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Staff Morale + Positive Work Culture = Staff Retention

An Action Research Project

By: Katrina Gitter

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Abstract
Staff retention has been an issue for the early childhood field for a long time. A

literature review on staff morale in the workplace, creating a positive atmosphere and

staff retention in the ECE field shows many factors that contribute to how a center

maintains its staffing, creates a positive environment for staff, and reasons for why

people stay in the field they chose. My research includes interviews with three directors

and three staff working at a couple different centers in the Green Bay area asking

questions linked to all three areas. As a result of my findings, I created a survey tool that

can be used bi-annually to gage where the culture and morale of the center's staff is.

After implementing the survey tool, a program will see where their center is at for

morale, keep staff engaged in what they are doing and identify areas they can increase

positivity in their work environment which drives those to want to stay in the field of ECE

for many years to come. 

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Identifying a problem or question to research. 

Staffing in the early childhood field with educated and qualified staff as well as

retaining those staff in our buildings has been an issue for as I can remember. Staff

turnover and burn out are always topics around the table in the early childhood field and

many other fields also. Wakabi (2016) states employee retention is a critical issue

facing organizations and its imperative that organizations find ways to attract and retain

quality employees. On one hand it is looking at the credentials of our teachers alongside

the ability to pay them effectively. If a center has lower wages, this not only hinders the

ability to find qualified staff from the recruiting side; it also hinders the ability to keep

them employed and retain them long term. The field of early childhood education

competes against fields not related to education due to the wages being close to or at

the same level as those of entry level job markets. Nevertheless, wages are not the only

thing that keeps people doing what they are doing. Does raising staff morale and

creating a positive culture make impact when it comes to staff retention? Once we can

answer this question, we should be able to create an environment where people can

thrive, children are receiving the quality consistent care they deserve, and we are able

to see staff retain their positions in the field longer.

What others have said, a literature review. 

The field of early education is underpaid in comparison to jobs that are similar;

however, pay is not the only reason people look to leave a job. Everett (2011) states

there are many factors for people to leave a job, those can include fair wages,

relationships with administration and maintaining a fun work environment. Many of

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these reasons contribute to the culture of the workplace and the feeling of satisfaction in

the job we do. How can we improve the culture of our centers to affect staff retention

and create an environment that promotes staff satisfaction?

First and foremost, when it comes to creating that positive culture and

satisfaction in the work you do, leaders need to create a team atmosphere and gather

those around them who all share the same amount of buy in to the goals and vision of

the center. Team building is important especially with newer team members. Proper

training will give them confidence in their abilities and on-going team focused activities

and self-awareness exercises will build upon your team’s strengths and help create a

family feel to the organization. Relationships and opening the lines of communication

are also important. Sullivan (2002) stresses the importance of knowing yourself first and

then using your strengths to help in building those relationships with staff around you.

White (2015) discusses communicating in ways that are meaningful and offering

authentic appreciation are two important pieces in retaining staff. Acknowledging and

appreciating the things staff accomplish will build their confidence and show them that

you are invested in what they are doing, and you strive alongside them to meet the

goals and mission of your organization. The early childhood education field is not the

only workforce that experiences negative environment and culture. S. Tillott (2013)

describes that in her nursing career she experienced environments where they followed

dogmatic leadership styles and hierarchical management techniques which just made it

easier to keep to herself vs interacting with her peers. She goes on to say that these

experiences showed her a lack of emotional intelligence in the leadership styles causing

higher staff turnover. If the leaders in Tillott’s work environment would have utilized
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other forms of leadership and built relationships with staff, they may have had a different

outcome. Huang & Cho (2011) stated to enhance a sense of belonging for the staff

members, open and trusting environments where staff could ask questions, seek

support and advice, and feel accepted mattered in comparison to those without.

Lastly having a fun positive atmosphere can go a long way. Everett (2011) states

while it may be challenging, infusing a playful spirit into non-profit and public settings

may prove to be a much-needed release form stressful duty. Fun workplaces tend to

enhance learning, productivity and creativity while reducing chances of absenteeism

and burnout. When looking at incorporating fun into the workplace this does not need to

be grandiose activities, doing things that just add a little sprinkle of fun throughout the

year help to take some of the pressures and stress of the everyday release from your

mind. When people are at ease and come to work with a positive outlook this will help

keep them satisfied in the work they do. A little goes a long way, you can also promote

a fun atmosphere by taking time to notice the little things employees do. According to

White (2015) employee recognition will have little to no effect if it doesn’t appear to be

genuine. Finding those moments to pause (Cashman,2012) what you are doing to

express genuine acknowledgement in what was done will not only make your employee

feel seen it could make their day. McDonald et al. (2018) state the importance of

recognition of accomplishments and social exchanges mean much more when it comes

to retention and engagement.

