Karla Houghtalin is the program manager in early childhood business management at Southwest Human Development in Phoenix. She holds a master’s degree in early childhood education, curriculum and instruction from Arizona State University.
In this podcast, she shares what’s happening with shared services, a topic that is incredibly relevant in the child care industry today.
Karla describes the genesis of the business initiative that began her organization's work in shared services, including the early pieces of putting it together.
She talks about "the four pillars" of how child care providers can create a strong foundation to be a sustainable program.
She says providers must know their worth, which includes making sure they're being paid promptly and fairly by parents.
Karla says that automating child care businesses saves providers time and money, and has tips for how to help beyond automation. She also describes the role of business coaching in running a successful program, and shares advice for providers who live in places where a shared-services option isn't available.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
Welcome to the childcare business podcast
brought to you by pro caresolutions.
This podcast is all about givingchildcare, preschool, daycare
after school and other educationprofessionals, a fun and upbeat
way to learn about strategiesand inspiration you can use to
thrive.
You'll hear from a variety ofchildcare thought leaders,
(00:30):
including educators, owners, andindustry experts on ways to
innovate, to meet the needs ofthe children you serve from
practical tips for managingoperations, to uplifting
stories, transformation, andtriumph.
This podcast will be chalk fullin insights.
You can use to fully realize thepotential of your childcare
business.
(00:50):
Let's jump in
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Good afternoon, everybody.
Welcome to the childcarebusiness podcast, you know, uh,
really looking forward totoday's show.
I'm gonna let you introduceyourself if you can, and I'm
gonna make sure I'm gonna take astab, cuz I do this all the time
at pronouncing your last namecorrectly.
It's Carla Howlin.
Is that correct?
Speaker 3 (01:10):
It is not.
It is H talent and that's youprobably think that because, um,
pronounce it correctly.
Yes.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
All right, so let's get this let's let's flesh this
out a little bit.
It make sure.
So it is not how to lend andyou've been so kind to me cuz
you and I have talked many timesover the past, you know, year
plus mm-hmm so thecorrect pronunciation of your
last name, I'm gonna have yousay it one last time is what
Speaker 3 (01:36):
H
Speaker 2 (01:38):
H town.
So how often would you say whenpeople are pronouncing your last
name, you have to correct them.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
If I correct them, it would be a hundred percent of
the time.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
Yeah, that's a, well, my last name as you know is
gualt and so it's similar.
It's very often I have to, likepeople will ask how do you
pronounce it?
Do you know the, the origin ofyour last name?
Like what?
Speaker 3 (02:01):
So I, I believe it has some Polish ancestry, but
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Okay.
But
Speaker 3 (02:06):
It's, I'd have to ask my husband more about that.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
yeah.
Where that come?
Oh, you married into the lastname.
That's the same as that's thesame as my wife.
Yeah.
Okay.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
Yeah, I did.
Got it.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
And, and then Carla, can you talk a little bit about,
you know, one of the reasons Iwanted to have you on our show
and we'll dive into this alittle bit is around your word
in, in the shared services worldand, and some of the things that
you guys are doing there inArizona, but I, what I wanted to
start with maybe is to talk alittle bit about the
organization that you work withSouthwest human development, and
(02:36):
maybe even pre some of the workyou're doing in, in the shared
service world.
Like what is the, what is themission initiative of Southwest
human development?
What do they do there in thePhoenix area?
And then maybe you could talk alittle bit about when you join
the organization and, and yourrole with them.
Speaker 3 (02:53):
Yeah, I love it.
So Southwest human developmentis the largest nonprofit in the
state of Arizona that works forand with children and their
families, um, birth to five.
So the focus is early childhoodeducation, whether that be
disability services, whetherthat be, um, in-home and help,
(03:19):
whether that be working withchildcare providers, just like
we are, um, quality, firstassessments, quality, first
coaching.
So we have a whole screeningdepartment Southwest right now
has over 40 programs that assistchildren, families, and their
providers, and over a thousandand employees.
(03:40):
And I believe we've beeninception since 1984.
So
Speaker 2 (03:46):
Wow.
A thousand employees, is thatstatewide across the state of
Arizona or is it mostly focusedon like the greater Phoenix
area?
What, where what's the reach?
Speaker 3 (03:55):
So Southwest is housed in Phoenix.
Many of our programs arestatewide.
So for example, our program isstatewide.
So we serve, um, statewideproviders, our assessment, um,
we're contracted to do all thequality first assessments.
That's a statewide program.
Training is statewide.
We, so we have some justMaricopa county programs, which
(04:19):
is the, of Phoenix, but we alsohave a lot of programs
statewide.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Got it.
And, and then Southwest,originally, even in their
original charter, it was alwaysfocused on that birth to five
year old.
You know, segment's always beenkind of the same mission in
terms of approach.
Speaker 3 (04:36):
Yeah.
Always, always to assist and tohave best outcomes for, or
children and their families.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
Excellent.
And then, and then in particularlike your role, cause I know
mm-hmm,, you know,a lot of those outreaches work
directly with families andconnecting families with
resources, but then there's thischannel that focuses on
partnering with the childcareproviders throughout the state.
And obviously that's reallyimportant because those
providers have to erect contactand relationships with the
(05:03):
families and the students is thepartnership or the work you guys
are doing in the early ECE fieldwith providers mm-hmm
is, is that fairlynew or does that also go back
many years with what Southwestis doing
Speaker 3 (05:17):
So that, not the business piece, but the work
with Southwest for many years,because they have been in doing
quality improvement programs inwith providers for decades.
And so that has just been anextension.
And that's also how this programgot started as an extension
program to one of the qualityprograms that they were
(05:39):
operating at the time.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
Okay.
Got it.
And so let's, let's talk about,I mean, it's, it's been, you,
you know, this, you know,Monique Reynolds, who we had
with, you know, quality care forchildren in Georgia.
And I know you worked reallyclosely with the group at
opportunities exchange andLouise and Sharon, this theme
around shared services continuesto come up more and more in our
(06:02):
world.
