Merit Pay for MI TEachers

Lori Higgins writes about some good news for MI teachers.
http://www.freep.com/article/20120927/NEWS06/120927067/educational-achievement-authority-grant
For more information on how Tom Borg Consulting, LLC can help your school district contact us at 734-404-5909 or email us at tomborg@tomborgconsulting.com

Shifting Paradigms for Public School Administrators

Times have changed and it is critical that the leaders of public school systems begin reshaping the way they and their team of administrators, teachers, transportation personnel, food services personnel, school board members, coaches, volunteers and anyone else they have on their team,  represent their school district.  Why? Because coupled with declining birth rates and an economy that has forced some adults—often with children in tow-- to leave the state in search of new jobs, school

systems are losing enrollment.

Leaders of school districts must look at what they can control that will retain their present student base and attract additional students. That is, the need to look at the quality of the experience students and their parents experience within their school system. School of choice has given parents and their children the powerful option of attending the school they want to attend. They are voting with their feet, choosing different options for schooling, and taking their state funding dollars with them.

Some of the places that are competing for students today are
    Private schools
    Charter schools
    Other school districts
    Voucher schools
    Online schools
    Home schools

Leaders in public school districts no longer have the option to believe that if they just wait a little while, this whole idea of treating students and parents like customers will just go away. Why should it? The people they and their respective school districts serve are human beings who want to be treated with courtesy and respect.


For more information on how Tom Borg Consulting, LLC can help your school district change it's paradigms and thrive in today's world please contact us at 734-404-5909 or visit our website at www.tomborgconsulting.com

How Public School Districts Can Thrive in Today’s Economy-Part II.

A Special White Paper by
Tom Borg, MS; Keith B. Elliott, RA, CSI; and Katherine Pinard ©2015

In Part II of this paper we continue to discuss how American public school districts continue to be hit hard by cutbacks from state and regional funding. Most districts immediately look for areas where funding and staffing may be cut to reduce overall expenditures. This is the first logical step with any budget, but when the proposed reductions get to the point of cutting so deeply that curriculum variety, quality and class sizes will suffer, it may be time to create a flexible and unique strategy for the development of new funding opportunities to help offset the future reduction strategies.

We recommended that the first step that administrators, teachers and school boards need to embrace is to change the way they think. Once that is accomplished all things are possible. The simplicity of that statement is intentional; the actual process takes time! We presented concepts and structured guidelines on how to create and use Action Groups, composed of representatives from teachers, administrators, transportation and food service personnel, as well as other pertinent groups that represent stake holders in any part of the school district team.

In this section of the white paper we would like to discuss how you can leverage the opportunities that exist when the action group process is applied to marketing your school district. This means marketing not only to the present client base of students, parents and community members, but also to potential students and parents who are not yet part of your school district.

Today, it is a necessity, that public schools develop an effective marketing plan that promotes their school district in a positive and proactive light. With one recent public school client we were able to assist them in creating and facilitating an ongoing Marketing Action Group that continues to produce impressive results. One key factor for this team’s success was the recruitment of representatives, from all pertinent sectors, who could amplify its success. A representative from the school board, administration, teachers, business community and other entities came together to form a powerful and action oriented group that gained impressive marketing results.

The reason for this success stems from a team process, where participants are empowered to contribute their own broad range of ideas to a consolidated, stake holder based marketing approach that is sponsored by the Action Group, and then rolled out to the rest of the district. Remember from Part 1 of this paper, “People don’t argue with their own data.” When they can contribute their own ideas, they usually support them.

Direct advertising by school districts continues to rise in the formats of direct mail, newspaper ads, radio and cable television spots, and more recently, lawn signs. Individual schools, as well as entire districts, commit to promoting themselves as the school of choice over their nearby competitors. The unfortunate mistake being made is these school districts advertise to the universe and other school districts and not to their established base of students and parents. We all need to be aware that current market research suggests that it costs six times more to attract new clients than to satisfy and keep present client base (students and parents). It makes sense to invest the majority of the dollars spent on advertising, on services that exceed the expectations of the present student and parent base.
If a school district effectively services the currently enrolled client base of students and parents in a caring and professionally flexible culture, most parents would not consider moving their children to another school district, private school or homeschooling environment.
Barring the inevitable moves away from the area due to the parent’s employment challenges, the school district needs to commit to retaining current students and parents support for the entire thirteen years of schooling.

In the past, many school districts actually have engaged in some form of marketing, however subtle. Unfortunately, these commonly disjointed efforts have lacked an organized or centrally coordinated plan. The soccer team solicits for donations for its athletes, the high school band promotes its’ spring concert to a certain audience, and the following week, the drama department promotes its’ spring play to a whole different group of people. The high school football team boosters will involve themselves with some form of fundraising just before a different group of students moves in to raise money for their class trip. Then the administrators and school board go to the voters with the hope of passing a millage to support the new school facilities.

