertility, maternity, pediatrics, and menopause, and operates the largest women's and family health telehealth network globally. With Maven, employers and health plans can see improved maternal outcomes, lower costs, and attract and retain more parents in the workforce. Named one of Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies, Maven has raised $300 million USD in capital from top investors, including Sequoia Capital, Oak HC/FT, General Catalyst, Dragoneer Investment Group, and Lux Capital.
Kate founded Maven in London in 2014, reimagining healthcare for women and families from the ground up after seeing first hand how the lack of access to care impacted those starting a family and returning to work as new parents. Prior to founding Maven, Kate worked in venture capital and as a journalist, writing for The Economist from Southeast Asia, New York and London and for The New Yorker. In 2009, she worked with former U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, helping him write his memoirs about the financial crisis.
Kate has been named to Fortune’s 40 Under 40 and to Fast Company’s “Most Creative People.” She has spoken on stage at industry events including the Forbes Healthcare Summit, Fortune Brainstorm Health, the Oliver Wyman Health Innovation Summit and HLTH. Kate received her B.A. from the University of Michigan and her MSc from the London School of Economics. She lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband and three children.