And so, you know, as adisclaimer, uh, you know, for
our audience listening, I, Iwork pretty closely with Carla.
My team works with Carla and herteam.
They do utilize our software andaspects of their program and
that's kind of where ourconversation have always, um,
originated.
But based on that, Carla, youknow, and our ability and
(06:23):
opportunities to talk with youover time, it's been interesting
to watch how your Alliance andproject has unfolded.
And so I thought it would bereally helpful for others to
hear how it all started with atSouthwest human development
around these business outcomesand the funding that came
forward and then how you guysstarted the project.
(06:44):
So maybe, uh, if you could,could you speak to how, like the
very Genesis of the actual, likethis business initiative that
you guys had, how that startedand what the early pieces were
to put it together?
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Yeah, absolutely.
And I'm even gonna go step backand tell you even how I got
started Southwest and thisprogram.
So I'm a third generationArizona, and I've been
passionate about system changesin this community, my community
for children and families forover 20 years.
So I've been creating programsfor children and with
(07:18):
disabilities, um, early care andeducation programs, programs for
foster children and families.
And so having this opportunityto work with Southwest human
development in this way was suchan exciting venture.
So in 2019, Southwest humandevelopment partner was in
partner was first things first.
(07:40):
And they were doing a smallpilot extension, um, of a
quality improvement program thatthey were working on.
And that the idea at the timewas to see if adding business
coaching to those few childcareproviders would show
improvements in their practices.
And so I was chosen by Southwestto work with 13 sites and
(08:03):
provide some basic businesscoaching to them.
And that really was an immediatesuccess in collection of tuition
and increasing in enrollment.
And then the COVID 19 pandemicwith shortly after we started.
And so that need right forbusiness acumen came front and
(08:25):
center.
And so that's really where westarted.
Could we take these 13providers?
Could we see improvements?
And, and we did.
And then we had to tweak, right,because the COVID 19 happened
and then, and everyone wantedbusiness practices.
Everyone wanted to talk about itand, and start doing that.
Speaker 2 (08:46):
And, and when you say like how it came front and
center, when the pandemic hit,because I know it's, it's
actually been refreshing likefor so long.
So many of our conversationswere around the pandemic and it
does feel like there's this, um,focus of, of a lot of people
feeling like maybe we're, we'removing past that, but I do
rewinding back to March of 2020in, in terms of what you guys
(09:10):
saw happen, where all theseproviders were like really
hungry business coaching, likewhat caused that?
Wasn't the fact that now theyrealize like, Hey, we can't just
rely on a waiting list.
And, and our schools are bustingat the seams.
We've gotta have tight businesspractices cuz we're trying to
hang on.
Is that a fair like assessment?
Speaker 3 (09:30):
Yeah, I think for me, what I saw was providers just
didn't, they were already didn'thave much wiggle room and they
couldn't be prepared cuz thesystem didn't allow them to be
prepared.
So we couldn't have largeemergency funds because the
funds weren't there to do it.
And so there was kind of ascramble of, can I stay open?
How do I stay open?
(09:51):
How do I serve families andchildren?
And I think all also arealization I need some help and
guidance and now I'm ready tohear I'm really, I have the time
because a lot of people wereclosed, you know, help helped me
do this.
And so we saw that providerswere interested and the state
(10:12):
partners were interested andother organizations were
interested and it just reallybecame all front center.
And so we had to really improveour program.
We had to create it and tightenit and be ready for that
expansion.
It wasn't just gonna be this 13.
It was gonna be really bigger.
And so we had to develop thatprogram further.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
Yeah, that's amazing.
And so going back to that time,Carla, where you were working
with those 13 early providers,cause I kind of wanna maybe walk
through a little bit about howthings have changed over time
and what some of your learningswere from those early days with
those original providers.
So with those original 13, doyou remember as a business
(10:55):
coach, were you given like anoutline at that point of like,
Hey Carla, these are the thingswe want you to go into these
centers and focus on or was itmore of a discovery process for
you?
And if so, any takeaways thatyou can remember as like the
early learnings of like, Hey,these are things that are
consistent across theseproviders that they need help
with.
Speaker 3 (11:15):
So I love, I love that question because, um, I
didn't have an outline.
It really was a discoveryprocess.
We were working withopportunities to exchange and I
had been introduced to the irontriangle.
And so, you know, I had thisbusiness formula, but I think it
was really listening and hearingwhat they were going through
(11:36):
and, and then creating a assessso that we could get data.
But you know, it was helpingbuild capacity.
Cause a lot of these providersdidn't have budgets and so it
was helping them create budgets.
It was helping them understandtheir financial reports, create
financial reports.
And so when I really look backat that time and honestly Ryan
(11:59):
even bringing it today, it'sbuilding that capacity and then
also showing them ways, such asautomation to save, save them
time and money.
So it was really hearing themwhat were their, what were their
struggles and then creating aprogram that would work for
(12:20):
them.
And, and since then now we, ourprogram has four pillars that we
use.
And so those first 13, I thinkthey were, um, authors to help
create this program.
Speaker 2 (12:32):
Yeah.
I like the word authors I was,as you were saying that I was
saying like maybe they were alittle bit of like the Guinea
pigs and the testing, but I likeauthors.
That's a really like, theyhelped you guys build these
pillars.
I'm gonna come back to thosefour pillars cuz I would love to
talk a little bit about like,you know, how you've built your
program and some of the systemsand processes since then.
But I, I do wanna ask becauseopportunities exchange comes up
(12:56):
a lot.
Like for me personally, as wetalk and engage with providers
across the country and we'retalking with different
organizations that are, youknow, looking into shared
service alliances, you know,opportunities exchange obviously
plays a pretty critical role.
Uh, can you talk about how youwere introduced to that group
and maybe like what role doesopportunities exchange, play?
(13:18):
Maybe you can speak specificallywith your group and Southwest
human development.
Like what role did they play inhelping you guys, you know, kind
of launch your initiative?
Speaker 3 (13:27):
Yeah.
So our, um, CEO gender award hadbeen, um, connected with, with
Louis Stoney for, for many years.
