Managing Parental Fees and Staff Salary

Dear School Owner,

It’s important to remember that parents value quality education and are willing to pay for it. The fact that they are not paying their fees does not mean they don’t have the money, but rather that they prioritize other expenses over paying your fees.

 

It’s important to establish a solid foundation for your business, and not to compromise your school’s values in order to increase enrollment. Allowing debt to accumulate can lead to financial instability and negatively impact the growth of your school.

 

It’s also important to address any issues with timely payment of staff salaries, as this can lead to a loss of valuable employees. Good schools are known for their prompt payment of salaries, and teachers do not want to work in an environment where they have to beg for their pay.

 

To address the issue of parents not paying their fees, it may be helpful to take a firm stance and renegotiate payment terms, rather than allowing debt to accumulate. It’s also important to have a clear system in place for handling delinquent payments and to involve your staff in this process. Building a strong team and ensuring they understand the financial challenges of the school can help to mitigate issues caused by delinquent payments.

 

A school owner asked me this question below.

“PARENT finds it hard to pay school FEES. Some of my staff has gone because of delay in salary. My school fees is affordable compared to other schools. Please what can I do?”.

For the sake of those going through this same challenges. Here is my Professional response.

Dear School Owners,

Parent don’t NEGOTIATE schools with VALUE.

The fact that they don’t pay doesn’t mean they don’t have your money. They didn’t pay you because your school FEES can wait for other expenses.

Foundation is necessary in business.

What you won’t allow when your school is 200 in population, refuse it now that your pupils are 20.

It’s difficult to stop what people enjoys.

When you allow DEBT because you need pupils, you will lose financial growth.

If you start your school with PARENTS OWING you, you won’t be able to stop it when it is sweet to them; else you will lose population.

There are parent who will owe you for two terms and yet get a brand new car in the process.

Ask why they didn’t pay you?

Simply put, your school FEES can wait.

You have to take a bold step before they send you out of business.

Everybody is in business to make money including your staff.

It’s high level of insecurity when you delay your staff payment because they might leave your school to another school.

Good schools are known through prompt payment of SALARY.

No teacher want to stay in an environment where they will beg before their salary will be given. They didn’t join the school to beg; they came to offer VALUE in exchange for money.

It’s high time you begin to take proper measures of how you entertain fear in your business.

Some parents are TENANT who don’t delay in house rent simply because their LANDLORD don’t swallow excuse.

Some parents are traders who don’t buy on credit because their seller’s don’t entertain begging.

Some parents are into cooperative society where EXCUSE are not allowed for weekly/monthly payment.

But yours is different;

You allowed them from the beginning and they saw you needed population by all means; and they came to fill in the space.

Stand your ground and renegotiate your fight.

Debt has ruin many schools; rise up and attack this loopholes.

After resumption, refuse to be their victim.

Change the level of your hunger.

Don’t be interested in population, be interested in growth.

Don’t feel too emotional about PARENTS taking their kids away from your school because of DEBT.

DEBTORS are bound to move but your school must remain.

Build a fence round your school growth.

Who is attending to PARENT’S?

Who is responding to DEBTORS?

Are you the one doing everything together at once?

A debtor that owes more than two term will find it difficult to pay at once.

They are smart. They look ahead of you. They knew if they owe two terms, you won’t be able to send them away. So they begin to pay you gradually.

The bitter truth is, they have your MONEY but used it to run another business waiting for the profit to pay up.

They know you can’t send them AWAY because you will need that money.

Don’t allow that happen again,

Lay a structure after resumption.

Don’t allow PARENT owe for more than a term.

Don’t allow your EMOTIONS push you to allow them in.

Build fences round your EMOTIONS.

Don’t allow DEBTORS send you back to where you started from.

If you don’t have an ADMIN, use your strong and active staff as your weapon. Allow them stand for you.

Don’t just build the vision of your school without building your staff towards that VISION.

Don’t say your staff will understand that there are more debtors than creditors in the school that’s why their SALARY is delayed; staff won’t wait to observe that before they leave.

If PARENTS are not paying, carry your staff along; explain things to them rather than just being too silent.

Stop allowing your staff see population as MONEY when yourself know population is DEBT to you.

Your staff needs to know why you are delaying in SALARY.

They have many problems to attend to.

They have many Challenges to face.

Leave the passion, your staff are in teaching for PROFIT.

Don’t allow them see you are the only one enjoying while they are suffering.

Let them know you are suffering together.

Stop appearing to them like you are not affected.

How would they believe you are suffering when you don’t feel it.

Carry them along and ask for ideas on how you can curb this DEBT issues.

They have brilliant ideas, you need each other to function properly.

School is a game of numbers but you have to know the numbers you are counting.

200 pupils with 90% debtors is POPULATION.

50 pupils with 90% creditors is GROWTH.

You have to stop looking at population and start focusing on growth.

You can’t expand by leaving your staff behind.

Stop allowing your staff see you as the only one enjoying while they are suffering; they will LEAVE.

Start looking for other businesses to do to bring in money to run your school Business.

Sort your staff out so they can help you sort out your business Challenges.

You can’t be coming to school with that big daddy car and haven’t paid your staff salary.

You have to put that big daddy car at home and take public bus to school for that week.

Let your staff knows you are also in PAIN not pleasure.

Stop making them feel you are GROWING when it’s obvious to you; you are GOING.

Weeds grows faster than Flowers but flowers are more useful than weeds.

If you must GO, make sure you GROW.

Hope this meet you well?