Developing your Front of Office Communication and Relationship Skills – From Reception to Management… – Geelong 24/03/2020

This two-part workshop will address strategies to improve your work place
relationships and strategies to improve your communication skills.
If you are in the front line and work with parents, teaching staff, and
students on a regular basis then this workshop is for you. This program is
ideal for general office staff whose role includes working with and supporting
all members of complex school communities. Front of office staff drive the
heart beat and often provide the first impression of ‘who we are’ at many
schools; culture. Front of office staff are the often the ‘first responders’ to
distressed and sometimes angry parents, anxious and often self-important
students, stressed and sometimes demanding teachers. Establishing and
sustaining productive relationships across the school is a key role of office
staff and they need adequate training and skills to make sure their wellbeing
is maximized and the office can function without toxic relationships and
unnecessary conflict.
If respectful relationships are at the core of your school vision and values
then how is this translated into those very busy Front of Office relationships?
The quality and nature of relationships in the school office will be a
significant determinant in people’s perception of ‘school culture.’ Front of
Office staff now have less time to do more things and have additional roles
that for some of us were never trained for. Tensions can be reduced and
conflict managed positively by working ‘relationally’ with people rather than
management through more traditional approaches.