Friday 8 March is International Women’s Day, so all this week we are featuring some of the inspirational women we have met through our SHE Means Business event. Today we feature Jo Gregory and Jane O’Gorman Directors of recruitment agency Ten2Two and speakers at our January She Means Business event.
Jane O’Gorman and Jo Gregory – International Women’s Day
Ten2Two is changing the recruitment world one placement at a time. It has been pioneering flexible and part-time working for almost two decades, helping thousands of women find meaningful work and supporting employers as they embrace new work patterns.
As part of our celebrations of inspirational women and businesses for International Women’s Day, Jane O’Gorman and Jo Gregory share their passion for changing the workplace and the Ten2Two mission in supporting women wanting to work part-time or flexibly.
Ten2Two is more than a recruitment agency. It is, says Jo and Jane, a movement that changes the lives of its candidates – which it calls members – and the businesses that turn to it for support.
It was a business born from personal experience with its founders struggling to meet the demands of work and family life.
Jane, previously an accountant, has been with the business since day one, joining its founders John and Deborah Sullivan in 2007 to start the business. Jo joined eight years ago having worked in the notoriously un-family-friendly music and entertainment industry.
“Talent is being kicked out of the working world because women cannot work the 30- or 40-hour week that is often demanded of them,” explains Jo. “All that amazing talent is wasted.”
“We hear from incredible women talking about the struggles they have finding or keeping their jobs simply because they had a break to have children,” adds Jane. “The driver behind Ten2Two is that more can be done to support women returning to work or looking for a different way of working.”
Ten2Two is purpose-led with a clear guiding mission to do the right thing for its members wanting to work flexibly or part-time.
It leads an educational and workshop programme for its members covering a wide range of subjects from returning to work after a career break through to managing time effectively when working flexibly or part-time. It has to date helped many thousands of women – and men – find meaningful flexible and part-time work.
“We are a recruitment company, but we wanted to be therapists for our members,” explains Jane. “We know the emotions that are involved when making that transition and support them in their journey, giving them the tools and confidence to make that text step.”
Equally important is the work it is doing to educate businesses both through consultancy and a workshop programme.
“There is a good commercial reason for doing this, but it also furthers our mission,” says Jo. “That might mean helping businesses realise the benefits of part-time working, exploring options with a business, through to finalising job descriptions.
“Businesses need to understand that part-time working is just that – you cannot squeeze a full-time job into part-time hours.”
“We often find that for many businesses it is more of a realisation than education of the tremendous benefits they can gain by making a few small changes to their business,” adds Jane. “It is enormously rewarding.”
Doing the right thing for its members has built a successful company, with more than 20 full-time and part-time employees working flexible hours helping women and businesses across the country. There is, says Jo and Jane, interest from women and businesses overseas too.
Ten2Two’s mission is, however, far from over. Whilst the post-Covid workplace has changed to embrace flexible working, women remain the primary carers for children. Careers are all too often compromised, says Jo and Jane. “There is still a mountain to climb.”
But change is happening, and quickly.
“There are some fabulous voices championing women in the workplace,” says Jane, “and the legislative landscape is slowly catching up with a right to request flexible working from day one. But there is no doubt that every woman’s story is personal to them, with challenges and many obstacles in their path.
“But we are encouraged. Change is happening and at a faster pace.”
That change is in no small part thanks to the efforts of Jo and Jane, the growing team at Ten2Two, their members and the businesses they work with.
Visit https://www.ten2two.org/.
About She Means Business
Launched in 2017, SHE Means Business is our free bi-monthly lunch & learn event supporting entrepreneurs in Hertfordshire. A relaxed and friendly space to connect with like minded people, be inspired and learn from each other. Held in our Watford office, it includes a delicious lunch and is FREE! Find out more.
Our next event is on Wednesday 13 March featuring Mental Health – book your place
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