Article, Leadership, SBM

SBLs: How To Earn The Respect You Deserve

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Respect

Laura Williams, of LJ Business Consultancy, explains why SBLs need to shout about what they do in order to receive the respect they deserve – and why qualifications alone aren’t the answer…

I had the brief for this article long before I saw a debate erupt on Twitter – a debate about how SBLs can gain respect as a profession in an industry full of pedagogues. The blog that triggered this debate discussed the value of continuous professional development and the achievement of higher-level SBL qualifications in order to compete for roles such as CEO.

As a former SBL who has achieved both CIPD and CIPFA qualifications, I can confirm that, yes, these qualifications did support my progression to the role of COO. However, I can also say that it was not solely these qualifications that enabled this progression; in fact, I obtained my CIPD qualification after my promotion to SBL and I achieved my CIPFA qualification after I took on the additional role of CFO. I reported to the board, developed robust strategies and led an audit – and not once did the fact I didn’t have a qualification in finance, at the time, hinder my performance in my role.

A magic key?

Too often, qualifications are seen as the ‘magic key’ to unlock the next role up the ladder. I cannot tell you how many well-qualified people I have met in my career (teachers, headteachers, HR managers and CFOs) who have not performed well in their role despite the list of letters after their name. The reason for this, I believe, is that the difference between being qualified and actually doing the job is like learning to drive – you pass the test and you’re on the road – but the reality of the road is very different to that which you encountered in test conditions. A qualification can develop you into a role, and it can rubber stamp your experience, but it cannot replicate time-served, on-the-ground delivery. As someone responding to the blog said, ‘CPD develops skills – it does not prove them’.

Just yesterday I spoke to a newly-appointed CEO who had been told, only 12 months previously that, as he had only been a headteacher for a year, he was not a suitable CEO candidate. I myself was told, after being long-listed for a CEO position, that I was a credible candidate but the board felt it was ‘too much of a risk’ to appoint a non-teacher – and I was accredited, experienced and proven!

‘The blocker to CEO roles for SBLs, COOs and CFOs is the insistence on headship experience or QTS,’ a person responding to the blog said, and I cannot help but agree. The perception of the role in a teacher-led industry is hugely varied. I have worked with amazing leaders who have recognised my value and my contribution and have paid me accordingly; I have also worked with leaders who have talked over my head rather than listened to my contribution to the discussion.

Who’s happy? Who’s not?

The SBLs who I work with now, and who are happiest in their roles, are the ones who have the support of their head and have a direct and tangible impact on the performance of their school. Some of these SBLs are not qualified to a high level, but execute their day job as good as any SBL I’ve come across, and are more than ready to take the next step into COO and CFO roles.

The SBLs I work with who are the unhappiest are the ones whose headteachers exclude them from SLT meetings and point-blank ignore any suggestions for improvement that they may have. These SBLs never get the chance to show how much of a difference they could make if only they were allowed. Often, these SBLs have sought additional qualifications, yet these have made no difference. These SBLs are being held back by an individual or school who hold tight to the view that an SBL is nothing more than an administrator.

Whilst I advocate for professional development, and I help individual SBLs to break through the glass wall (not even a ceiling at this point), I believe that the quickest way for SBLs to gain respect in their profession is for us to tackle the issue at source – and that is the perception of headteachers, SLTs, governors and trustees.

The work that I do with SBLs, and the work that I do on the NPQEL programme, is my way of helping to shift perception. I use what I have learnt to show executive leaders what is possible when it comes to working with someone like me – or rather someone like you, the SBL who has ambition and the aspiration to do more, to be better and to progress to a executive leadership role in the future.

The role that we undertake as SBLs is of equal value and should be recognised and remunerated as such and, not only this, we can give them a good run for their money when it comes to debating strategy, business and delivering value and improvement for our students.

The ISBL is correct; there is no reference point for executive leadership, specifically where it converges at CEO level. It has done great work in lobbying the government and raising the profile of the role within the industry. However, until the decision-makers, the recruiters and the leaders on the ground not only feel brave enough, but also secure enough, to appoint a SBL or a COO/CFO to a senior leadership position, then nothing will change.

