These are the most family-friendly German start-ups

Start-ups are also on a new list compiled by the Kununu rating platform and the magazine Freundin . We took a look: What makes them so family-friendly?

Family friendliness is becoming increasingly important for German employees: in the 2019 "Unternehmensmonitor Familienfreundlichkeit" ("Company Monitor Family Friendliness") conducted by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs and the German Economic Institute, 96.1% of employees with children stated that family-friendly measures in the company are important to them. These include, for example, flexible working hours, parental leave, time off when children are ill, company childcare and advisory services. However, only 63.5% of respondents felt that the range of family-friendly measures actually met their needs.

The coronavirus pandemic has also shown that there is still a lot to do when it comes to balancing family and career. In order to attract talent, it is worthwhile for start-ups to look at how they can become more family-friendly. But how can they do this? Kununu and Freundin have reviewed 1400 companies from 30 sectors for their family-friendliness, we have combed through the list for start-ups and present the most family-friendly ones to you here. The higher current and former employees rated the working atmosphere, social benefits, work-life balance, salary, equal rights and family-friendly offers on Kununu, the higher the rating in the ranking.

On the list despite criticism of the work-life balance: Emma

Many people are familiar with Emma. After all, the Frankfurt-based start-up sold more than four million mattresses worldwide last year. Dennis Schmoltzi and Manuel Müller founded the start-up in 2015 and now employ over 850 people. With an overall rating of 4.48 out of five stars, Emma achieved second place in the "Retail" category in the Kununu ranking. Startbase asked what Emma does for employees with children - unfortunately, the request remained unanswered. On the Kununu page, however, many employees confirmed that there are flexible working hours and the option to work from home.

Nevertheless, the overall rating is somewhat deceptive. Many employees gave five stars without any further comments. It is striking that no comments mention the family-friendly measures. Instead, the detailed reviews contain criticism of the mattress start-up's lack of work-life balance - an issue that is essential for a family-friendly company. One former employee wrote in November 2021: "Trust-based working hours mean 13-hour days and weekend work for some colleagues, and many colleagues also work on vacation and when they are sick because otherwise things simply don't get done." Nevertheless, there are also employees who rate the work-life balance at Emma as good. "Strong development opportunities require a corresponding level of commitment; nevertheless, attention is paid to a balance, or rather the organization of working hours is largely left to you," said a PR employee in September 2020. One of the most recent reviews from January of this year is also rather positive: "In the current situation, I can say that my balance is right," writes the person. "The Covid situation distorts the assessment at this point, because many people are currently working from home more and more, which of course improves the work-life balance." However, he could not assess what it would be like after Covid. However, it is not really clear why Emma made it onto the list of the most family-friendly companies.

Staffbase: flexible working and a 4-day week in August

With an overall score of 4.57 out of five, Staffbase is in third place in the "Internet" category. The software startup was already in sixth place in the Kununu ranking in 2020. The Chemnitz-based company offers apps and platforms that enable companies to communicate better with their employees. Recently, the start-up founded by Frank Wolf, Lutz Gerlach and Martin Böhringer even cracked the one-billion-euro mark, making it one of Germany's unicorns. Since its foundation in 2014, the company has expanded rapidly and, in addition to Chemnitz, is also represented in Cologne, Leipzig, Dresden, Berlin, Munich, New York, Amsterdam and London.

But what makes Staffbase so family-friendly? In their reviews, current and former employees repeatedly emphasize one point: the ability to arrange their working hours flexibly and to work from home. One employee, who rated the company 4.9 out of five stars, praised the "flexible working hours for parents" and the "great facilities for working from home". Another employee writes: "I can take breaks at any time, start and stop as it suits me and my team colleagues and important appointments such as doctor's appointments or family matters always find a place in the calendar." There are only a few critical voices on the review portal. On the subject of work-life balance, one ex-employee commented: "As a family man, you have to fight for it, even though, strangely enough, the bosses have children themselves." Overall, the start-up scored very well in the work-life balance category with 4.6 out of five stars.

