Kids Camp: a bridge between executive education and family wellbeing

How can professional training and parenthood be reconciled?
It was this question which inspired the Kids Camp project, an initiative promoted by POLIMI Graduate School of Management in collaboration with Kikolle Lab, designed to offer concrete support to parents who choose to invest in their professional development.

These are the voices of Erika Ortu, Talent Development, Wellbeing & D&I Manager, and the Kikolle Lab educational team, to explain the vision and value of this project, which focuses on people, families and education.

How did the idea for the Kids Camp project come about and what goal does it aim to achieve for the POLIMI GSoM student community?

The project was conceived with the broader goal of making available to our community concrete and structured solutions to parenthood, a role that today seems increasingly complex to manage. In particular, this project aims to promote a better work-life balance. The measures that the state welfare system is able to provide appear limited and only partially able to meet people’s needs; often, being a  parent can cause qualms when it comes to choosing a time-consuming investment in management training and development, with the children sometimes at risk of losing out. 

Starting from this assumption, as a business school, we asked ourselves how we could not only promote female empowerment to combat the gender gap in the Italian market, but also how to make access to executive training as inclusive as possible for the new fathers who inhabit our classrooms. We thought it would be reassuring for a parent to know that while attending classes, their son or daughter is involved in a structured educational project designed to explore sustainability issues. This project is a good example of the concept of lifelong learning, which is very dear to us, and which thus manages to touch all generations and genders.

How does this initiative fit into the framework of the activities dedicated to wellbeing and inclusion promoted by POLIMI GSoM

The focus on parenthood is an integral part of our Strategic Plan 2024–2026, where it is included in the chapters dedicated to Wellbeing and Diversity & Inclusion. This is a concrete commitment to promoting a more inclusive educational and professional environment which is attentive to people's needs.

Today, facilitating the reconciliation of family and professional roles is a challenge for many corporate employees. If we want to address Diversity & Inclusion in our country with awareness and purpose, we need to be able to analyse the needs of the community and observe these needs in order to be able to best guide business choices (in terms of both projects and investment), assessing the repercussions and implications of our decisions and asking ourselves whether they can really leave a positive impact on the entire ecosystem. 

This initiative is therefore part of a broader Purpose, aimed at recognising career and professional development paths as important, but not all-encompassing dimensions of life. The goal is to make way for broader wellbeing, based on care, attention to people, and genuine human touch, by promoting a paradigm other than “career at all costs.”

What is Kikolle Lab’s educational philosophy and how can it support the community of POLIMI GSoM students through the Kids Camp project?

Kikolle Lab’s educational philosophy stems from the idea that every child is unique and that play, when guided with care and creativity, is a valuable tool for growth.
Through workshops inspired by sustainability, respect for nature and free artistic expression, we help children to discover the world in a fun, safe and inclusive way.

With the Kids Camp project, Kikolle Lab aims to make this experience available to the POLIMI GSoM community. While students pursue their studies, their children experience days packed with engaging educational activities, led by professional educators. In this way, we give practical support to families and create a bridge between academic development and family space.

What, in your opinion, is the value of an initiative such as Kids Camp for POLIMI GSoM students, and how can it contribute to making their educational experience more inclusive and sustainable?

Kids Camp provides practical support for POLIMI GSoM students, in particular for mothers and parents with young children, who often have to juggle family commitments with their studies. Offering a safe, well-organised place for children means supporting the balance between family and study, allowing parents to experience their academic journey with greater peace of mind and focus.
This initiative thus becomes an opportunity: it allows mothers, in particular, to invest in their education and to grow professionally. This is an important step towards more inclusive education, which removes real barriers to participation, and more sustainable education, because it puts families’ needs at the centre and recognises the value of care.

Kids Camp thus becomes not only a service, but a clear message: growing together, adults and children, is possible and enriches the entire community.