Turning Childcare Pains into Positives
Early childhood education has felt the effects of a world in a pandemic. There are so many aspects of the industry that was hit including staffing, food security, lower ratios, closures, and more. We can not provide you with all the answers of how to build your center back up, but we have a few options to hopefully alleviate some of those pain points.
Staffing
Hiring as proven difficult for many industries after the lockdowns and sending people home to work. The flow of applicants has slowed since 2020. Candidates could match your values and have a great skill set, but may not show up to an interview, no call/no show a day into the position or want a wage higher than what is comfortable for you. Not to mention the amount of money that goes into job board sites where you pay for ads and per applicant. Many centers are running into this and as a result, center owners and administration are in rooms as leads or assistants, having to close rooms or lower ratios, paying the staff they have OT, and reduce hours. We all know this isn’t how it’s supposed to be, but it’s the best we can do to try and survive this ebb and flow of our industry.
Substitutes
We all know that if a teacher is ill, goes on leave, or has a vacation planned in a K-12 setting, they call up a few substitutes and their position is filled for that day, week, or even months. That has not always been an option for daycare and childcare centers until recent years. The Greater Cleveland and Akron area in Ohio have a few options, but the newest company is Sunflower Childcare Substitutes. We have short and long-term substitutes that are available to cover whatever you need. There are no membership fees to join. Once you partner with Sunflower Substitutes, you can call and schedule a substitute whenever you need.
Food
Ordering food and disposables for your center has been a struggle to say the least. The items you have on your menus are not available when you need them, and if they do have them in stock, the price per unit has gone up and doesn’t seem like it will ever stop. Depending on your location you could price match and compare Sysco and GFS. We have talked to a few centers who partner with local farmers to support the community and still get what they need. Baby food, formula, and snacks can also be hard to find. Amazon, local grocery stores, and chain stores all have them, its all a matter of figuring out when they restock and if they have a limit on how much you can buy. If you have had any luck with these options or others- please comment to help other owners and directors who may be struggling.
Cut The Costs
There are so many behind-the-scenes costs that come with owning a childcare center. Most of you have multiple types of software, technology for teachers and students, too many subscriptions to count (and a few you probably forgot you had), insurance, transportation, and much more. Where can you cut the costs to help you stay ahead while the rest of the industry is struggling? Even the smallest amount helps. We talked to a few centers in the Akron area, and they were looking at how much they can save. They were looking at: the internet they need v. what they have, pricing out different cleaning companies, comparing utilities providers, parent survey software v. paper surveys, different CRM companies, and other ways to hire other than job board sites.
There will always be problems that need answers in any business, but all childcare and day care centers are working for the same cause- allowing parents to work and grow themselves while their children are being cared for in a safe, fun environment. Who is your biggest competition in your area? Why? We challenge you to reach out to them with some issues you have encountered and see if they have found a solution. You do not have to give away trade secrets to create a network for caretakers in your community who work together for the sake of tomorrow.
