Today with Jenny Madden Welcome to A Well-Designed Business. As business owners, we face many difficult situations, including how to balance personal life with business ownership. Maternity leave is one of those situations that can change the course of your business. But my guest today, Jenny Madden, has navigated the difficult territory of maternity leave five separate times, both in her own leave and in the leaves of her employees. She believes that planning can make the situation more smooth on all sides. Today, we’re discussing the tricky waters of maternity leave, and how you can make decisions now that will impact it in the future. Pick it apart: [1:40] Jenny and LuAnn discuss the emotional aspect of maternity leave from both an individual side and a business owner perspective. [10:26] Jenny shares insights into the financial implications of maternity leave and your responsibilities as a business owner. [22:57] LuAnn and Jenny talk about distributing the workload during maternity leave.  [34:41] Jenny discusses the differences in her two maternity leaves and how her business growth changed them. [42:24] Jenny and LuAnn talk about hiring freelancers during maternity leave. LuAnn and Jenny Madden’s Ah-Ha moments: “I like what you’re saying about thinking now about what you want to do. If you don’t have any employees now, or you don’t have any that are pregnant, think about how you want to handle it.” -LuAnn Nigara “As a business owner, I had no idea that offering an unpaid maternity leave meant I was still paying. I’m still paying a significant chunk of their healthcare and I’m still paying taxes on the checks they’re getting from the state. I’m happy to do it, but I do think it’s helpful to understand what you’re in for.” -Jenny Madden “If you want to try to maintain your same productivity at the firm through their leave, then obviously you have to hire someone.” -Jenny Madden “You have to put one foot in front of the other with the information you have at hand. You cannot predict everything...make a plan for yourself and your business and try not to get too worried about the ‘what-ifs.’” -Jenny Madden More About Jenny Madden: Jenny Madden Design has been in business designing beautiful spaces since 2011. Prior to founding Jenny Madden Design, Jenny acquired formal training from top-tier programs in both Architecture (BA, Columbia University) and Interior Design (MS, Drexel University). She then gained invaluable professional experience across multiple facets of the industry, including construction management, architecture, furniture sales and interior design. The years she spent working for a general contractor, managing large-scale construction projects, are particularly unique within the interior design industry. This breadth of experience places Jenny Madden Design in the distinctive position to not only design beautiful interiors but to successfully manage projects through to completion. Jenny is able to speak the language of the broader industry and build successful partnerships with architects, builders, and vendors. She understands that a smooth, professional project experience is as important to her busy clients as an excellent aesthetic design. Jenny built out her team to ensure she has the right mix of talent to enhance and support your project. Stefania and Maggie support the design and drafting phases, while Greg keeps operations and budgets tightly controlled. Our goal as a firm is to maintain boutique customization while providing the systems and support typically reserved for firms with a larger headcount. At the end of the day, we believe our portfolio speaks for itself. We love that our work has been recognized in local and national publications, both in print and online. But we take the most pride in our ever-growing list of happy clients. Jenny Madden Design offers luxury interior design services in the greater New York City area, based out of our Hoboken, NJ office. Whether you are embarking on a ne