I understand that there are a handful of non-teacher CEOs currently leading MATs; we would probably describe them as unicorns! Why? Because we don’t hear about them enough. We don’t talk about their successes and we don’t celebrate their progression. What can we learn from them? What made the decision-makers in their organisation take that leap, and what benefits have they seen?

I always say that respect and credibility cannot be given, they must be earned. SBLs have to walk the walk and talk the talk, but too many are being held back and falling silent because the leaders in their organisations ignore them. To this, I say, ‘Keep walking, keep talking and, when you need to, shout.’

That’s how I did it – I talked and talked until people listened and until I proved that I was right. It takes courage, it takes resilience and it takes a lot of chocolate (believe me!) but it can be done.

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Written for: Education Executive Magazine (@edexec)

Article, HR, Staffing

How to Set Staff Objectives for Performance Management

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Performance Management

When it comes to the topic of performance management and target setting, it’s easy to tie ourselves up in policies, templates, tick boxes and deadlines.

What is often forgotten is that performance is an all year round topic and an ongoing and meaningful dialogue between leaders and teams should be engaged in throughout the year.

Staff shouldn’t have to wait until the annual cycle comes full circle in September to find out that their performance is sub-standard and that they are not receiving an increment. 

What the formal process does do is allow you to support your views of staff performance or disabuse yourself of potential biases objectively. 

Performance management is the gateway to personal development, professional progression and succession planning. It’s to identify those who need support, to support those who are ambitious and ready to progress and to identify specific and individually beneficial CPD.

The outcomes of this process are focused on staff pay; whether it is an increment or accelerated progression through the pay scale. It is here where the process can become controversial.

To understand how you can improve both clarity and objectivity in both target setting and the measurement of success, let me share with you the terminology I use when discussing staff performance.

  • Appraisal: Appraising the job that is being done, the one outlined in the job description and person specification; the one that they are paid to do. 
  • Performance Management: For those who have consistently exceeded performance expectation and outperformed any targets set by a pre-determined margin. 

To allow both fair appraisal and to incorporate performance management for those who have excelled, a holistic performance assessment approach should be used. 

This means that the achievement of arbitrary targets should not become the sole driver of pay decisions. Instead, overall performance discussions should incorporate a number of factors and not be weighted to one in particular. 

For example, teacher standards, career-stage, book scrutiny, data, line management and department meetings etc. Essentially, anything reviewed as a matter of course as part of the line management process. 

Targets should support the appraisal process but not determine it. With the right policy, a teacher can still receive their annual increment even if targets haven’t been met as long as it can be evidenced that they have met the requirements of their role. 

The evaluation process should allow room for exceptional performance to be recognised and valued either through accelerated pay or through CPD and/ succession planning strategies. People who outperform in their role consistently, working above and beyond and demonstrating exceptional value, deserve recognition. 

Exceptional performance should be defined and certainly should not be ‘easy’ to achieve but it should not be impossible either. This is where targets serve a real purpose. Exceptional performance, through targets, can be defined for each individual. Therefore, it hinges not only on meeting standards, but exceeding them consistently as well as exceeding set targets. 

The truth is, some organisations are good at appraisal and performance management but too many are not. The ones I’ve come across that aren’t are usually linked to either poor policy or poor management training and delivery.  To improve your staff performance discussions, think about what language you and your leaders use and how you articulate the policy. If leaders aren’t on board with the process or fail to execute it properly, it really is a wasted opportunity to serve your staff.

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Written for: Primary School Management Magazine (@primaryleaders)

Article, HR, Staffing

How Should You Collect Staff Feedback?

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Staff Voice

Your staff likely have plenty of important things to say, but are you doing enough to ensure their voices are heard? How do you collect staff feedback?

Giving staff the ability to make their views known can help leaders make better decisions, and facilitate the process of taking the overall ‘temperature’ of an organisation. It also promotes employee engagement, making staff feel more valued. In times of change, turbulence or concern, staff input can serve to both inform and guide.