Develop an approach to the question. 

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Based on all the research out there on the topic of staff retention it is apparent

that when you as a leader create an environment that focuses on the staff development,

building relationships with your staff, and sprinkling in the fun atmosphere you will not

only retain your staff you will create an environment that is fun and engaging and one

that people want to be a part of. The first step of that I believe is getting to know your

staff on an individual level. One my ask how you get to know each staff’s abilities as

well as be aware of personality traits in a short amount of time. One way would be to

engage one on one with each staff member at the time of hire as well as meeting on an

ongoing basis to have those in-depth conversations to really see how things are coming

together. Quarterly collections of this type of information can help also, getting to see

what staff are feeling and making sure your leadership team is meeting their

expectations plays a role in the success of your team. It is also important to verify the

vision and goals of the center are clearly defined for success.

Once information is gathered through surveys and interviews with childcare staff,

it can give leaders an idea on how their centers is creating culture, what things are

currently being done and what more could be done when it comes to recognizing

morale and creating a positive culture. Once we have a baseline as to where the center

is at, we can implement strategies that not only increase the centers morale but also

increases the individual’s’ self-awareness and what they can bring to the center to help

it be successful. The creation of a tool to recognize morale within the center and

proactively catch those contemplating a job change, could impact the retention of the

center overall. The tool could be implemented at any workplace to see where their

organization is at for culture, staff morale and hopefully influence a change in the overall
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retention of their organization. The overall goal of measuring success would be to utilize

the tool to identify staff satisfaction bi-annually. Implementing self-awareness activities

and ways to boost morale would be implemented in between each time the tool is used

and the results would then show either a change hopefully in a positive way on the

overall culture and morale of your organization.

Plan and implement strategies for change:

Part one of plan implementation was to ask teachers and directors on what is

done at their childcare centers currently to influence staff morale and work culture. I

selected individuals from previous centers I worked for and set up interviews with them.

I chose to conduct the interviews with three leaders and then three teachers. The

following questions were asked to directors and teachers: Do you feel that the center

you work for has a positive work culture? What do you feel would make it more

positive? Do you feel you know your staff and can tell how they are feeling? Are you

aware of when staff morale feels low? What are identifying factors for staff morale?

How do you address staff morale with your staff members? How do you show

appreciation to your staff? Overall, would you consider your center a fun place to work?

How do you as a leader create a fun atmosphere while still maintaining

professionalism? What do you feel would help improve your centers staff retention?

B.K. is a director at a for profit childcare center in Green Bay, WI. She has been

in her role for two years. During my interview with B.K., she stated that she felt her

center has positive work culture and what would make it better was having more reliable

staff. B.K. said it’s easy to identify when staff morale is lower, you can tell by the
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behavior of the staff, it appears they are complaining or gossiping, or they become short

with the children in their care. B.K. admits that she does not set aside intentional time

to interact with her staff. B.K. says that she does her best to boost morale by doing the

little things like giving prizes or making a special lunch for them. To lighten the mood

sometimes, B.K. will dance and sing in the hallways and greet others when they come

in for their shifts. B.K. admits that overall, she feels retention is good but it’s very hard to

find people who have the passion for working with children. The main thing her center

does is try to make everyone feel welcome and let them know they can come to her

when something is happening, and or if they need input on something center related,

she can help guide them.

My second interview was with H.H. who is also a center director for a not-for-

profit childcare center in the downtown Green Bay, WI. H.H. has worked in the field of

early childhood for eighteen years. H.H. believes that her center has a positive culture

but feels it would be higher if childcare teachers in general were more valued in our

society. H.H. says she does informal check-ins regularly and more formal check-ins as

often as possible. This gives her staff opportunities for uninterrupted one-on-one time so

they can share how they are feeling. H.H. stated it’s easy to identify when morale is low,

she gets a ‘sense’ that something is off. She notices it in their body language,

decreased motivation, less interactions with others. H.H. said to build relationships with

her staff she is present in the classrooms and recently had everyone take a quiz related

to their work love language to gain a better understanding of each person. H.H. feels

that her center is a great place to work and feels that one thing that would make it even

better was higher pay for her staff.

