Enjoy your parental leave without the expense of your career
The RETAIN Parental Leave Coaching Experience
This coaching experience, developed by the Center for Parental Leave Leadership, is an evidence-based approach to the parental leave transition. It will help new parents navigate leave and return to their careers with clarity, confidence, and care.
Our offering is an in-depth, personalized approach designed specifically for high-achieving parents who are balancing both career progression and the transition into parenthood.
If this resonates with you … let’s partner together to shape your upcoming parental leave into what you want and deserve.
A leave that:
Supports your transition into parenthood (even if it’s not your first!) with confidence and peace
Has minimal career impact
Prioritizes what matters most — you and your baby’s well-being
Does this sound like you?
A career driven and high achieving leader
An expecting parent (first time or 2nd, 3rd, 4th!)
You feel overwhelmed preparing for your upcoming parental leave
You seek guidance from someone who has been there, a leader turned coach who has taken parental leave twice
How you will be supported
1:1 Virtual Coaching Sessions
Individualized support for new parents over the parental leave transition period with 2 - 12 sessions.
Parental Leave Transition Assessment™
Developed by Dr. Amy Beacom with leading workplace psychologists over many years, the PLTA is a self-assessment designed to identify a new parent’s unique assets and liabilities.
North Star Values Exercise
Through this exercise, we will identify what’s most important to you. Intentionally identifying your core values and how they’ll guide this transition will pay dividends in this transition.
Next Steps Action Plan
Experts at the Center for Parental Leave Leadership (CPLL) created this plan to help you plan your parental leave and ensure you are supported and ready to meet the joys and challenges of welcoming your new child or children!
W-PMAD Mental Health Screenings
To increase diagnosis and support, we integrate perinatal mental health screening into the parental leave transition assessment developed by CPLL. Learn more here.
Email Support
There is no need to wait for our next coaching session; feel free to email me whenever you seek resources, guidance, or encouragement. I am here for you and your growing family!
Join us in 2025
Coaching Sessions starting February 2025
•
Due dates May 2025 - September 2025
•
Coaching Sessions starting February 2025 • Due dates May 2025 - September 2025 •
👋I’m Cassie - Your Coach
From HR Leader to Parental Leave Coach: My Journey
For over a decade, I’ve been designing and enhancing parental leave policies—advocating for more paid time off, phased return-to-work programs, and benefits that truly support new parents. I took pride in shaping policies that gave employees the time and space to transition into parenthood. But it wasn’t until I had my first daughter in 2021 that I realized how unprepared I was for my own transition.
Up until then, my identity was deeply tied to my career—I thrived in my work and had a solid parental leave plan in place. But when my daughter arrived, I wasn’t ready for how much my world would shift. Instead of shaping my leave intentionally, the transition happened to me, not with me. I returned at 18 weeks, but in my heart, I knew it was too soon. I left for a job closer to home, thinking that was the fix, but the challenge wasn’t just logistical—it was about identity, expectations, and the emotional toll of becoming a working parent.
Two years later, I had my second daughter, and while I had more experience, the shift still felt profound. At just four weeks postpartum, my company had its second layoff of the year, and I was impacted. But this time, I knew how to advocate for myself. As an expert in parental leave design and labor law, I understood my rights and leveraged California’s state benefits to extend my leave, heal, and be fully present with my baby. That experience reinforced what I already knew: this system is hard to navigate, and too many parents are suffering in silence—uncertain, unprepared, and unsupported.
What started as a hotline for friends and colleagues has grown into something bigger—a mission to help parents take the leave they deserve. Through Bespoke HR Partners, I now coach ambitious, career-driven parents to prepare for and navigate their leave with confidence and clarity. My goal is to help leaders take the time they need without sacrificing their careers—to recognize that life at work and home will change, but with the right tools and support, that change can be empowering, not overwhelming.
I’ve been where you are. I’ve made the mistakes, felt the doubts, and navigated the unknowns. Now, I’m here to make sure you don’t have to go through it alone. Let’s build a leave plan that works for you.
More about Cassie
Mom of two littles (a preschooler and a toddler)
Founder of Bespoke HR Partners – specializing in Parental Leave Coaching & HR Consulting
Certified RETAIN Parental Leave Coach & DMEC Certified Leave Specialist
15+ years in VC-backed startups, including 5+ years as a Head of HR
Expert in parental leave strategy, labor law, and executive transitions – helping parents take the leave they deserve
Passionate about helping career-driven parents navigate leave with clarity, confidence, and career security
Big fan of movies, travel, and a really great cup of coffee
Let’s create a leave plan that works for you.
FAQs
-
The RETAIN Parental Leave Coaching Experience is an evidence-based program developed by the Center for Parental Leave Leadership. It’s designed to support high-achieving parents as they navigate the transition into parenthood while balancing their careers. Through personalized coaching sessions, tools like the Parental Leave Transition Assessment™, and actionable plans, this program helps you approach parental leave with confidence, clarity, and care.
-
This program is for career-driven, high-achieving individuals preparing for or currently on parental leave. Whether it’s your first child or your fourth, if you’re feeling overwhelmed by the transition and want guidance from someone who’s been there—both as a leader and a parent—this program is for you.
-
Preparing for parental leave is more than a document you share with your manager about your workload. Holistically, parental leave is a life transition to parenthood—a new chapter that will look and feel different. I aim to support you beyond templates and match your values and ambition so that you can thoughtfully prepare for and adjust to this new chapter of your life, from working person to working parent.
You’ll receive individualized 1:1 coaching sessions, tools like the Parental Leave Transition Assessment™, and exercises like the North Star Values Exercise to guide your decision-making. You’ll also have email access for in-between support, ensuring you feel prepared and supported every step of the way. We focus on helping you transition into parenthood confidently, maintain career momentum, and prioritize your and your baby’s well-being.
-
We recommend starting the program during your pregnancy or at least a few months before your planned parental leave. This allows time to prepare your leave plan, set career transition goals, and establish a strong foundation for your journey into parenthood. Coaching then continues during and after your leave to support your return-to-work transition.
That being said, it’s never too late, and we offer packages to return to work if you’ve just discovered us.
-
We have multiple offerings and packages to match your needs. These packages start at $800.
They all include:
2 - 12 personalized 1:1 coaching sessions
The Parental Leave Transition Assessment™
The North Star Values Exercise
A Next Steps Action Plan
W-PMAD mental health screenings
Ongoing email support
This comprehensive offering is designed to give you the clarity, confidence, and care you deserve during this transformative time.
You can learn more about each package on our booking site: https://paperbell.me/parental-leave-coach
Get in Touch
Excited about potentially collaborating with us? Feel free to fill out this form and we'll get back to you promptly.
I look forward to hearing from you!