Deciding to start a childcare center is the very tip of an iceberg that can sink your hopes and plans if you don’t have a solid plan in place. Whether you begin with childcare in your home or decide to create a free-standing facility, there is a generally defined pathway from making your decision to opening your doors.

Online registration is less perk and more expectation as the digital natives grow up and become parents. The kids who don’t know a time when technology was not part of everyday life have come of age and expect service providers to implement digital solutions over analog processes.

Is this true for your childcare program? There are a few parents, usually moms, who are extremely involved and supportive of your school... and then there is everyone else. They drop off and pick up their children and rarely stay long enough to say, “Hello.”

Selecting the best childcare software for your business takes planning and due diligence, but if you follow a rational business path, you will find the solution you need for your childcare operation.

Tracking attendance is important in many of the processes of operating a childcare center. Government regulations, planning, and insurance all require accurate records of attendance to ensure the safety and security of the children in your care.

Parents are the most critical part of the village it takes to raise a child, and even though parents entrust their children to another part of the village for several hours a day, they still want to be able to connect and understand that part of their children’s lives.

Cash flow management can be a challenge for any small business. If you are still performing your billing tasks manually, you are spending quite a few hours each month printing and distributing invoices then handling payment as it comes in.

Aftercare or afterschool programs have proven to be of significant value to low-income and low-performing student populations, but they have several roadblocks to implementation, recruitment and continued operation.

A monthly newsletter, done well, will return your investment in time with increased client retention, engagement, and satisfaction. The very essence of a newsletter is its ability to provide relevant information on a schedule that allows parents and children to look forward to its publication.

It never pays to rush your selection of childcare software. There are solutions available with a wide variety of features and functionality; you need to decide ahead of time what problems you need to be solved so you can put together a list of requirements before hitting the search button.