But what are the most effective ways of giving staff a voice, and what are the pros and cons of each? 

1. Meetings

Incorporating time in meetings for the sharing of staff feedback can provide leaders with up-to-the-minute information on how people feel about what’s going on, what’s working and what isn’t. Setting aside this time will demonstrate that such feedback isn’t just welcomed but actively encouraged. 

Benefits: Instant feedback that can be discussed and acted upon as appropriate, as well as opportunities to resolve issues that might otherwise be left to fester.

Caution: This relies on leaders and managers dealing with the feedback they receive in a professional way. If they aren’t equipped to do this, the process can become counter-productive.

2. Staff surveys

These are great for gaining insight into the mindset of your staff, but it’s important to set your objectives before designing a survey and ensure that you ask the right questions. Do you want an insight into your school’s culture, staff input regarding past or future changes, or are you seeking ideas for more general improvements?

Benefits: The anonymity afforded by surveys can provide a useful whole-school snapshot of staff attitudes, which can then be benchmarked against future surveys.

Caution: If you don’t publish the results of a survey or respond to its findings, staff will feel they aren’t being listened and come to see the activity as a pointless exercise.

3. Suggestion box

Placing a suggestion box in the staff room can help generate feedback and ideas throughout the year. It maintains the anonymity of a survey, while enabling staff who feel more self-conscious about speaking up feel more able to contribute.

Benefits: Can provide a confidential feedback route concerning any and all organisational issues.

Caution: Put the box somewhere that’s accessible to all staff but also discreet. Where appropriate, create a process for responding to suggestions, perhaps via regular staff bulletins or INSET days.

4. Wellbeing group

It doesn’t have to be called this, but if you have a group of colleagues who are keen on promoting staff voice, forums of this type can provide valuable insights into your staff’s thinking and the issues they’re facing.

Benefits: Staff champions can facilitate powerful staff voice exercises that will provide you with quality feedback. Forums are also more informal than meetings or surveys, allowing staff to engage with broader discussions in a free and constructive way.

Caution: These groups ought to be independent, but efforts should be made to ensure that they represent as broad a cross-section of staff as possible.

5. Exit interviews

Sometimes, no matter what you do, staff won’t be willing to put their head above the parapet until they have one foot out of the door.

Benefits: When staff leave, ask about their views of the organisation but also their specific role – what worked, what didn’t, what the organisation could do to improve things for their successor – to aid your recruitment and retention process.

Caution: See that the people undertaking your exit interviews are as neutral as possible. Ideally, you’ll want one regular person to conduct them, such as an SBM. Where this isn’t appropriate, select a colleague that the departing member of staff will feel comfortable talking to.

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Written for: Primary School Management Magazine (@primaryleaders)

Article, Governance, Leadership

Is Your MAT Mismanaged?

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MAT Mismanagement

Almost every day we read a news article about a MAT scandal. Whether it be a financial notice to improve, a poor Ofsted report or a failure of governance, these stories have become all too common.

The questions that are often asked are: why has it taken Ofsted, the DfE or the ESFA to come along for people to realise how bad it is? Why hasn’t something been done before?

A MAT cannot lose all of its money or shift from good to special measures overnight. These things happen over time. 

So how do you know if you’re working in a mismanaged MAT? What are the symptoms you should be looking out for that may lead to a detrimental diagnosis?

In my experience, there are three key areas that you should assess to determine whether your MAT is being mismanaged:

Governance
  • Consider the constitution of your Board and Governing Bodies. Determine whether they are the right people to undertake these roles in terms of their values, skillset, personal interests and capacity. 
  • Review the governance self-evaluation systems that are in place. Consider how objective this process is, how often it is undertaken and how effective your MAT is at following up on areas for development. 
  • Evaluate the effectiveness of your Scheme of Delegation. Determine how well it is adhered to and whether it is effective in operation. 
  • Assess the quality of your meetings in relation to schedule, agendas and records of discussion. Evidence of accountability, scrutiny, challenge and support should be clear and documented.
  • Consider the level of transparency of your governance systems. You should be able to clearly articulate your decision making process and justify the actions of governors both to local stakeholders and external bodies.
Leadership
  • Consider the capacity of your leaders in relation to delivering sustainable improvement within your MAT. 
  • Assess how well your leaders tackle poor performance and conduct and whether they execute their role as leader fairly, equitably and consistently.
  • Determine how well your leaders apply the policies of your MAT. Consider how you ensure that MAT systems and processes are followed in relation to education, employment law, finance and compliance.
  • Review the performance management processes for your leaders to ensure that they focus on MAT determined core competencies beyond education specific targets. Consider finance management and people management as indicators of leadership quality.
  • Consider how well the leaders within your MAT respond to challenge and the opportunity to collaborate. Issues within these areas can indicate an underlying cultural problem that can erode the effectiveness of the MAT over time.
Finance
  • Consider the level of experience of your finance staff and the qualifications they hold in the context of the role that you expect them to perform. Assess their ability to provide correct and timely information and whether they present it in an audience-appropriate way.
  • Determine how your finance team responds to challenge and scrutiny both within meetings and from external bodies. Questions that cannot be answered or data that cannot be supported is a red flag that should not be ignored.
  • Review the financial systems within your MAT to ensure that there are appropriate checks in place to act as an ‘early warning’ system. An external audit report should not be the first time that you learn about financial issues within your MAT. 
  • Assess the value of the MAT central team in terms of the capacity that they add to the schools and whether the relationships between the financial team and local school leaders enables sound financial management.
  • Consider how the finance function integrates with other areas across the MAT including school development planning, curriculum planning, staffing strategy and capital expenditure. A financial team that works within a silo cannot be effective.

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Written for: Primary School Management Magazine (@primaryleaders)

Article, Leadership, Staffing

The Dangers of Cutting Your Training Budget

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Training Cut Danger

When we think about school improvement and securing sustainable progress, it’s easy to get lost in worrying about the things we can’t control – government policy, Ofsted, the DfE, the ESFA etc.  

Though we can influence some of these areas in the long term, when we go back to work tomorrow and shut our doors, what we’ll have is what we have right now.

Without a doubt, our greatest resource (and cost) is our people. Think for a moment about what they want from their job, what they want from us and perhaps why other people might want to come and work for us.

Essentially, they want what we all want in a job – the main things being:

  • Reward & recognition
  • Development
  • Career progression
  • Support 
  • Fair treatment
  • Flexibility & autonomy
  • Work/life balance

Training our staff is not only key to the improvement and stability of our schools but is also a crucial element of recruitment and retention. With unskilled staff, poor performance and high turnover, it does not take long for a school to slide into special measures.

Training builds capacity not only for individuals to progress but the school also.

When it comes to CPD, it’s easy in the world of education to narrow your scope to qualifications and conferences – no doubt impacting your view of the training budget you’ll need for 50-100 staff! 

Whilst both qualifications and conferences have awesome benefits it’s unlikely that, on their own, they’ll provide your staff with all that they need to continuously develop. Thinking more widely about training and development opportunities can help you to get laser focused on improvement objectives (for both your staff and your school) and help you keep your training budget under control. 

Factoring in learning and delivery styles, desired impact and ways in which the learning can be disseminated more widely in your organisation can also help you to make better decisions about what type of training to offer your staff.

Consider training opportunities such as:

  • Mentoring
  • Coaching
  • Workshops to develop specific skills i.e. public speaking, report writing, interpreting financial data etc.
  • Mastermind groups
  • Seminars
  • Local networks
  • Online training/webinars
  • Visiting/collaborating with partner organisations
  • Research studies
  • Secondments
  • Work shadowing

Many of the above can deliver high impact at low cost. The key is to really get to grips with your staff as individuals and what role each plays in the success of your organisation. 

