Directors Day today, this thank you is for you

Today is Directors Day, we’re taking a moment to recognise you, the person others turn to when they need an answer, support or a decision. 

As centre directors they are required to work where children’s needs, family expectations, team wellbeing and operational responsibilities are all being met. They are expected to listen carefully, make decisions, resolve problems and keep the service moving and doing this in a professional and positive way.

For those who turn to their director throughout the day, this is an opportunity to consider the work behind the roles and responsibilities held. This is a day to really reflect on what they carry, and who makes time to thank them?

The work behind an ordinary day

Do we really take time to consider attributes of their role?  Think about what is involved in creating a roster and managing this task which involves more than filling shifts. What it does mean is considering ratios, qualifications, breaks, leave, programming time and continuity for children. All the moving parts that need to be considered when someone calls in sick will be linked to upholding compliance requirements.

Then there are the conversations. Through the day educators may need guidance, a family may require reassurance and a new team member needs support to find their feet. Directors must make space for people’s concerns.  This can be difficult at times trying to balance all of these responsibilities.

Alongside all of this work is the underlining commercial factors that includes enrolments and budgets, then we step into maintenance and contractor matters, and regulatory responsibilities which ideally involves keeping correspondence and any follow-up to support small issues from becoming larger ones. Small items throughout the day that are noticed by the director may attract little attention once it is dealt with, however each item still requires someone to notice, respond and action it.

Directors need support too

The role also involves responsibilities with consequences for children’s safety and the service’s operation. 

All the responsibility held by a director deserves acknowledgement, alongside the professional judgement involved in exercising it. Directors recognise when to act, when to seek advice and when a concern needs to be escalated. 

Directors also need the backing of their approved provider, clear systems and colleagues who share responsibility for safe practice and aligned values as well as a team that goes that extra mile and checks in on their director.

A thank you that lasts beyond today

To all directors on this special day, you are our early childhood leaders, and we acknowledge and celebrate you today. It may be a special message, a morning tea or a card with a personal thank you for helping someone through a difficult conversation, making time when someone felt uncertain or following up when something mattered to a family.

For approved providers and leadership teams, make time not just today but each day to listen to your director’s concerns, help resolve an issue that has remained on their desk for a while or protect time for work that needs their full attention. Key to appreciation is for it to be visible in the support available after today’s celebration.

To the directors reading this, thank you for the decisions, conversations and follow-through that others may never see. Thank you for welcoming families, guiding educators and helping create places where children can feel safe and known. Today, take a moment to recognise your own contribution and let the people around you recognise it too.