How to cover maternity leave for an EA or PA role

Covering an employee while on maternity leave is something you need to get right to ensure a smooth transition and minimal disruption in your team. But it’s hard to know where to start and how to cover maternity leave in the best manner for your business. 

As a team of skilled virtual assistants (VAs), we have successfully worked with multiple companies to cover maternity leave positions, and we know what it takes to get the process right. 

In this blog post, we’re explaining how to find the right person to cover a maternity leave position for an executive assistant (EA) or personal assistant (PA) and what to consider to prepare properly. 

Plus, learn essential tips on planning for your employee’s return to work, so you’re clued up before they leave. 

Step 1: Define the roles and responsibilities you need to cover 

Although covering an EA’s maternity leave position might sound as simple as passing all of your existing employee’s tasks and responsibilities to someone new, you should assess if your expectations are realistic. 

Look at your employee’s key tasks and responsibilities. Some of those tasks may only be possible within their job role due to specific experience in your company, so you should start by determining which tasks might need to be reassigned internally. 

You should also identify essential vs. non-essential duties to streamline the maternity cover plan. This will allow your replacement to hit the ground running and understand where their priorities lie. Remember, whoever replaces your employee whilst on maternity leave will need a transition period, so don’t forget to allow for this.

Tip: Create a task breakdown document to ensure clarity for the cover hire – for both you and the maternity replacement candidate covering EA or PA duties.

Step 2: Work out the type of maternity cover you need 

The next step in working out how to cover maternity leave is picking the right type of support. There are a few common routes to finding the right cover for your EA or PA, all with pros and cons: 

In-house maternity leave cover

• Pro: Existing team members already understand your business, reducing the need for extensive training.
• Con: Redistributing tasks can lead to increased workload and burnout for the remaining team.

Temporary fixed-term contractors

• Pro: A contractor can step in with the right skills and experience to handle the role with minimal disruption, usually found via a recruitment agency. 
• Con: Recruitment of the right person and the onboarding process take time. Short-term hires can be both costly and unreliable due to their temporary nature, as our client John Ellerman Foundation found out when an initial fixed-term hire left early in the contract. 

Flexible support from virtual assistants 

• Pro: A VA offers cost-effective, scalable support without the need for a lengthy hiring process. This often works out highly cost-effective, as you only pay for the tasks completed with no extra overheads. Experienced VAs can adapt quickly to new systems and processes, and provide industry-specific expertise, all of which reduces training time.
• Con: As remote workers, VAs may not be suitable for roles that require in-person presence.

What works for one business might not work for another, so take some time to consider your options for maternity leave cover – finding the right fit is essential. 

Step 3: Prepare for a smooth handover 

Once you’ve decided which route to go down for your maternity leave cover, it’s important to prepare for your replacement to start so they’re set up for success. Here are a few things you should do: 

• Document key processes and workflows: Make sure they know how to carry out essential tasks by writing standard operating procedures (SOPs) with the information required.
• Plan for training: Arrange knowledge transfer sessions between the departing employee and the temporary cover with a cross-over training period. 
• Set up access to necessary tools, software, and accounts: Make sure this is all ready before they start working for you, so they’re not waiting to gain access to your company’s data. 
• Define expectations for performance and communication: Following on from the above where it’s useful to list their roles and responsibilities, you should also set clear expectations for them and explain how to get the best out of your existing team. 

Step 4: Manage the transition and monitor performance 

When you’re actively covering a maternity leave position, monitor how the initial transition is going and schedule regular check-ins with the temporary hire. It’s also useful to gather feedback from the wider team to see if they’re meeting expectations.

You want to find out if you need to provide any additional resources or support, such as training, and see whether they’re managing the workload. For example, if your business demand grows, are they coping with the increase or do you need to make adjustments?

Tip: Use project management tools such as Trello, monday.com or ClickUp* to easily track ongoing tasks and make communication in your team stronger.  

Step 5: Plan for your employee to return to work

Maternity leave cover doesn’t just end when the employee returns – it’s important to plan a smooth transition back into their role to avoid overwhelm and disruption. 

Many new mothers start with an initial plan to return after 6 or 8 months only to take the full year’s maternity entitlement, so you need to have clear communication channels with them. 

This is where having flexible maternity support from a VA (or team of VAs) can be hugely beneficial, as they simply continue working with you until your employee returns and is up to speed. 

Here’s how to cover maternity leave and successfully plan for your employee’s return: 

1. Communicate with your employee before their return

Don’t wait until they’re due back in the office. Although you want to keep communication to a minimum to avoid disruption, we’d suggest that you check in a few weeks before their planned return date to see how they are and discuss if their expectations have changed. 

For example, ask if they plan to return full-time or if they need a phased approach.

You can also use this as an opportunity to provide updates on any changes that happened during their leave that will affect their return to work (new processes, team changes, client updates) so they’re well-prepared. 

2. Plan a gradual handover

Avoid handing everything back all at once – allow time for a transition period. If you hired a VA, consider keeping them on temporarily to support the transition and allow your employee to ease back into work. This allows your returning employee to focus on their core responsibilities without feeling overloaded.

To help your employee catch up more effectively, create a clear document summarising key tasks completed during their absence and any process improvements or changes. A VA can also assist with training if any major updates or new tools were introduced.

3. Be flexible with their return

Some returning employees might need flexible hours or remote working options, especially in the first few months. Have a conversation about workload expectations and how they can best reintegrate without stress. Encourage open conversations about their well-being to ensure a positive return-to-work experience.

Cover your EA maternity leave position with reliable virtual assistants 

Great news – if you’ve followed these steps, you’re now well prepared and know how to cover maternity leave positions with success, avoiding disruption in your team! 

It’s down to you to decide on the best hiring route, but here’s a recap as to why working with a VA for maternity cover for your EA or PA is a great choice: 

• Flexibility: VAs scale up or down, working only the hours they’re needed.
• Cost-effective: Only pay for the hours/tasks completed, with no need for extra office space or overheads.
• Quick onboarding: Experienced VAs can adapt quickly to new systems and processes and require minimal training.
• Specialist skills: Many VAs bring industry-specific expertise, reducing training time.
• Seamless transition: VAs are an ideal choice for hybrid teams or businesses that operate remotely and can improve the return-to-work transition period. 

Has an employee told you they’re expecting and you want to discuss how to cover maternity leave with our VA service? Get in touch – we can help you work out the best approach based on your business needs.

*Please note, some of these are affiliate links, meaning if you click and make a purchase, we may receive a small reward. We only ever recommend tools that we use in our business, or have personally tried and tested.