Also, consider dividing your CPD strategy into three strands:

  • CPD for those who are experiencing difficulty or need to brush up/keep up 
  • CPD to acquire new skills or further enhance existing skills in the roles people currently do 
  • CPD for skills that need acquiring in preparation for the roles people aspire to or are planning to undertake in the future

Aligning your training plans with your appraisal systems and succession planning strategy can provide you with a strong and cohesive staff and school development plan.

Cutting your training budget compromises all of these areas. Instead, by looking at training as part of the wider picture, you can develop high performing staff, achieve sustainability and secure the future success of your school.

There is so much choice out there for school leaders when it comes to CPD. If you’re limited by budget or are simply looking for new CPD ideas, then I’ve got something that might help.

Download my CPD Menu by clicking below:

Download CPD Menu

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Written for: Edexec – Education Executive Magazine (@edexec)

Article, Leadership, SBM

Edexec Live: Demonstrating Impact In Action

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SBL Edexec Impact

In March, I ran a full day of workshops at Edexec Live. I worked with over 30 School Business Leaders who were looking for ways to effectively demonstrate their impact and gain the recognition they deserve for the amazing work that they do. 

We got through so much in our 50-minute sessions but there were some overarching themes that came up again and again:

How to succinctly articulate the purpose of the SBL role in a way that stakeholders can quickly ‘tune into’

In many of the sessions, we discussed the best way to describe what we do as SBLs; a lens through which all SBL work is delivered, measured and where necessary, debated.

This phrase was repeated like a mantra: ‘My role as SBL is to enable and support the delivery of a quality education provision.’

Many take-away actions from the workshops started with this phrase and evolved into a focused plan.

How to know when it’s time to let it go

As SBLs, we are programmed to fix and fire-fight any issues that come our way. However, if staff constantly come to us with something to fix and we do it, we don’t realise that we are not making things better. 

Instead, we are inadvertently creating a situation where staff don’t feel that they have to keep to deadline or to plan appropriately because we will swoop in and save the day.

A number of SBLs left their session with an action plan that included drawing clearer boundaries and holding other people to account; even if that meant that a ball had to be dropped somewhere along the way. 

How to be confident and ‘keep shouting’

The reasons that my groups said that they felt unheard or undervalued varied hugely but I can honestly say that the SBLs I met at Edexec Live were some of the most dedicated and committed I’ve ever worked with and they deserve to be listened to.

In our groups we discussed individual contexts in-depth, how to present better in meetings, how to tackle difficult staff, how to improve relationships with the Head and SLT and how to gain and exercise influence in the role of SBL.

One SBL said that despite her difficult situation, she knew that the one thing she had to do was ‘keep shouting’. Many SBLs left their session with that same mindset.

Our sector needs SBLs like this more than ever before – especially now when resources are depleted and are continuing to deplete at an alarming rate. 

SBLs are critical not only to the success of but the survival of many schools in the sector. 

They have knowledge, they have skills and they have a voice that deserves to be heard.

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Written for: Edexec – Education Executive Magazine (@edexec)

Article, Finance, Leadership

Headteachers: How To Say No To Budget Requests

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Heads No Budget

As a Headteacher, saying ‘no’ to someone is a regular occurrence and more often than not, it’s easy.  However, when it comes to budget requests, it can feel conflicting when you know that if you had more money, it would be something you would say yes to.

Everyone working in education knows that funding is dire but there are some ways you can mitigate the impact on your staff in those situations where you find yourself having to say no:

Don’t be bounced into a decision

It’s easy to find yourself on the automated ‘no’ train. If you’re caught at a bad moment, not able to take in the facts or you need more information then say so. Alternatively, refer the member of staff to your SBM to talk it through in more detail before formally submitting their request.

Consult your SBM

To ensure that your making sound expenditure decisions, make sure you have the latest information; especially if it’s a budget request you’d like to facilitate. Your SBM can assist you in looking at patterns of expenditure, funding priorities and perhaps cheaper alternatives.

Keep a long term view

Though you might have to say ‘no’ today, the financial picture will continue to shift throughout the year. Keep a list of budget requests that you receive that you can’t afford right now and review them each month with your SBM. What isn’t affordable today may well be in the future.