These types of marketing efforts never seem well coordinated (if coordinated at all) with the myriad of student activity clubs, sports team fundraising, and millage efforts. This is a good example of where all the entities within a school district must work together, if it wants to survive, let alone thrive, in the years to come. A coordinated presence, a uniform presentation, and the well-timed “Ask” or request for funds from prominent individuals or corporations, will become a key survival tool.

We have found the most critical element that must be analyzed, enhanced and maintained is ongoing internal and external communication. The administration, teachers, assistant teachers, coaches, food services, transportation, and all other parts of the school district (internal clients), must have clear and concise ongoing communication between all departments. Observing what happens when staff members learn to actually talk to each other in terms of what they need for improvement, can be an amazing revelation.

Simple, ongoing communication is commonly hampered by internal politics, union concerns, and lack of communication structures that are designed to encourage “open and often” communication.

Once a solid communication stream is either re-found, or created anew and continuously supported from the top-down, the school district and all departments aforementioned must use it to communicate clearly and concisely with the students and parents (external clients) on a regular basis. It never ceases to amaze us, how easy it is, for all departmental staff, students and parents to NOT effectively communicate with each other. Talk, communication, a two-way flow of information; how simple yet so effective!

By implementing solid communication processes between all departments and stakeholders, a marketing plan can be established and a specialized Action Group, representing both your internal and external clients, can be implemented. You will find that there are multiple ways you can market your school district for little or no money.

We recommend that your Action Group use a 12 month look-ahead calendar to schedule the marketing activities. By plotting out the entire school year, it is easier to strategize and coordinate the different marketing approaches you will employ. You will also find that your marketing efforts generate the highest return on your investment in both materials and staff hours.

As a general summary statement: “It is all connected!” Not one part of this puzzle stands alone. When your school district teams create and maintain ongoing internal and external communication, coupled with a solid and continuously updated 12 month marketing plan, you will be able to leverage your marketing Action Group’s creativity and develop an effective marketing structure to promote your school district in a uniformly positive and proactive light.

In Part III, we will highlight the opportunities that arise when the Action Group process is applied to a school district’s creation and growth of an alumni association.

Tom Borg Consulting, LLC., is a consulting group that specializes in outside the box strategic planning, leadership training, team building, and customer culture transformation, for public school systems in Michigan and the United States. For a free 30 minute consulting session or for more information please call 734-404-5909  or visit our website at www.TomBorgConsulting.com

The 4 Things the Parents You Serve Really Want to Know About You

Among the many things that people want to know about the people who serve them, research shows that four specific items are at the top of the list. Here is what the studies have identified.  Customers

typically want to know the answers to four questions. They are:
          1. Do you like me?
          2. Do you care about me?
          3. Can I trust you?
          4. Do you know what you are talking about?

The first thing they wanted to know was if they were sincerely liked by the person serving them. The customer knew this from how the representative interacted with them. Did they use their name, did they really listen, and did they have sincere empathy in their voice?
The second thing people wanted to know about the professionals who serve them was, did the representative care about them. The customer could sense this from the questions they were asked, again, the tone of voice, the little things they said or did that indicated they indeed cared, and how helpful the representative tried to be.

The third question they wanted answered was, could they trust the representative. Indications of trust could be seen in how confident the representative was and did they follow through as promised. One example of how trust can be lost by a public school administrator, secretary, teacher or some other representative, is by how promptly a phone call or email is returned  to the parent. When there is a long period of time that elapses between the time the parent contacts the school and there is follow up by the school, or worse yet, no follow up, trust diminishes rapidly. A good rule of thumb is to have all phone calls and emails returned within 24 hours or less.

Finally, the fourth thing people want to know about the professionals who serve them was, was  the person serving them knowledgeable and competent. Indications of these qualities were demonstrated if the individual was familiar with the particular situation the customer was experiencing and had they solved similar types of problems for other customers in the past.

In summary, to build lifetime customer satisfaction with the parents you serve, make sure your school system is able to provide customer service training that teaches the right kind of customer service skills. These skills should empower all of your administrators, secretaries, teachers, bus drivers, food service and all other employees to treat your parents in such a way that consistently answers their four most common questions about your school system.

For more information on how we can speak at your next in-service or provide consulting and training to help you attract and retain more students, please contact our office at 734-404-5909 or email Tom at Tom borg@TomBorgconsulting.com or visit our website at www.TomBorgConsulting.comwww.tomborgconsulting.com

Public Schools MI-What Public Schools Can Learn from Other Failing Institutions

There are several examples of how large institutions or organizations lost power because of their unwillingness to listen to their customer base. Following World War II, the railroad industry started its’ nosedive. When President Dwight Eisenhower enacted the interstate and highway system in 1956, it sent a huge signal that times were changing. The highways being built  enabled people who could afford it, to buy their own cars which would transport them to anywhere they wanted. The interstate trucking industry began to develop at a rapid rate which took even more business away from the railroads. Add to that the development of jet airplanes and the railroad industry, as it was known at

that time, began to shrink.