And what other benefits does Staffbase offer its employees? The start-up advertises various options for parental leave on its website. For example, mothers and fathers can continue to work part-time at Staffbase during parental leave and flexibly organize their parental leave. At all locations, the duration is based on the statutory regulations, but the company pays for up to twelve weeks everywhere. The start-up is also offering "Feel Good Fridays" across all locations in August. Employees have Fridays off throughout the month - Staffbase pays their full salary. "With this permanent benefit for all locations, we want to offer a balance to everyday working life and create more time for family and leisure," writes Staffbase HR Manager Marie Friedrich.

Subsidies for childcare costs and trust-based working hours at Kinexon

Kinexon is already beyond its start-up phase: the company, which was founded in Munich in 2012, is currently scaling up and now employs more than 250 people. Founders Maximilian Schmidt and Oliver Trinchera got their start with a technology that can record athletes' movement data. Now Kinexon is also venturing into industry, as the scale-up shows us here told us here. In the Kununu ranking, Kinexon achieved sixth place in the "Internet" category. The overall rating is 4.5 out of five stars.

The company grants employees subsidies towards childcare costs. The working hours are also family-friendly: employees can work from home and can start and finish when they want. The keyword that comes up again and again in the reviews and divides opinion is trust-based working hours. "Absolutely flexible working hours and working from home ensure a very good work-life balance," wrote one employee in February of this year, awarding four out of five stars for work-life balance. "Of course there are phases when there is more work, but this is rewarded and compensated for in quieter phases." The next evaluation from an employee with a small child also speaks positively in favor of trust-based working hours: "Taking a day off if necessary and making up the time at another time is no problem at all. The way the last year has gone with nursery etc., I'm really glad to have been at Kinexon and to have enjoyed the flexibility." Vacation can also be submitted one or two days in advance and no one is even remotely forced to work overtime.

In other reviews, employees complain that they are given too little time off and have to work too much overtime. "You are expected to work 10 hours or more at a stretch. Work on Saturdays and Sundays is expected," reads one of the latest reviews. Kinexon responded to the comment: "We rely very heavily on the personal responsibility of each employee, who can organize their working day themselves, rather than on control mechanisms or strict working time requirements."

Flexible working hours, overtime in sales: Audibene

Audibene is also on the list. The start-up takes seventh place in the "Medical Technology" category and has a Kununu score of 4.0. Founded in 2012 by Marco Vietor and Paul Crusius, the Berlin-based company operates a platform for hearing acoustics. Audibene employees inform and advise customers over the phone when choosing a hearing aid and help with health insurance processing. Audibene's partner companies then fit the devices for customers on site. Audibene now operates worldwide under the name "hear.com" and claims to employ 1,500 people.

"Through flexible working hours, home office options, paid sick days for children and individual parental leave models with flexible return to work, we want to make our contribution and make it as easy as possible for employees to combine work and family life," says Audibene founder and Managing Director Marco Vietor. Many of the reviews are positive about the work-life balance. For example, this comment from a sales employee from April this year: "I can take care of my family and do a great job at the same time thanks to the flexible system and working from home." Other reviews sound more critical. For example, this one from February 2022: "It is possible to work flexibly and stay within the contractually agreed hours. However, it is important to know that there is always pressure to do more so as not to 'let the family down'". The family refers to the Audibene family - because the employees repeatedly describe their cohesion as that of a family.

It is striking that the criticism of a lack of work-life balance comes mainly from the sales department. "You have to be there at least from 9 am to 6 pm. And even then you're looked at the wrong way if you leave on time - you could go the extra mile for the family. It doesn't matter that there's another family waiting at home, especially in sales," is one of the negative reviews.

Take-home message: Give your employees flexibility and enough time for the family!

As our analysis shows, even the most family-friendly start-ups still have some work to do. It was striking that employees with children often criticized the lack of work-life balance, particularly in the case of trust-based working time models. Start-ups should therefore not only trust their talents to fulfill their hours, but also ensure that employees do not work much more than agreed. After all, spending time with the family is just as important.