Provide an explanation

Saying ‘no’ and leaving it there can leave staff feeling unheard. If you provide an explanation as to why you’ve had to say no, your staff will feel that they’ve been listened to and that there is clear reasoning behind your decision. If it’s a budget request that you’d like to support but simply can’t, make this clear to your staff. Say something positive about their idea and where possible, offer some advice on how they can move forward.

Educate your staff

The more your staff understand the financial picture of your school, the more mindful they will be when making a budget request. Provide updates at appropriate meetings and encourage Senior and Middle Leaders to work with your SBM on their allocated budgets on a regular basis. This way, when you do you have to say ‘no’, it won’t be as much of a shock and the explanation will be straightforward.

Be firm

If you have to decline a budget request, you’ve explained your reasons why and you’re comfortable with your decision, it may be that the member of staff still continues to argue their case. Don’t be tempted to back down. If you have to say ‘no’ more than once, then do so and conclude the discussion politely and firmly.

Having to say ‘no’ when you’d like to say ‘yes’ is not easy but being honest and transparent with your staff will create a positive financial culture in your school in the long run.

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Written for: Primary School Management Magazine (@primaryleaders)

Article, Coaching, SBM

SBLs: It’s Time To Take Action

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SBL Action Plan

Recently, I shared with you my go-to SBL framework to help you identify and remove the roadblocks that prevent you from being able to demonstrate your impact and get the recognition you deserve.

Within this, I outlined the five tools that you can use to make those that won’t listen to you sit up and take notice. These were:

  1. Your Knowledge
  2. Your Role
  3. Your Relationships 
  4. Your Way of Working
  5. Your Presentation

Below, I’m sharing some practical top tips for each of these areas to help you flesh out an action plan based on this framework.

Area 1: Your Knowledge
Challenge Assumptions

Questions are essential when it comes to challenging assumptions. You don’t just need to ask them of other people you need to ask them of yourself. It’s hard if you’ve been in the same post or same school for a long time but ask yourself: what do you know, how do you know it, is it true, could it be better, how could it change, what would change mean, should it be done? The management of risk relies on you beings as informed as you can possibly be – all of the time. You need to not only determine a way forward but also be able to forecast impending doom. That is why you must always triangulate everything you think you know – numbers need narrative and narrative needs numbers. Whilst the destination may be set, the current reality will continue to shift and in order to make truly sound assessments you’ll need to split your SBL focus accordingly.

Area 2: Your Role
Look After Your Team

Whilst you’re operating as part of the school leadership team, notionally or not, you also have to lead teams of your own. This means that you have to practice what you preach. You’re modelling from the front. Your ‘house’ is in full view, it’s under scrutiny and people will lob rocks at it. Depending on your role and your context, you may find yourself and your team under attack. To this end, look after them. We often get so caught up on the leadership battlefield that we don’t spend as much time making sure that the battles going on elsewhere in the building are being hard fought and won on all fronts. Your team needs you to back them even if nobody is backing you.

Area 3: Your Relationships
Don’t Get Hung Up On Status

Actions speak louder than words. The Head and the SLT will treat like you’re part of the team or they won’t whether you are or you’re not. It actually doesn’t matter what your job title is, what qualifications you have or where you sit on the leadership diagram if nobody listens to what you have to say. Without credibility you cannot operate effectively and credibility isn’t given, it’s earned. The job title and badge do help but it isn’t the end of the story. Whatever level you work at, you earn your place on that team every day not only by doing your own job well but by helping the others do theirs. Aligning yourself and the purpose of your role with the educational objectives of your school is crucial. As an SBL, you can’t operate in isolation. Everything you do should be about supporting the delivery of a quality education provision. Articulating your role in these terms as well as demonstrating sound knowledge, a thorough understanding of data, objectivity and empathy will go a long way to gain the confidence and trust of your teaching colleagues.