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My last leadership interview was with T.D., she is an associate director at

another not-for-profit childcare center in Green Bay, WI. T.D. has been in her role for

three years. She reported that she feels her center does have a positive work culture

and she says what keeps it positive is remembering to be appreciative, even of the

small things. T.D. says she feels a vibe from staff when they are having an off day; she

knows when they are not themselves and many times in that case, asking if there is

anything that she can do for them. T.D. says she tries to talk to those who are off in a

staff/room meeting or face to face. She states that her and her lead director ask staff

“how can we fix the current situation or what can we do as directors to lift their morale.”

T.D. says that she will show staff appreciation by buying little treats, acknowledge their

work and accomplishments by writing notes. T.D. feels that the most important thing to

remember is that we are all human, not just directors or educators. Joking, laughing,

and having some down time to talk with staff about their interests (this also shows that

you genuinely care about them as a person outside of work) is what builds morale and

positive work culture. Overall T.D. stated that her centers retention is excellent. She

feels that her and her lead director keep it that way by making it a fun place to be and

taking that time out to show staff that they are important. Listening to their needs and

giving them guidance and support each day is what keeps them around.

I took some of the same questions and then interviewed three teachers who have

been in the field for a while as well. Teacher 1, R.A, is a 4k extension teacher at a

school organization outside the Green Bay WI area. She has been in her role less than

one year and feels that her work environment is not a positive one. She feels that to

improve the environment it needs clear consistent expectations, transparent and

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consistent communication, some sort of team building, she also reported that she has

never met at least half of her colleagues since she has been in the role. R.A. reported

its easy to identify low staff morale because its visible in people’s attitudes and

conversations. R.A. says that to improve morale bring a sense of organization/calmness

instead of feeling like chaos and like everyone is piecing things together just to get

through the days. R.A. doesn’t feel like their environment is a fun place to be and said it

would improve by improving the basics, like communication. Once that's set, finding

ways to connect employees doing little pay it forward activities like caught doing you

something notes or potlucks. R.A. felt that the center she is at would have better

recruitment and retention if it had more organization and communication. She said

there's a lot of frustration due to lack of communication and lack of understanding what

employees need. 

Teacher two, A.S. works as a two teacher at a for profit center in Green Bay, WI.

She has been in her role for over ten years. A.S. reported that her centers culture

depends on the mood of the week and that they try to maintain positivity, but stress is

sensed when the center is short staffed. A.S. said that more staff and feeling that the

higher up people trust us to make decisions would help the work environment. A.S. says

she can identify low staff morale and says it is a yucky feeling. She mentioned that in

moments of low staff moral if her leaders would do more recognition of efforts and

understanding where we are coming from and how we are feeling rather than just being

told it doesn't affect us might help matters. A.S. admits that she often does not feel

recognized for her efforts, but it feels nice when she is. A.S. says the work environment

can be fun sometimes; she tries her best to help make others smile, she thought her
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director could do more to make others feel recognized. A.S. felt like the number one

thing her center could do to recruit and retain staff is that the current staff aren't paid

enough for staying and working so much. There should be more benefits to their

position.

Lastly my third interview was with L.T. a threes teacher at a not-for-profit center

in Green Bay WI. L.T. has been in her role for four years at her current facility. L.T. feels

her center has a positive work culture and communication is the one thing that would

make it more positive. L.T. says she can easily identify when morale is low because it

shows in people’s attitudes, comments, and their ability to do work. L.T. says when

morale is low positive comments, rewards, directors spending time in rooms, just being

more personable with the staff would help bring morale up. L.T. feels that she is

recognized for her work and gets that by receiving little notes of appreciation and

rewards. L.T. also feels like her center has fun professionally but could improve on

communication. Lastly L.T. feels just a little more positive attitude at times could benefit

her environment and creating more than a boss/employee relationship is what would

help her center recruit and retain staff.

Part two of the plan was to take the information and analyze its results. Based on

the literature review it appears that one of the main reasons why people leave a job is

more related to feeling depleted and underappreciated. Also, based on my findings

from interviewing to both directors and teachers, a little goes a long way when it comes

to appreciation and recognition. A lack of acknowledgement and relationship with staff

clearly links to a low morale in themselves which can bleed into their work and their

centers positive work culture. I feel self-awareness as a leader and recognizing a

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person’s influence on their environment is important as well. Based on all the

information I have concluded that there is no doubt that when you have positive work

culture and good staff morale you will retain your staff at a higher level. None of the

teacher interviewee’s acknowledged that they are asked about how they are feeling

often and state that they want to have a closer relationship with their leaders.