And so when this idea of sharedservices and business practices
came up, um, we began consultingwith them, I think more formally
or I began consulting with themmore formally.
(13:47):
And it really was one of thebest resources that we, you
know, we have had.
And, and that, that relationshipwith our opportunities exchange,
it has driven and guided thisprogram work right from the
beginning.
And it helps has helped peopleconnect me to other alliances
and other people in this field,um, which I've been able to
(14:09):
learn from their learningexperiences.
And then I've been able to sharemy learning experiences for
others who are interested.
So, you know, we work with themquite intimately opportunities
exchange.
They have helped, um, guide usand really share their
knowledge, their resources, um,their best practices.
(14:29):
And then we have been able totake that, tweak it for the
state of Arizona and then sharethat with our providers, which
you know, has been amazing.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I love how you articulated thatbecause one of the things I was
gonna ask you and I asked thisto Monique too, a few weeks ago
when, when we spent some timetalking about what they're doing
in Georgia is to articulate,like if I'm a provider in
Arizona and, and you come to meor I get connected with you and
your group Carla, around, youknow, the, the initiative that
(15:00):
you guys are running with yourAlliance, like how do you guys
message to providers?
The benefits that they're gonnareceive from being part of the
Alliance?
Like I know they're are somefunding benefits.
Obviously you hit on some of thecoaching benefits, but if you
were talking to a provider, asyour coaches has talked to
providers, like, what is that,what is that value proposition
(15:22):
or that pitch sound like what'sin it for me as a provider to
come partner with with the workthat you guys are doing.
Speaker 3 (15:27):
Yeah.
I love that.
So yes, there are some freebies,right?
So we provide their preparesoftware for them.
That's a benefit.
We give them the hardware tabletto utilize.
That's a benefit.
They get, um, a subscription toour Arizona tool kit, which is
the CCCA for good here inArizona.
(15:47):
So there, there are thoseFreed's and that, and that's a
really cool piece, but also talkto them about how now they have
a partner to walk beside them,um, with that individualized
coaching and training to reallyhelp them with the things that
they're struggling with.
And I think it's theindividualized piece that makes
it special because sure we havesome curriculum, some trainings
(16:11):
we use, but it's the one on onethat enforces that.
And it really is having apartner and then learning these
skills and U full utilization ofthese tools.
Cuz a lot of people have thesetools, a lot of providers, but
they're not fully utilizing them, but now they have a partner
that walks with them for fullutilization, understanding
(16:32):
terms, understanding bestbusiness practices can answer
their questions, can reinforcethose skills and risk, be a
support to them.
And so to me, that's time andmoney saved.
It's that upfront investment oftime that will save them time
and energy in the long run, itwill preventative, right?
(16:54):
Just like medical.
I wanna go to my doctor and Iwanna do those preventative
things.
I need to do that in my businessas well.
I need to put in thosepreventative practices, but this
time it's all about, I also havea relationship partner to walk
alongside.
I, I always call it like softtouch consulting, cuz I'm gonna
gimme you advice.
And I'm gonna give yousuggestions of what I think you
(17:16):
should do to improve yourbusiness.
But I'm not gonna just leave youhanging.
I am going to support you andwalk with you.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
Yeah.
I like how you described thatbecause there are a lot of like
consultants, I mean not just inour industry, but in all
industries that provide similartype of resources, but for
providers to be able to happento, like you said, the coaching
opportunities as well as like acommunity.
I that's one of the, thequestions I wanted to ask you
too, like as a provider in, andI think I use the term Alliance.
(17:46):
I don't know if that's how youguys refer to, you know, the
group of providers that are partof, um, this initiative, but as
a, as a childcare owner in thisAlliance, what does that
relationship look like on apractical level?
I know the concept or theinitiative is to have coaching
and to drive better outcomes,but you mentioned there's
(18:07):
one-on-one coaching as well asis there also like community
environments where as aprovider, I'm also interacting
with all of the other providersthat are part of the, the
program.
Is that accurate?
Speaker 3 (18:17):
Yeah, absolutely.
So in this project right now, wecall them a cohort.
So we have a cohort right nowthat we're working with with the
state of Arizona that has 80provider, family care and
centers and they also get, sothey get there twice a month, um
, individualized coaching, butthen they also get to come
(18:37):
together at least once a monthto hear from a professional in
the field.
So that might be an accountantthat might be someone, a pro
care trainer that might be amark specialists where they, um,
the DS, um, through the state ofArizona has come to talk to
them.
And those are opportunities.
These providers would never haveto hear from business
(19:02):
professionals to help them intheir business.
They get to come together as agroup, they get to listen, they
get to ask questions, they getto collaborate to get other.
And that's actually, when wesurvey them some of their
favorite parts is they just getthis two hours once a month to
come together and just talk andshare experiences and ask
(19:25):
questions and learn new skillsand, and have connections.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
Yeah, that's huge.
I know we, we do that ourselveswith our customer base
sometimes, you know, we, we pullthese trainings together and
sometimes the feedback that'sthe most valuable for our
customers is, oh, I got to talkwith other pro care customers.
And just to interact in thatcommunity is really valuable.
Are there for you guys, in termsof providers that participate,
(19:49):
they get the access to all theseamazing benefits.
Are there requirements that theyhave in order to participate
initially and also to continuein the cohort or in the
initiative that you guys measurethem by and expect as a provider
to participate in?
Speaker 3 (20:07):
Yeah, they're they, they do have some requirements.
Um, and so we call of themassignments, but they're not
grade, it's not graded homework.
Um, what we would be talkingabout would be assessments.
Like we do a pre-assessment anda post assessment.
We do an intake where we get toknow them and find out more
about their business.
Um, we have iron triangleassignments that they might
(20:30):
have.
So we like to look at it asevery assignment is just for
their, to help their business.
If they don't have a budget,we're gonna help them build one.
So they're gonna have to gathersome data and do that.
So every requirement,assignment, survey is all to
help their business.
And so, and that's how we'vecreated it.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Yeah.
That's amazing.
Not, not really any downside tobeing able to participate.
