If there is one thing we, as early years professionals share, it is the experience of change.
Every day is different.
Firstly, we work with children in early years. A child can surprise you in a nanosecond! Their ability to shift focus and swiftly dive into their next adventure is uncanny. Your plans have to go out of the window, your expectations have to adjust and you have to follow their lead into a wonderland of activity that you had no idea existed.
Then, we work with people. It’s easy to work with most of our colleagues, whilst others present more of a challenge. However we learn how to respect each other as co-workers and we mosey and muddle through difficult times and rejoice together at times of celebration. But, just as we get to the point of understanding and appreciating each other’s strengths and weaknesses and the team shows signs of growth, somebody leaves! Then another! New people are hired and we start the process all over again, affecting us on an individual as well as on a team level.
The way technology is developing at such a rapid rate brings ever-increasing change to the way we manage nurseries, record observations, plan activities, assess learning, study, share knowledge and communicate. This techno-race affects everyone who works within a setting, from apprentices to owners.
A massive change that is happening more and more often, is the acquisition of smaller, private nurseries by nursery chains. Staff members are often overwhelmed by the seismic shift they encounter as they let go of the known and start embracing the new. A similar effect is felt when there is a change of management within a setting – the future is unknown and the present is unsettling. For the new manager, their concern is finding out what needs to be changed followed by deciding when and how to effect those changes.
And how can we forget Ofsted? Changes in ratio, in the way inspections are done, EYFS changes, new legislation… the list goes on. Receiving an “Inadequate” or “Requires Improvement” grading from Ofsted shatters a team’s morale. Changes on numerous levels must be made – and quickly!
When we at EnRich coach and train managers and leaders, we spend a significant amount of time studying change, specifically change management.
Change is inevitable.
Managing change well is crucial.
Socrates notes that “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new”. That is great advice but just how do we do that?
Managing change is a concept that encompasses both business and personal areas of life. In terms of business, Rachel Breitbach, the Change Management and Agility Practice Lead at Farwell, describes it as such; “Change management helps you look at the impacts to people – how they’re going to react to the barriers to adopting that change – and help them, ultimately, to be able to adapt and move forward.”
So, to do just that, it’s a good idea to familiarise ourselves with models of change management. There are a number of models from which to choose but two of the easiest to understand are Lewin’s Change Management Model and Kubler-Ross Change Management Framework.
Lewin’s Change Management Model: Implementing Change In Early Years
Kurt Lewin developed his model in the 1950’s, dividing the process of change into 3 steps:
