In her late 30s, after studying at Oxford and working in the ____1____ (慈善部门), Karen Mattison found herself at an ____2____ (<法>僵局). She had young children and no longer wanted to work full-time – but she couldn't find a ____3____ (合适的) part-time job. All that was available was low-skilled and ____4____ (低薪的). And she wasn't alone. "I kept meeting women and getting this message of ____5____ (挫败)," she says. "They were always asking, 'Where are these ____6____ (难以找到的) part-time jobs?'"
Mattison realised that the country's ____7____ (女性才智) was being wasted. There must be plenty of companies, she ____8____ (辩解), that would love a skilled employee, but might be able to afford their services for only a few days – or even just one day – a week. The trick would be to ____9____ (瞄准某物) these employers and match them with women wanting part-time employment that suited their abilities. The idea was the ____10____ (细菌，根源) of her company, Women Like Us, which she started in 2005 with co-director Emma Stewart, after securing £25,000 funding from the then department of trade and industry. This month the two women were ____11____ (被授予) MBEs.