Part three to the plan is how do you collect the information to identify when and

where the issues are within your program. With the information I received from the

interviews, I created a survey tool (Appendix) that any childcare center can use to

collectively get information on how their center is fairing in the areas of staff morale,

creating a positive work environment, and overall satisfaction in their job. The survey

can be conducted bi-annually and in many types of organizations, even outside

childcare. The survey is broken down into three sections, leadership feedback, job

satisfaction and inclusion and belonging. Within each section are statements in which

can be rated utilizing strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, or strongly disagree. The

survey is offered to staff to participate in; the goal is to have as close to hundred percent

participation to really get the full effect of the survey. They can then utilize the tool to

reflect on their centers results, look at themselves as a leader and assess how to use

the information they gained and create some team building activities to strengthen their

centers environment and implement the changes necessary.

Conclusions

Recently a test run at the center I work at. Based on the results thus far, myself

and my leadership team are utilizing the results to formulate ideas on how to build my

centers team relationships. The plan moving forward is to begin implementing a series
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of self-awareness activities and team building exercises during staff meetings to boost

staff’s morale and awareness. In several months we will reconduct the survey to see if

these new activities have influenced the morale and atmosphere within my center.

Evaluation of Process

The first round of survey implementation is underway, it appears that this could

greatly have an impact on boosting moral, keeping the culture positive, and have staff

continue to enjoy the work they do and build lifelong careers. Looking ahead, utilizing

this tool organizationally wide could help push the centers into creating an environment

of consistency and longevity. With the implementation of the tool the leaders of each

center can understand where the staff’s feelings are and what areas they can work on

collectively to improve the atmosphere. As this tool is used you can compare the

results from each survey and view the changes in your centers morale. This gives the

center a chance to focus and be intentional on building relationships with staff and

helping improve their works culture which will ultimately have a positive effect on sttaff

retention.
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References

AS. (2022). Personal Communication

BK. (2022). Personal Communication

Cashman K. (2012). The Pause Principle: Step Back to Lead Forward. Oakland, CA:

Berrett-Koehler Publishers, inc.

Everett, April. “Benefits and Challenges of Fun in the Workplace.”  Library Leadership

and Management Volume 25:1 (2011) 1-10.

Goffin and Valora Washington. (2007). Ready or Not Leadership Choices in Early Care

and Education, New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Goleman, D. (2002). Primal Leadership: Learning to Lead with Emotional

Intelligence. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Press.

H.H. (2022). Personal Communication

Huang, D. and Cho, J. (2010) Using professional development to enhance staff

retention. Afterschool matters. Retrieved from

https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1068369.pdf

LT. (2022). Personal Communication

McDonald, P., Thorpe, K., Irvine, S. “Low pay but we still stay: Retention in the Early

childhood education and care.” Journal of Industrial Relations Volume 60:5 (2018) 647-

668.

RA. (2022). Personal Communication

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Sullivan, D. (2009). Learning to Lead: Effective Leadership skills for teachers of young

children. St. Paul MN: Redleaf Press. 

TD. (2022). Personal Communication

Tillot, S. (2013) “The importance in staff engagement to the development of positive

workplace cultures.” Faculty of Science, Medicine, and Health-Papers: Part B. Retrieved

from https://ro.uow.edu.au/smhpapers1/1336

Wakabi, B. “Leadership style and Staff retention in Organizations” The international

Journal of Science and Research Volume 5:1 (2016) 412-416.

White, Paul. “Improving Staff Morale Through Authentic Appreciation.” The Association

for Talent Development (2015) 108-109.

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Appendix

Answer the statements using the following scale,

0- Strongly disagree 1- Disagree 2-Neutral 3- Agree 4- Strongly Agree

Leadership Feedback (staff morale and appreciation fields)

I can actively participate in communications with my direct leader(s)

My direct leader(s) support my developmental goals.

It is easy to get help from my direct leader(s) when I need it.

My direct leader(s) give me recognition on a consistent basis.

The recognition I receive from my direct leader(s) is meaningful.

I feel respected by my direct leader(s).

My direct leader(s) address concerns in a timely and appropriate manner.

Job Satisfaction (staff retention fields)

I am proud to work here

I look forward to coming to work every day.

My work gives me a sense of accomplishment.

I have the freedom to share my ideas for new methods in my role. My job is in alignment

with my career goals. I see myself still working here in two years' time. I have a healthy

work life balance.

Inclusion/ Belonging (culture fields)

I am satisfied with the culture of my workplace.

My organization is dedicated to diversity and inclusiveness

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I feel my opinions count within my center/department.

I have someone at work who helps me grow and develop.

I feel connected to my co-workers within my center/department.

I feel like I am part of a team.

*** This survey is set up in an excel format so as responses are entered you can create
graphs and flow charts to analyze results. ***