Overview

For this Work Product, you will visit an early childhood setting to explore current practices for recruiting, supporting, and retaining employees.

You will use this setting as a context to determine staffing needs, plan hiring activities, and create plans for supporting and retaining employees, including activities to cultivate a positive work environment and maximize employee motivation and job satisfaction.

To begin this Assessment, carefully review each part of the Assessment.

With the tasks associated with each section in mind, arrange to visit an early childhood setting (center, school, etc.), which may be your current place of employment. Meet with the person(s) in charge of recruiting, developing, evaluating, and retaining staff.

Hold one or more conversations with this person to gather information on the practices, issues, and challenges related to staffing, writing job descriptions, recruiting and interviewing, professional development, and employee support. Make a point to gain a sense of the culture of the organization and the diversity of the surrounding community.

Discuss activities in place (or ones that can be developed) to support and retain staff with the goal of creating a positive and productive work environment. Make detailed notes during your visit, or record your conversation if possible, to inform your successful completion of this Assessment. Be sure to use pseudonyms for the center and for any individuals discussed in your Assessment.

Your response to this Assessment should:

• Reflect the criteria provided in the Rubric, which provides information on how the Assessment will be evaluated.

• Adhere to the required assignment length.

• Use the APA course paper template available here. All submissions must follow the conventions of scholarly writing. Properly formatted APA citations and references must be provided where appropriate.

Professional Skills: Written Communication and Critical Thinking and Problem Solving are assessed in this Competency. You are strongly encouraged to use the Writing Checklist and to review the Rubric prior to submitting.

This Assessment requires submission of one (1) document that includes all parts of this Work Product.

Instructions

This assessment has four-parts.

Part I: Staffing Analysis (3-5 pages)

Based on the information you gained from your visit, analyze the staffing needs of the setting. Then, to complete Part 1 of this Assessment:

1. Write a description, of the early childhood setting visited, that includes a profile of the children and families served in the program and a description of the current staffing arrangement in this setting.

2. Analyze the staffing arrangement to determine the staffing needs of the center. Explain how well the staff represents the diversity of the community, the degree to which roles and responsibilities are appropriately matched to individual employees, and staffing challenges (e.g., funding, finding qualified individuals, eliminating unneeded positions, etc.).

3. Provide recommendations for at least two separate positions that could be filled, revised, created, or eliminated to improve the staffing configuration, including a rationale for each.

Part II: Job Descriptions (1 page per job description)

Based on the staffing needs you identified in Part 1, develop job descriptions for at least two positions that are relevant to this setting. Use the "Job Description Sample" template provided to complete Part 2 of this Assessment. Your job descriptions must include the following:

• Title of the position

• Related reporting/teaming structure

• Brief description of the organization

• Overview of the position's roles and responsibilities

• Overview of minimal qualifications of the ideal candidate

Part III: Recruitment Plans and Interview Questions (2-3 pages)

Successful recruitment requires strategic decisions regarding where to post the job descriptions. Consider various options for posting the job descriptions you created in Part 2. Then, to complete Part 3 of this Assessment:

• Provide at least three locations where you will advertise each position, including a rationale for each.

• Describe at least three strategies you will use to attract qualified and diverse candidates, including a rationale for each.

Based on the context of the early childhood setting you visited and the two positions you identified, develop interview questions for each position. Complete the following:

• Formulate at least five interview questions that will be asked of the candidates. Include at least one scenario-based question that requires candidates to respond to an authentic work-related situation.

Part IV: Professional Development and Employee Support Activities

Once employees are hired, your efforts to help them assimilate into the culture of the organization, evaluate their performance, and support their professional development. Practices and policies that foster a positive, respectful, and engaging work environment will help ensure job satisfaction, build capacity, and ensure retention.

Create an overview of staff development and support activities, including the following, to complete Part 4 of this Assessment:

1. Provide descriptions of at least two strategies that will be used to assimilate new staff, including a rationale for each.

2. Write an overview of the process that will be used to evaluate performance of employees.

3. Describe at least three strategies to be used on an ongoing basis to develop, support, and motivate new staff, including a rationale for each.

4. Provide descriptions of at least three specific strategies that can be implemented on an ongoing basis to support a positive and productive work climate, including a rationale for each.