According to a report by the Afterschool Alliance, there were 10.2 million attending after school programs. Such programs have shown to result in significantly higher test scores, improved day school attendance, and reduce criminal activity within the community.

Childcare management software is probably the best thing since sliced bread for running any childcare business. Just think what sliced bread did to speed up PB&J sandwich production. On top of spending time with the kids, their parents, and your staff, there are numerous other tasks to manage -- from activity enrollment and scheduling to newsletters and communication with parents.

Summer camp is just around the corner, but most administrators have been working long before this to get ready for the campers and counselors coming their way. When you think about it, summer camp is simply short-term childcare over the course of a season.

While the thought of camping and computers don't often go together, technology can streamline paperwork and help you keep up with all your administrative chores. Management software for summer camps provides an abundance of tools that make preparation and administration less stressful for you and your staff.

If you are in the market for a new childcare management solution, you have plenty of options available. There is software for almost any business size, some with seemingly endless bells and whistles (also known as features), and others that look extremely simple to operate. You can choose from cloud-based solutions or installed (on-premise) software.

Whether you operate a daycare center, an after school program, or any other type of childcare service, there's a solution for you.

Now that tax time is past you can start to focus on preparing for the next one. Isn’t that a cheery thought? Maybe not, but it is a necessary one if you want to maximize your tax deductions and make the next tax season a little less stressful.

Let’s take a look at how the IRS defines different types of daycares and ten potential deductions you might take advantage of the next time around and run the best daycare service possible.

Deciding to purchase and implement a childcare management system should be approached as a multi-step process. It requires planning and consideration before you approach vendors about their solutions as well as planning for the transition to the new system and continuing support.

The following tips are a tried and true method of selecting, installing, training, and implementation of a new childcare management software system.

Where is the best place for your software solution to reside: on your computer or in the cloud? Both methods of deployment have positives and negatives as well as some unique features or benefits not available in the other.

Let’s take a look at the differences, pros, and cons of on-premise (installed) software and cloud-based childcare software solutions.

Customer satisfaction is a powerful driver of customer retention and customer loyalty. For childcare businesses, measuring and improving customer satisfaction is a two-pronged activity – the children are the receivers of the service, but the parents have the determination of facility.

Reducing costs for your after school program may be necessary to stay afloat. The business expenses and costs of operating an after school program continue to rise as prices for supplies, equipment, and other necessities go up while wages remain stagnant.

Campground management software does more than handle your registration and scheduling. It also contains financial applications that can help you track accounts and manage your cash.

Before you can increase your cash flow, you need to monitor and measure all sources of income and expenses, so you have data to make an educated revenue projection for the future.