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(Unit 6) Topic 7: Dream Team: Successful Team Building

2 Clock Hours of Early Childhood Education

New Staff

Topic 7 Page 8

Staff change is something that most directors would prefer to deal with as little as possible, but unfortunately staff changes do occur. A center that builds a solid, positive team of staff will often experience less turnover as team members feel supported and confident.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS.gov) “Employment of childcare workers is projected to grow 5 percent from 2014 to 2024, about as fast as the average for all occupations.” This means that there will inevitably be new staff members joining your center throughout the years. Having a strong team of staff makes this transition easier on everyone.

Orientation
Orientation is necessary and often daunting for supervisors and staff alike. While typically the director will lead the orientation for a new staff member it is important that information is given but not overwhelmingly so. Some centers will have directors and lead staff members share in this responsibility while others will cut orientation into smaller pieces to be easier to digest. There is no “wrong” way to orient a new staff member but the sooner you can get them working with their colleagues the better the team will be.

Mentor Staff Member
If possible consider having a member of your staff act as a mentor to the newcomer. This immediately creates a relationship between two staff members where resources and experiences can be shared and trust can be built. From here it makes it easier for the mentor to introduce the newcomer and help foster relationships with other staff members. This mentor should also be a source of confidentiality and take the role seriously.

Welcoming Committee
While the notion of a warm welcome to the team with balloons and ribbons and all of the trimmings is heart warming it is very unrealistic. Some centers have committees that are chaired by a few people and are designed just to welcome and support new staff. Sometimes these committees are called "welcoming committees” or “social committees.” The name is not as important as the communal aspect that they help cultivate. Encourage this type of committee if you think that your staff will benefit from it.

Staff Handbook
New staff members should never be put in a situation where they feel like they have been given wrong information by supervisors or colleagues. Occasionally mistakes do happen, but there should be a system in place to avoid this as much as possible and staff should be trained in this as soon as possible. One tried and true system is a simple staff handbook. If each staff member has the handbook with the same information it reduces potential for conflict and confusion. This helps maintain a positive workplace where all team members feel supported.