Studies show that an informed leadership team significantly impacts a school's effectiveness and provides the necessary support for educators, administrators, students, and families. Ensuring a positive correlation between school leadership and success starts with advancing your leadership team; your school can achieve refined operational processes, a thriving culture, and a growing academic community. Let’s examine five key ways for you to do so:
1. Evaluate Your School’s Mission
Your mission drives your school forward. Before leaders can lead, they need to know what they are pursuing. What's the goal? What's the mission? Identifying a clear mission allows everyone to work towards an expected outcome. The alternative is mission misalignment, which creates a lack of unity in the school. Evaluate school process, leadership strengths, and challenges to assess how to best align with your school’s mission. With full leadership support and cooperation, you can prioritize strategic planning and goal setting.
2. Prioritize Data-Driven Decision Making
Successfully fulfilling your school’s mission and serving your students requires vision and data. With data, schools can make informed decisions, employ effective initiatives, and track their progress over time. Collecting the facts sets the stage for understanding how your school operates.
Consider how data-driven decision-making supports these areas of school leadership:
Marketing and Enrollment: Use data to help you understand current students and alumni and how your school is perceived by potential students and families. Schools can also use Unbound360 from ISM to better understand their prospects.
Financial and Development: Determine where funds should be allocated or where additional support is needed. By looking at the data, schools can secure funding, adjust budgets, and invest in the betterment of the school to ensure its sustainability.
School Performance: Provide a clear basis for performance goals and how success is measured. Academic leaders monitor data on both teachers and students to ensure learning objectives are being met.
3. Invest in Professional Development
What are the latest academic management approaches? How can you effectively lead your departments? Investing in professional development helps school leaders answer essential questions and develop effective practices for their schools.
Professional development is key to promoting a growth mindset in your school’s administration and leadership team. These continued learning experiences empower school leaders to sharpen their skills, equip themselves with resources, and develop a network of peers to rely on throughout their careers. Here’s a look at the additional benefits of PD:
- Increased confidence
- Improved problem-solving skills
- Enhanced communication abilities
- Stronger teamwork dynamics
- Greater overall satisfaction
Our ISM members benefit from our webinars, virtual workshops, and in-person learning events. Learn more about ISM’s professional development opportunities and resources.
4. Find the Right EdTech Solution
Throughout the years, edtech has transformed how schools operate, making processes faster and more efficient. These streamlined processes make it easier for academic administrators and leadership to execute their roles. With tech solutions designed for private schools by private school professionals, schools receive tailored tools that are scalable to their needs.
Audit your current operations and see what edtech tools can streamline those processes by reviewing what edtech tools you use and evaluate if they are serving the needs of your school. For instance, ISM’s ScheduLogic users report saving time and money. This reduces the scheduling headache for administrators and avoids scheduling conflicts.
See what edtech solutions can support your school and leadership team.
5. Build Partnership and Community
Remember, your school is not alone. An outside perspective can get your leadership team on the right track with insight into moving your school forward.
With ISM consulting, your school receives industry-leading theory, resources, and research. Get the support you need from a network of professionals who have served as private-independent school leaders themselves. With our consultants, you gain a partner who's committed to your school's success and provides a forward-thinking approach.
In addition, you gain a community of other private-independent schools. ISM members benefit from both virtual and onsite consultations where they gain personalized feedback into various leadership divisions in their private schools. Collaborate with other ISM schools on strategy and theory at our learning events and on social media.
Empower Your Leadership Team
Facilitate a strong leadership team with strategic evaluation, professional development, and the right resources. By implementing these five strategies get your team on track and empower their success.