Area 4: Your Way of Working
Put The Work In Now To Save It Later

Building relationships takes time and maintaining them takes work. Proving yourself takes time to. But building relationships can save you time in the long run and make your ways of working much more expedient. Find your allies. Get someone else to start saying how good you are. It can make the difference between dragging a project to completion through a never ending string of debacles or it can mean working with some of the SLT, bringing it in early and make it a roaring success. It’s been said that the role of SBL is boundaryless. This is true. The more you extend your landscape of operation, the more influence you will gain.

Areas 5: Your Presentation
Don’t Give Up

Give it time – not a lifetime – but enough time! If you’re going to go ahead and make some changes, the people around you will need time to adjust. Right now, you may not be valued by your Head, your salary may not reflect your skills or your responsibility and you may wonder what on earth the point of speaking up is at all. But the fact is, you owe it to yourself to be seen, to be heard, to be valued and to be recognised.

Don’t give up. If you don’t step up now and be the SBL you know you can be, then everybody loses. More importantly, you lose. You will deskill yourself by default. If you can hand on heart say that you’ve done all you can where you are now, then you need to be preparing for that next job. That job interview at that school where that Head want to hear what you have to say, wants to take your advice and wants to make sure you’re recognised for what you do. 

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Written for: Education Executive Magazine (@edexec)

Article, Finance, SBM

SBLs: The Art of Saying ‘No’

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No

To feel comfortable saying ‘no’, you must first of all ask ‘is this person making a reasonable request?’ If it isn’t (let’s say it’s class tickets to Wimbledon), then politely explain your reasons (of which I’m sure there will be many) and be firm. 

If the answer is ‘no’ and will always be ‘no’, it’s important that you respond immediately, politely and firmly. In these situations, be sure that you have the autonomy to make the decision. If you don’t, let them know that you’ll note their request and get back to them when you’ve spoken with the Head. 

Of course, it get’s harder if you know that what they’re asking for is something that could really benefit the school and in a time where money wasn’t an issue, you wouldn’t think twice about saying yes. 

In these situations, examine the request more thoroughly and ask yourself – has anything they’ve said made you reconsider the existing budget priorities? Is there anything that either you or they can do to enable you to say yes? Maybe there is a cheaper way of doing something or reducing expenditure in another area could create additional resource. 

If you don’t know the answer to this off the bat, then don’t be afraid to say ‘I hear where you’re coming from, leave it with me and I’ll see what I can do.’  When you’ve investigated, make sure that you go back to them with a clear answer and explanation. If you try and you fail to meet their request, then at least the person will see that you recognise the importance of what they’ve asked for but there are good reasons behind why you’ve had to say no.

It’s worth keeping a note of any budget request you receive to discuss in your finance meeting with the Head. Any requests that fall into a ‘grey’ area can be reviewed as a whole as the financial picture continues to shift.

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Written for: Education Executive Magazine (@edexec)

Article, Coaching, SBM

SBL Framework: Demonstrate Impact and Gain Recognition

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SBL, impact

Many of the School Business Leaders I coach struggle with one issue above all else: being able to effectively demonstrate how fabulous they are in order to get the recognition that they deserve for the great work they do.  The causes of this vary widely.

To any SBL who doesn’t feel heard, valued or recognised – please know that this does not mean that you are terrible at your job. It also does not mean that there isn’t anything you can do about it.

In my role as coach, I work with SBLs to help them interpret and navigate their contextual terrain to effectively identify and remove roadblocks. I’ve created a framework that is one of my go-to tools. How do I know it works? Because over a decade ago, I used it to both survive and thrive in my very first SBM role and every leadership role I’ve undertaken since. 

1. Identify who

We’ve established the issue isn’t you… so who is it? Think about your school and context and identify who specifically isn’t listening to you, is stopping you from being heard or doesn’t value what you have to say. Is it one person? Is it a group of people? What level of the organisation are they at and how much of an impact do they have on you and on your role?

2. Identify why

Why do you think that they behave in this way? Is it lack of knowledge? Do they think they know better? Are they uncomfortable? Do they prefer to be in control? Do they have different priorities (or seemingly so)? Are they hierarchal? Do they not respect your role? 