Despite government restrictions that had been placed on it, the railroads also, in a way, caused their own downfall by the shoddy and monopolistic practices they took part in during the 19th and early 20th centuries (which resulted in many of the regulations imposed on them).

Their disregard for the people they were serving led to a general overall dissatisfaction and was a major factor leading to a shift to other forms of transportation.

Another more current business example is the fall of K-mart Corporation. Some of the major problems that were identified included: lack of customer focus, poor inventory management resulting in empty store shelves, and a poor, undifferentiated marketing strategy.1.

One final example is the United States Postal Service. With the steady decline of first class mail, the increasing use of electronic communication, unwillingness to make changes that were being demonstrated in Europe in the early 1990’s, and a history of a less than stellar customer service, the USPS started losing money in 2000.

“What didn’t help was “The USPS was slow to react to shifts in the industry. In the late '70s, Congress prodded it to allow private companies to carry letters needing urgent delivery. FedEx and UPS built enormously valuable businesses on the USPS's turf.”2

With these three examples cited, is doom and gloom all there is for public schools to look forward to in the United States?

The answer is a resounding no, if public school leaders and their team of employees can begin changing their paradigm of the business they are really in. We use the word business to describe the approach school systems must follow in order to be successful. It could be called a non-profit business, but it is still a business.

We would like to suggest that public schools are in the business of not just educating their students, but they are, in part, in the business of creating a solid foundation that will prepare  these students for a successful life and professional career. They are also in the business of helping parents feel secure, knowing their children are getting what they need and want to prepare them for future learning, whether or not it includes college.

For more information on how Tom Borg Consulting, LLC can help your school district attract and retain more students please contact us at 734-404-5909 or visit our website at www.tomborgconsulting.com

1. Source: K-Mart: Fall of a Marketing Giant Case Study, ICMR, Center for Business Research, 2003
gomasa.org

Leadership in Public Schools- Garbage in - Garbage Stays

Be careful what you watch, listen to and read. It will definitely alter your attitude towards life and

work. I encourage you to be very selective in what you allow to enter your brain. As Nido Qubein says, the old saying “Garbage in – garbage out, is not true. Rather, garbage in, garbage stays.”

If you allow negatives to enter you mind, they have a tendency to limit your thinking. The wrong kind of thinking limits your actions. The wrong kind of actions will limit your potential in life and work. It is difficult to keep a PSL with a constant negative flow of information into your brain.

It has been reported that the Coca Cola Corporation spends over one billion dollars per year on advertising. Over the years they have used catchy slogans like, “Coke is the Real Thing,” or “Things Go Better with Coke.” More recent slogans include “Life Begins Here” and “Enjoy Coca Cola.”  The Coca Cola Corporation is not unusual. Most large companies spend enormous amounts of money to advertise their products or services. They do it because it works.

It has been proven that with enough exposure to an advertisement, a certain percentage of people will be influenced enough that they will try a product or service. If they like it, they will continue to buy and use it.

Why not take a lesson from big business and do something to influence the minds of your staff or fellow employees. Create your own advertisements. What I am suggesting is to create your own positive communications, to promote the optimistic and results oriented thinking that is needed in your school district.

In the school districts where we have conducted our workshops and training programs, we have had them participate in an exercise where we divide the participants into small groups. Then they brainstorm slogans or sayings that espouse a positive alternative to negative thinking.

Some examples of the slogans they have created are:
“We care.”
“Do it now.”
“Expect the best”
“The best is yet to come.”
“Big enough to deliver, small enough to care.”
“We are the best, but were getting better.”

Often, the teams create posters or banners that contain the slogans  they have created. Then they post them around their building on walls and bulletin boards. It serves as a constant reminder of their commitment to create a more positive and productive school environment.

For more information on the services of Tom borg Consulting, LLC and how we can help your public school district attract and retain students call 734-404-5909 or visit our website www.tomborgconsulting.comwww.tomborgconsulting.com

How to Keep Your Staff Meetings Productive

When you count up the amount of hours a meeting lasts and multiply it times the number of people in the meeting, it adds up to a significant amount of your school administration's hours.

By bringing several people together it can gather much needed input and direction yet, unless the good input is utilized, it will have a tendency to create ill will and feeling of non importance among the meeting participants.  The importance and value of future meeting participation will be jeopardized by this type of superintendent or principal practice.

Hidden agendas are another way to sabotage meetings. When the people participating are not up front and honest about their reasons for pursuing a particular agenda item, more non productivity and group politics can be the result. This form of miscommunication can be very unproductive and should be avoided.

Being guilty of using either of the above practices can lead to wasteful meetings and will tie up valuable time of the attendees that can be used else wise more productively. It is up to the school leaders to do his or her best not to let this happen.
For more ideas on how to make your meetings or in-service programs more productive and successful please contact our office at 734-404-5909 or visit our website at www.tomborgconsulting.com