Transforming the false tradeoff between career and parenthood 
into a win-win

Parents loving a new born baby
Parentaly CEO Allison Whalen while expecting a child standing in front of a couch with a smile
Founding story

Parental leave is broken. We’re here to fix it.

When I first announced that I was expecting, my excitement about starting a family soon turned into surprise, stress, and fear. I was worried that going on leave would slow down my progress at work. I wasn’t sure how to prepare my team for my absence. And my manager had no clue how to support me. 

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Freehand arrow drawing

After my leave, I returned to a disaster. My direct reports were miserable and one of them decided to quit.

A lot had changed since I’d been gone, and I struggled to catch up. My team was also restructured under a new manager. I juggled between sorting through the chaos at work and finding time to pump in between.

Family photograph of Parentaly CEO Allison Whalen and her partner with three kids on their front steps
A close up image of an employee typing on a laptop
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Group photograph of three kids
As I spoke to countless more new parents returning to work, what I realized is that my story wasn’t unique. In fact, it was the norm across companies of all industries and sizes.

Although many were increasing the length of parental leave policy, they were all missing a support system to help careers – and business – stay on track through this transition. Hearing how common it is for parental leave to go wrong and knowing it could be so much better motivated me to start Parentaly.

Three kids smiling.
At Parentaly, we fundamentally believe that it’s possible to have a child, one of the most human and transformational life experiences that many people will ever go through, and thrive in your career at the same time.

In fact, when it’s approached the right way, parental leave can be an opportunity for careers and businesses to accelerate.

Our mission

To build the best parental leave experience for everyone: employees, their managers, their teams, and their organizations.

Our values

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Solve big problems

We’re here to understand and solve real problems, delivering excellent experiences for working parents, their teams, and their organizations.

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Engage in healthy debate

Many minds are better than one. We value different perspectives and constructive feedback, assuming positive intent and avoiding pride of ownership. 

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Move fast, then iterate

We seek to put things out into the universe fast because we learn by doing. And then we iterate along the way to make them even better.

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Growth is a team sport

We’re laser-focused on growing Parentaly responsibly and quickly, so that we can truly impact the working parent experience.

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Choose to have fun

Building an innovative business is incredibly hard — but with the right mindset, even the challenges can turn into opportunities.

Parentaly team group photograph
Parentaly team group photograph

"Before my parental leave, I was deeply anxious about how my leave would impact my career and my team and after my return, I struggled to reintegrate after a period of rapid change. At Parentaly, I have the privilege of solving a problem that I personally understand and that’s widely experienced – helping people and organizations see parental leave as an opportunity."

Mansi Kothari
VP, Product & Operations
Parent to Niam

"It’s rare to find a company doing actual good (for society) that’s also solving a critical business challenge. At Parentaly, I had my first ever career coaching experience just before becoming a dad, and it was life changing. I’m proud to help pave the way for all parents to take their full parental leave with confidence."

Rich Burke
Head of Growth
Parent to Xavier

"I’ve always believed that we should strive to center our humanity in how we engage with our careers. Transitioning into parenthood is a very human experience, but it can feel at odds with pursuing a career. I love that helping others succeed in both is at the core of what we do at Parentaly, and I love seeing and believing in the impact of the work that I do on a daily basis."

Rachel Andes
Program Associate

"I am such a strong believer in supporting parents as they transition into parenthood. As a coach, I create space and support for parents to think through what is important to them and prioritize. I love empowering parents and caregivers to give more to themselves and subsequently more to their families, workplace and community."

Maelle Fonteneau
Parentaly Career Coach

"I had a rough experience returning to work after parental leave. I was overwhelmed and felt like I must be doing something wrong. Discovering Parentaly was my “aha” moment that it wasn’t just me; many new parents face challenges during this transition. I love that I get to spend my days helping others have a better experience than I had while working with companies that see the value in supporting their teams through parental leave."

Jenna Vassallo
Director of Marketing
Parent to Emmy and Abby
Employees working together laughing while on a laptop
Join our team

We’re always looking for humble, collaborative, and mission-driven teammates who are ready to roll up their sleeves and help take Parentaly to the next level.

See open roles

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Contact us at [email protected]

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Press inquiries

Let’s tell the world about how to create the best parental leave experience!

To reach out about press opportunities, contact us at [email protected]