3. Identify what

When it comes to School Business Leadership, there are five tools that you, as an SBL, have at your disposal and have total control over. To illustrate these, I’m going to share with you some of my experiences as a first-time SBL and then ask you some questions to consider in your context, right now: 

Your Knowledge

I fell into the role of SBM by accident – as so many of us do now – and it really was a baptism of fire.  When I first started out, I didn’t know a lot. I had a good working knowledge of the school through other roles I had done but I had zero job-specific qualifications and limited education-specific knowledge. This meant I had zero credibility and zero influence. The gaps that I had were vast and my priority was to fill them as quickly as possible. 

Your turn…

How long you have been in post and is that an advantage? What qualifications do you have? How strong is your knowledge of education? How well do you know your school? What is your school like to work in? How could it improve? Think about any knowledge gaps you have and how you can fill them. Also, consider how accurate your knowledge base is (is it objective enough?) and your knowledge sources (are they credible)?

Your Role

When I started as SBM, not only did Ilack credibility but so did the role! My predecessor (and the first SBM in the post at the school) had left under a cloud therefore, the value that this role could create was still questionable. I had to gain credibility and fast. I had to be a strong leader to my teams, set clear boundaries with staff and evidence the impact of my work in a way that left no room for debate.

Your turn…

Are you seen as a leader or more operational? What does your Head expect from you? Are you seen as ‘essential’ or ‘extra’? Do you and your teams operate in a parallel universe? Do you have the appropriate level of autonomy to do your job?

Your Relationships

Because of my starting point and the history of the role, I found myself, more often than not, working in my own lane and on my own highway. I wasn’t invited onto SLT and was seen as somewhat of an adjunct. That was okay at first as I had a very steep learning curve – but then I found myself hitting walls when it came to getting things done. My rapidly growing knowledge was my power but my role was just words on a page. I had to make it come to life. My priority became reshaping and developing my professional relationships.

Your turn…

Think about your relationships with your Head and your SLT. Does your Head support you? Do you get enough time together? Are you on the SLT? Do you act like a member of the SLT? How do they support your work? How do you support their work? Do you go to SLT meetings? Do they listen when you talk? Do they trust you?

Your Way of Working

Creating new ways of working without compromising the relationships I had built was a tough task. I had to cut through some very well established and sometimes jealously protected bad habits. To achieve this, I had to work really hard on adjusting my leadership style in accordance with context and personality as well as digging in for the long haul, picking my words wisely and my battles carefully.

Your turn…

Think about how you operate. What is your office like? Are you out and about in the school too much – or not enough? Do you prefer e-mails or face-to-face conversations? How do people get to know what you know? How do you get things done? How do you deal with difficult situations? What makes you speak up? How does the way you work impact on how you are perceived?

Your Presentation

When it comes to being an SBM, you don’t just have to ‘talk-the-talk’ you have to ‘walk-the-walk’. My first SBM role was an uphill battle from day one, and at every turn I was being tripped up either by my own feet or somebody else’s. Even though that got to me, I never showed it and I never wavered. Instead, I kept showing up – I kept moving. Some days, I ran to stand still and some days I actually got somewhere. I got through it by being relentless, consistent and downright determined. 

Your turn…

How would your Head and SLT describe you? How do you walk down the corridor? How do you respond when challenged? How do you conduct yourself in meetings? In terms of your wellbeing, do you look after yourself well? How much do you value yourself? Think about this; if you don’t act like a leader and value yourself, then why should they?

One final thought…

Remember why you do what you do in the first place. Don’t let the judgement of other people take away your passion, dedication and commitment to this job. You can do this and if they don’t appreciate what you do or the value that you add, find a school that will!

Like what you’ve read? Subscribe to this blog by clicking here.

P.S. Have you joined The Business of School Leadership Facebook Group yet? For practical support, advice, tips, tools & guidance about all things school leadership, join us in the community by clicking here.

Written for: Education Executive Magazine (@edexec)