CPD Team

Graham Thomson has been in touch with Malachi since his appearance at the Summer School and Malachi fed back how one headteacher in New Zealand is changing his leadership practice as a result of the Breakthrough Coach technique. The email is reproduced below

“Hi Malachi,
I was at your seminar held at the NZ Principal’s Conference in Christchurch last month.  I found your presentation the most challenging and inspiring.  It helped me see that by operating as a super technician I was not helping others around me be who they should be and I was not helping myself be who I should be.
I have already begun to roll out the changes based on what he has said by…

1. Changing the way that I think…this is the first and foremost important change.
2. Throwing out a large portion of my office…wow…what a liberating experience that was.
3. Having daily meetings with my secretary…(which I need to call my executive secretary)…to deal with the mail and to provide daily assignments for.
4. Looking at the current job description for our secretary which is so full of different roles (including receptionist, office manager, bursar, staff secretary, executive secretary, librarian, minutes secretary etc) and seeing how this can be relooked at to help her and me get what we need to be done…done.
5. Got kids to take up one of our office managers roles.
6. Closing my door way more often.
7. Begun to see the importance of the personal potential of each staff member so that they can become experts in their fields of passion and led the staff in them…our PD budget is going to go through the roof…but…funnily…I’m pleased about that.

What I need to do next is…

1. Schedule time in the classroom as I free up time from the office.
2. Develop a shared calendar so that my secretary can manage appointments.
3. Change the job descriptions and communicate this change to staff and parents.
    

I am seeing the benefits within me already as I am actually working less…talking more…and getting my head above the trees.

So…can I thank you for your contributions to my professional development.  It was timely, pertinent and liberating.

David McKenzie

Edendale Primary School

24 Salford Street

Edendale

Southland, 9825

New Zealand

(P.S: If I was being really good I would have got my secretary to type this message…but…still working on that.)

Categories: Leadership, SummerSchool08