Now you mentioned, I wanna goback to the four pillars that
you guys have identified.
Cause you know, I, I, I lovegetting into the weeds around
the outcomes, the iron triangle,you've referenced a few times.
So I wanna talk a little bitabout how you guys view that and
maybe some of the common themesthat you see, but when you guys
(21:13):
have identified these pillars,can you talk about what those
are and then how that goes intoyour, like your coaching with
your providers and, and how youuse that?
Speaker 3 (21:25):
Yeah, thank you.
That, yeah.
I, I love to talk about the fourpillars because I really believe
just like our providers need tohave a strong foundation to be a
sustainable program.
Our program has to have a, a, astrong foundation to be
successful.
And so we do have these fourpillars.
The first really is thatopportunity exchange iron
(21:46):
triangle, um, that this, thisformula, we believe that just as
they do that full enrollment tostaff capacity and full fee
collection and understandingthat cost per child, whether I
have a gap or I have an excessis essential to understanding
the health of their business.
So that is a huge piece.
(22:06):
And we try to through out in theyear that providers are with us,
we try to bring that into theconversation every time.
And then it is really thatindividualized coaching that
retraining and keeping, maybethey learn something in a cohort
meeting, but they might needsome extra guidance.
So let's reteach it.
(22:27):
Or we have a career curriculumcould be budgeting, could be
financial reports, could bemarketing, could be staffing and
retention.
And so we might give them thatone-on-one training, but we're
also in that individualizedcoaching, listening to their
needs and tailoring thosecoaching sessions to what is the
(22:49):
leveling up for them as well.
And then we have what we, thevetted policies and procedures,
because we don't want providersjust pulling from anywhere.
And so we give them mostly theresources from that toolkit that
Arizona toolkit, but any othervetted policies and procedures,
cause we want them to have thosepractices.
(23:11):
Um, and then the fourth isautomation.
We believe that automation istied to all of that work in a
way to save providers, time andmoney, but just having
automation isn't enough.
So as part of thatindividualized coaching, we are
walking hand in hand with themthrough that automation to full
(23:31):
utilization.
And those are our pillars.
Speaker 2 (23:34):
I like that.
You've bucketed all for'em.
Are you when it, when it comesto that iron triangle?
Cause I know we we've talked alot about this.
I've talked a lot about it inthe industry.
When you guys initially doassessments with providers, is
there any of those items, thosethree items in the iron triangle
that stand out like as you know,what every single provider
(23:56):
struggles with this particulararea?
Or is it, is it different itwhen you go into each center or
are there some things that standout, like at least when for our
audience who's listening for aprovider, who's trying to look
at, maybe I don't have access toa shared service Alliance and
maybe I don't have access topersonalized coaching, but I'm
trying to figure out how to lookat my business a little more
(24:19):
strategically.
Are there some things that youguys have found to be consistent
patterns that you would direct aprovider to look at first, maybe
from your experience?
Speaker 3 (24:28):
Yeah, so it's really, really interesting.
I love that.
So pre COVID, I would say beingfully enrolled to staff capacity
was huge because providers feltlike they weren't fully enrolled
or didn't understand what fullenrollment to staff capacity
meant.
Um, for your family, childproviders.
(24:48):
I would say universally becausesometimes the full enrollment to
staff capacity is doesn't applyto them in the way that they sta
cause it's them in their housewith their four to 10 children.
Um, but it's understanding thatcost for child or they paying
them or do they, they have, youknow, are they making money?
(25:10):
Are they losing money that costper child for family childcare
has been a huge eye opener forour participants.
And so that has stood out.
And then I would say for ourcenters really, um, is
understanding, um, that full feecollection on time, every time.
Um, because often what I've seenwith providers here in Arizona
(25:32):
is they don't know their worth,that they have a value that they
are providing, that they, asproviders have value and that
they also have a valuableservice that they're providing
and they deserve to get paid ontime.
Every, their teachers deservethat they deserve that.
(25:52):
And so we've done a lot ofcoaching on how to have
difficult conversations withfamilies about money, how to
have those internal and externalpolicies about how you collect
those fees and then ways likeautomation to make easier for
them.
So it's doing the work for themso that they're not happy to
(26:14):
stand at the door collectingbecause the parents are getting
a reminder to pay and then theycan just do a little click and
make the payment orautomatically have those, um,
tuitions paid.
So I would say really postpandemic for family childcare at
the at cost trials stands out asa really important team and for
our centers really understandingthat they should and can collect
(26:39):
that within on time every time.
Speaker 2 (26:41):
Yeah.
Do you guys find like Carla,when you talk with providers, do
you find that that fear ofcollecting tuition or having
those conversations?
Is it more like an unrealisticfear that people are just
uncomfortable with that once youput process and policy in place?
Yeah.
Parents will pay you on time,but oftentimes they, they, the
path of least resistance is as aparent, if there's not really a
(27:03):
policy and I can pay you whenI'd like, that's kind of what I
default to.
Right.
And is it so for providers, it'smore the fear of it more than
the reality of it, right?
Speaker 3 (27:12):
Oh, a hundred percent because parents know that they
are, are getting a service andthat service has to be paid for,
but as providers, most of us didnot get into this business.
Um, because we were businesspeople, we got into this
business cuz we loved children.
We loved families.
We wanted to do good things forthem.
And so I see it more, not as weneed to teach parents to pay us,
(27:36):
we need to teach providers thattheir business leaders and that
they can act as such that theycan have those policies in place
and they can have a handbook andthey can have to tell parents,
this is when your tuition isdue.
And, and they'll be a late feeif you don't pay that.
And once they get that over thathurdle and that confidence, it
(27:57):
is so exciting to see theseproviders really become business
leaders.
Speaker 2 (28:03):
I love that you how they're empowered and they
understand their worth.
And you know, actually I don'tknow if it was Monique or Louise
or maybe even yourself that hadarticulated this way to me, but
I thought it was reallyinsightful that you know, the
best way that you can be a greatservice to your community as a
childcare provider is to run asustainable business, meaning
(28:23):
get to a spot where yourbusinesses sound that not any
small economic shift coulddisrupt your ability to provide
your service.
And you know, part of that iscollecting fees on time and
making sure that you'rerequiring parents to pay you,
like you said, when payment isdue because as a community
member being in a sustainablebusiness is the best way for you
(28:44):
to be, be, you know, steward, soto speak.
And I thought that was, youknow, sometimes providers think
of it as, oh, I'm just being abill collector or that's a
difficult conversation withsomebody that I really have a
friendship with.
Um, but when you flip it arounda little bit from a standpoint
of what's the best way for me tobe a resource for these
families, it's it's to run atight business.
So I like how you said that.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
Yeah, absolutely.
Because if you think about it,what we want more than anything,
and I think this is whatSouthwest wants more than
anything is quality childcareprograms for children and their
families.
Right?
And so there's nothing worsethan a quality for early care
and education program that isn'tsustainable and goes way.
(29:26):
And so what our program hopes todo and wants to do, and I think
is doing, is helping thosequality programs stay, stay
sustainable.
And so that they are spaces forthose children and families.
I think that's just essential.
Speaker 2 (29:42):
Yeah.
That's amazing.
And is that, is that an outcomethat you guys track Carly?
Because like you just said atthe end of the day, obviously
providing better environmentsfor the providers is a really
critical initiative of yourprogram.
But if you play that all the wayout, it's focused on making sure
that these families and thesechildren particular are being
(30:02):
set up for success in theseearly years as part of your
program, like maybe it's throughenrollment capacities, maybe
it's through like testing intolike the public school system,
once kids reach kindergarten.
Is there that type of dataavailable yet where you're able
to start seeing the impact ofquality care to outcomes for
(30:22):
children?
Or is, is it, do you thinkthat's still a work in progress
getting to that point?
Speaker 3 (30:27):
Yeah.
I think some of that data isstill a work in progress for us
because we're still reallysmall, but we do track their
enrollment to staff capacity.
We attract their fee collectionsand we also track their patient
and call quality improvementprograms and, and we collaborate
with, so if they have a qualityfirst coach, we collaborate with
(30:50):
that coach.
So we are tracking theirparticipation and are we seeing
improvements in theircollection, in their enrollment
and, and really even smallthings, did they have a, a
budget at start?
Do they have a budget now?
And so I really see this ascapacity building, but I think
we will get there as we getbigger as we expand.
(31:12):
And as we're able to collectmore data on more providers.
Speaker 2 (31:16):
Yeah.
That that's really exciting.
I know that's kind of a theme ofconversations.
You and I have often, or atleast our twos organizations
around, like how can we helpyour team have visibility to
some of this data so that youcan track, like, what was the
baseline where this providerstarted when they started
participating and what are the,you know, the fancy KPIs, you
(31:37):
know, um, key performanceindicators that show the success
that we're having withproviders.
Cause that's only gonna helpeverybody as you guys move
forward.
What do you think the go forwardis for you guys in terms of
these initiatives in Arizona?
Because I, I know there's beenlots of conversation, especially
over the past couple years, postCOVID with government funding
(31:59):
and, and money coming from thefederal government to the state
level.
Do, do you see shared servicesin Arizona continuing to build
momentum?
Is it staying steady?
Is it continuing to be a fightto get funding?
What's what's the, the current,uh, I guess temperature.
Speaker 3 (32:15):
Yeah.
So I see for us and our programjust expanding and we have a
great relationship with thestate of Arizona, the department
of economic security childcareadministration.
So I see us expanding.
I think that the funding isthere currently, um, so that we
will be able to expand to moreproviders in the state with our
(32:38):
current model of thistraditional, that four pillars
that I talked about.
I also think that there is anopportunity to, um, expand more
in as far as automation andtechnology and being able to
ready providers for futuretechnology in the state.
And so I think that is coming inthat side.
(32:59):
And then we have plans to, um,pilot, some small, uh, shared
service Alliance hubs throughoutMaricopa county, so that we can
give that back office, thesupport that of often other
alliances are doing.
And then we're also working onsomething really cool.
Ryan is also, we wanna helptackle these staffing issues
(33:22):
that are affecting all of theproviders, right?
And so we're working onsolutions to provide both
training and education for a, astrong workforce and offering
that in those shared serviceAlliance hubs that we're hoping
to pilot.
And so I think there's so muchcoming for us.
I think we have support inArizona, which is amazing.
(33:43):
People are interested.
I think funding is there rightnow and that this program will
continue just to evolve andexpand and be able to help many,
many more providers.
Speaker 2 (33:54):
Yeah, well, well said.
I mean, I definitely, from, frommy perspective, for whatever
it's worth, continue to feellike it's, it's going to have a
much bigger place in theindustry as a whole, not just in
Arizona, but nationwide, as youknow, we see more and more
individuals becoming aware ofthe benefits of, of shared
services and some of theoutcomes that states like
Arizona are being able to showdo.
(34:15):
I'm curious about that lastpiece you were talking about
with the staffing help becauseit's one of the, of things even
internally, like for us as asoftware company, providing
technology, trying to provideworkflow automation to our end
users, our providers, one of thethings that's a consistent theme
is the challenge aroundstaffing.
Like I don't have time as aprovider, as an owner for
(34:36):
anything right now because I'mshort staffed and I'm trying to
find teachers.
What kind of things have youguys, um, thought through or
that you're testing with tryingto help centers in that area?
Are you helping them recruitteachers or when you talk about
like training, is that theirexisting workforce or is it
both?
Speaker 3 (34:54):
Yeah, so, so we're looking at kind some, both.
Um, so some, and, and so, um,Southwest is currently in our
professional development andtraining department created a
leadership program for ownersand directors to go through to,
to help retain staff.
Right.
So it's great when we get theminto our building, but if we
(35:17):
can't keep them, um, then thatcosts us time and money.
So we've been working onleadership program that's
supposed to launch next month sothat we can train those
directors and owner inleadership practices that I
think is really important.
And then through our head startprograms right now, we have a
CDA program, um, where thatchild development, um,
(35:39):
credential, um, is they gothrough it.
They it's free to them.
They get internships and jobpractice.
They have mentors that help themwith their portfolio.
So we are looking at, can weexpand this into community
partners?
Can we take this program and putit into our third services hub,
(36:02):
where we have a well trainedstaff that can go and be a sub
pool for these programs, um,that they're well trained.
They're state, they meet all thestate licensing requirements.
Um, they're ready to, and so weare working on that for, for
that shared services.
And then that other piece isthat continued education, right?
(36:25):
Like, so they get a CDA or, orthey get their training hours to
be qualified to teach here inArizona, but what are the
barriers to help them get anassociate's degree?
What are the barriers to helpget a bachelor's degree?
And how can we assist them inthat?
Is it applying for AAF?
Are there some languagebarriers?
(36:46):
Do we need work with, um,community colleges to help with
those barriers?
So right now we're looking atthe whole GAM of how can we help
?
How can we create betterleaders?
Just like we want betterbusiness leaders, we want also
managing leaders.
And so we wanna help them withthat.
(37:07):
And then how can we help trainthe workforce, have them well
trained and help them with thefurther education.
Speaker 2 (37:14):
Yeah, that's, that's amazing.
I think that's going to be justlike the iron triangle been such
a big focus, looking back andstill currently that staffing
piece, um, I think is gonna beextremely critical.
I mean, we, as an industry needto show ourselves attractive to
potential candidates, you know,people to invite them into the
industry and it's a meaningfulcareer.
(37:35):
And to be a teacher, anadministrator in ECE has always
been a rewarding career.
I think it's been reallydifficult the last couple of
years with all the things thathave happened, but to get back
to, like you said, Hey, this iswhy it's a great career path to
come into our industry.
And for those who do here'sresources and training and open
(37:56):
doors to go, you know, havecareer growth, which is really
important.
So good for you guys doing that.
Are you, when, when you guys gothrough this, um, expansion and
I think that's a conversationyou guys are having to try to
open it up to Mo more cohorts.
The last question I was gonnaask you just specifically about
your program is how do you guys,um, identify the providers that
(38:18):
are gonna participate?
Is it, do you have to recruitpeople because it's tough to
fill those spots?
Or is it like literally like awaiting list?
There's more people that wannaparticipate than space
available.
And then how do you guysidentify, who's gonna be part of
it.
Maybe you could use your first,the first 80 as an example of
how you got to that group.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
Yeah.
So we were really lucky becauseof the interest.
We really, when we are inrecruitment mode, it's like an
email out to providers.
So, um, DS childcareadministration sent us a list of
their providers and response outfor response was amazing, far
(38:58):
more than slots that we had.
And so we definitely had awaiting list.
Um, so it was really just here'sone email.
Maybe we sent one or two emails,and then we, because we wanted
participants to really know whatthey were getting into.
We sent a whole month of infosession.
And so we invited them tovirtual info sessions where we
(39:19):
talked all about the program,the program requirements, um,
what we would provide to them,what we had our expectations.
And then we did, um, intakemeetings where we went over a
participation agreement.
So they, it would be clear, um,what was being provided, but
also the expectations.
And so I feel like everyone wasable to come in fully
(39:42):
transparent with their eye fly,to open and participate, and you
know, that provider tells theirprovider friends.
And so we're always working offof a waiting list and, and we've
just been really lucky.
We've had a, a couple of smallerprojects for projects through
business, um, donations orphilanthropic donations.
(40:04):
And so we've been able to doeven some smaller ones and, and,
and it's basically no recruitingbecause we've had this list of
interested providers.
Speaker 2 (40:14):
Yeah.
The reputation now is out theretoo, and people will wanna
participate.
Any advice, Carla, that youwould give for like anybody
who's listening to our show inmaybe an area where either a
there's not shared serviceoptions available to them, or
maybe wanting to start to lookat like, how could we form one
of these on our own, anysuggestions, a on like what
(40:38):
resources somebody could lookinto start exploring, Hey, would
this be a good fit or a goodresource for our community?
Speaker 3 (40:44):
Yeah.
So I love, I love that question.
And first and foremost, I thinkthey need to reach out to people
like me or people who otherpeople in other states who are
doing this work right forresources and those best
practices and the lessons more.
I think it's the lessonslearned.
I love the best cuz youshouldn't recreate the will.
If someone else has alreadycreated it, let's share those
(41:05):
resources and it makes us allbetter.
Right?
It helps all of us, but theopportunities exchange website
has an excellent startup guideon their website and it walks
you through the process.
And I think it's a must haveresource, um, connecting with
opportunity exchange, if there'sthe means to do that.
Um, they have amazingconsultants who will walk you
(41:26):
through this process, connectingwith you pro care.
I think that that has beenessential in helping this work
go forward and for it to be sosuccessful.
So I think those are some ofthose first, I also think, um,
serving your providers and yourcommunity and your state
partners so that you can findout what's important to your
(41:48):
stakeholders so that what youcreate is a benefit to them and
it will have value so that theywill wanna participate.
Speaker 2 (41:56):
Yeah.
That's good.
Insight opportunities exchangealways seems to be somehow a
central figure in that did just,um, to elaborate on that a
little bit in order to form ashared service Alliance, mm-hmm
is it correct meif I'm wrong, there needs to be
a nonprofit organiz in thecommunity and then that
organization can, you know,request or apply for funding to
(42:19):
help basically fund, is it, isthat an accurate statement or is
that, um, too generic?
Speaker 3 (42:25):
Yeah.
I mean, I think there, andagain, I'm not the expert in
this piece, but I think that ifyou look around at the other
states, um, all throughout thecountry, you have some shared
services Alliance that arethrough the actual, you know,
they're state agencies, they'renonprofits, there are local just
provider groups who have gottentogether.
(42:47):
Um, so I think it works reallywell when it's a, a nonprofit
who has like out west who has somany resources because we're so
large, we can really providethat back office support, um, or
state agencies that do that.
Um, but that's, what's reallygreat about the resource startup
(43:07):
it on the opportunity exchangewebsite, because it goes through
step by step, by step of whatyou need.
And, and really some providerswho I think have been in the
business a really long time, Ithink to do it on their own.
But I think having the supportof a bigger agency or a state
partner is really essential tothe success of it.
Speaker 2 (43:27):
That that seems to be at least the model that as we
see, it seems to be the mostcommon and the most successful
model, at least that we've seen,you know, so far across the
country.
Um, I was also gonna ask youthis, this has nothing to do
with shared services, cuz I knowwe're running short on time and
I wanna make sure that we giveyou your, the rest of your
(43:47):
afternoon back, but I've been inthe Phoenix area a couple times
over the past couple of yearsrecently once was just like a
month ago in February.
It's beautiful.
It's like 80 degrees.
I come from, you know, mountainclimate where it's freezing, um,
during the winter.
So it was nice reprieve, but Iwas also there in July when it
was 118 degrees.
(44:10):
Like when that happens inPhoenix, what do people do?
Like is that like, do people gooutside?
It's just normal.
Like if you're a thirdgeneration Arizona, is that just
like we don't, we just acclimateand it's fine.
Or when it's 118 use bunker downin air conditioning and wait it
out.
What, what is what happens,Carla?
Speaker 3 (44:29):
So I think there are a few things I think avid
golfers they push through andthey still golf here in Arizona
if they are used to the heat,most of us stay inside.
Um, and they, we just turn upthose, that air conditioning.
Although I will tell you, I alove, hate relationship with
August, cuz there's nothing likewalking out your door and have
(44:51):
that heat take your breath away.
So it is both wonderful andawful all at the same time
Speaker 2 (44:56):
At the same time.
Yeah.
It's the love hate.
Yeah, it's wonderful for thefirst 32nd or as long as you can
get by a body of water or if youhave air conditioning in size.
Beautiful.
I literally, when we were there,it was a, a school district we
were meeting with and theindividual at the school
district was saying like the,and I don't know if it's a real
term or not, but she called itshade hopping and like literally
(45:17):
we're outside and they're inshade and she's like, we're just
always looking for where thenext shade is before we move
from this shade.
Um, and that made sense to me118 is kind of, uh, next level.
But this time of year, um, you,You what's the temperature in
Phoenix day, is it like 80 andperfect.
Speaker 3 (45:37):
It's 80 degrees today.
Yep.
Speaker 2 (45:39):
Yeah.
So if you're listening to thisfrom New York, uh, Colorado,
Oregon, Washington, Alaska, youcan be jealous cuz it's, um,
it's beautiful in Phoenix and I,I do appreciate Carl.
It's always fun to get togetherand connect with you.
I mentioned this earlier in theshow, um, ton of respect for
what you have done with thegroup there in Arizona, the work
(46:00):
you've done for providers, wereally appreciate, you know, you
kind of leading the charge andif, and if people did the last
thing I wanted to give you anopportunity to do is is if in
anybody wanted to reach out to,and I know I probably don't give
out your cell phone or anything,but just in terms of the
organization and how they mightbe able to learn more about
Southwest human development,what you guys are doing, how
(46:20):
could people find you to, to tapinto that?
Speaker 3 (46:23):
Yeah.
So I would love that and I wouldlove to connect with anyone who
wants to talk about sharedservices.
So first I, I encourage anyoneto find out more about Southwest
human to development@swhd.org.
And then I'd love for you toreach out to me by email.
That is K H O U G HT a L I N S whd.org.
(46:49):
Happy to talk to anyone aboutour experience and to help with
the things that we've learnedalong the way.
Speaker 2 (46:56):
Excellent.
And if you do reach out to Carlaand you ask for her at the
organization, you'll pronounceher last name as
Speaker 3 (47:02):
Hoff talent
Speaker 2 (47:04):
H talent.
Excellent.
Thank you.
Well, Carla, it's a pleasure.
Have a great afternoon.
And uh, we appreciate your time.
Speaker 3 (47:09):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (47:11):
Thank you for listening to this episode of the
healthcare business podcast, toget more insights on ways to
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subscribe in your podcast app.
So you never miss an episode.
And if you want even morechildcare business tips, tricks
and strategies, head over to ourresource
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Welcome to the childcare business podcast
brought to you by pro caresolutions.
This podcast is all about givingchildcare, preschool, daycare
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You'll hear from a variety ofchildcare thought leaders,
(00:30):
including educators, owners, andindustry experts on ways to
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You can use to fully realize thepotential of your childcare
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(00:50):
Let's jump in
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Good afternoon, everybody.
Welcome to the childcarebusiness podcast, you know, uh,
really looking forward totoday's show.
I'm gonna let you introduceyourself if you can, and I'm
gonna make sure I'm gonna take astab, cuz I do this all the time
at pronouncing your last namecorrectly.
It's Carla Howlin.
Is that correct?
Speaker 3 (01:10):
It is not.
It is H talent and that's youprobably think that because, um,
pronounce it correctly.
Yes.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
All right, so let's get this let's let's flesh this
out a little bit.
It make sure.
So it is not how to lend andyou've been so kind to me cuz
you and I have talked many timesover the past, you know, year
plus mm-hmm
last name, I'm gonna have yousay it one last time is what
Speaker 3 (01:36):
H
Speaker 2 (01:38):
H town.
So how often would you say whenpeople are pronouncing your last
name, you have to correct them.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
If I correct them, it would be a hundred percent of
the time.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
Yeah, that's a, well, my last name as you know is
gualt and so it's similar.
It's very often I have to, likepeople will ask how do you
pronounce it?
Do you know the, the origin ofyour last name?
Like what?
Speaker 3 (02:01):
So I, I believe it has some Polish ancestry, but
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Okay.
But
Speaker 3 (02:06):
It's, I'd have to ask my husband more about that.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
Where that come?
Oh, you married into the lastname.
That's the same as that's thesame as my wife.
Yeah.
Okay.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
Yeah, I did.
Got it.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
And, and then Carla, can you talk a little bit about,
you know, one of the reasons Iwanted to have you on our show
and we'll dive into this alittle bit is around your word
in, in the shared services worldand, and some of the things that
you guys are doing there inArizona, but I, what I wanted to
start with maybe is to talk alittle bit about the
organization that you work withSouthwest human development, and
(02:36):
maybe even pre some of the workyou're doing in, in the shared
service world.
Like what is the, what is themission initiative of Southwest
human development?
What do they do there in thePhoenix area?
And then maybe you could talk alittle bit about when you join
the organization and, and yourrole with them.
Speaker 3 (02:53):
Yeah, I love it.
So Southwest human developmentis the largest nonprofit in the
state of Arizona that works forand with children and their
families, um, birth to five.
So the focus is early childhoodeducation, whether that be
disability services, whetherthat be, um, in-home and help,
(03:19):
whether that be working withchildcare providers, just like
we are, um, quality, firstassessments, quality, first
coaching.
So we have a whole screeningdepartment Southwest right now
has over 40 programs that assistchildren, families, and their
providers, and over a thousandand employees.
(03:40):
And I believe we've beeninception since 1984.
So
Speaker 2 (03:46):
Wow.
A thousand employees, is thatstatewide across the state of
Arizona or is it mostly focusedon like the greater Phoenix
area?
What, where what's the reach?
Speaker 3 (03:55):
So Southwest is housed in Phoenix.
Many of our programs arestatewide.
So for example, our program isstatewide.
So we serve, um, statewideproviders, our assessment, um,
we're contracted to do all thequality first assessments.
That's a statewide program.
Training is statewide.
We, so we have some justMaricopa county programs, which
(04:19):
is the, of Phoenix, but we alsohave a lot of programs
statewide.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Got it.
And, and then Southwest,originally, even in their
original charter, it was alwaysfocused on that birth to five
year old.
You know, segment's always beenkind of the same mission in
terms of approach.
Speaker 3 (04:36):
Yeah.
Always, always to assist and tohave best outcomes for, or
children and their families.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
Excellent.
And then, and then in particularlike your role, cause I know
mm-hmm,
directly with families andconnecting families with
resources, but then there's thischannel that focuses on
partnering with the childcareproviders throughout the state.
And obviously that's reallyimportant because those
providers have to erect contactand relationships with the
(05:03):
families and the students is thepartnership or the work you guys
are doing in the early ECE fieldwith providers mm-hmm
many years with what Southwestis doing
Speaker 3 (05:17):
So that, not the business piece, but the work
with Southwest for many years,because they have been in doing
quality improvement programs inwith providers for decades.
And so that has just been anextension.
And that's also how this programgot started as an extension
program to one of the qualityprograms that they were
(05:39):
operating at the time.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
Okay.
Got it.
And so let's, let's talk about,I mean, it's, it's been, you,
you know, this, you know,Monique Reynolds, who we had
with, you know, quality care forchildren in Georgia.
And I know you worked reallyclosely with the group at
opportunities exchange andLouise and Sharon, this theme
around shared services continuesto come up more and more in our
(06:02):
world.
And so, you know, as adisclaimer, uh, you know, for
our audience listening, I, Iwork pretty closely with Carla.
My team works with Carla and herteam.
They do utilize our software andaspects of their program and
that's kind of where ourconversation have always, um,
originated.
But based on that, Carla, youknow, and our ability and
(06:23):
opportunities to talk with youover time, it's been interesting
to watch how your Alliance andproject has unfolded.
And so I thought it would bereally helpful for others to
hear how it all started with atSouthwest human development
around these business outcomesand the funding that came
forward and then how you guysstarted the project.
(06:44):
So maybe, uh, if you could,could you speak to how, like the
very Genesis of the actual, likethis business initiative that
you guys had, how that startedand what the early pieces were
to put it together?
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Yeah, absolutely.
And I'm even gonna go step backand tell you even how I got
started Southwest and thisprogram.
So I'm a third generationArizona, and I've been
passionate about system changesin this community, my community
for children and families forover 20 years.
So I've been creating programsfor children and with
(07:18):
disabilities, um, early care andeducation programs, programs for
foster children and families.
And so having this opportunityto work with Southwest human
development in this way was suchan exciting venture.
So in 2019, Southwest humandevelopment partner was in
partner was first things first.
(07:40):
And they were doing a smallpilot extension, um, of a
quality improvement program thatthey were working on.
And that the idea at the timewas to see if adding business
coaching to those few childcareproviders would show
improvements in their practices.
And so I was chosen by Southwestto work with 13 sites and
(08:03):
provide some basic businesscoaching to them.
And that really was an immediatesuccess in collection of tuition
and increasing in enrollment.
And then the COVID 19 pandemicwith shortly after we started.
And so that need right forbusiness acumen came front and
(08:25):
center.
And so that's really where westarted.
Could we take these 13providers?
Could we see improvements?
And, and we did.
And then we had to tweak, right,because the COVID 19 happened
and then, and everyone wantedbusiness practices.
Everyone wanted to talk about itand, and start doing that.
Speaker 2 (08:46):
And, and when you say like how it came front and
center, when the pandemic hit,because I know it's, it's
actually been refreshing likefor so long.
So many of our conversationswere around the pandemic and it
does feel like there's this, um,focus of, of a lot of people
feeling like maybe we're, we'removing past that, but I do
rewinding back to March of 2020in, in terms of what you guys
(09:10):
saw happen, where all theseproviders were like really
hungry business coaching, likewhat caused that?
Wasn't the fact that now theyrealize like, Hey, we can't just
rely on a waiting list.
And, and our schools are bustingat the seams.
We've gotta have tight businesspractices cuz we're trying to
hang on.
Is that a fair like assessment?
Speaker 3 (09:30):
Yeah, I think for me, what I saw was providers just
didn't, they were already didn'thave much wiggle room and they
couldn't be prepared cuz thesystem didn't allow them to be
prepared.
So we couldn't have largeemergency funds because the
funds weren't there to do it.
And so there was kind of ascramble of, can I stay open?
How do I stay open?
(09:51):
How do I serve families andchildren?
And I think all also arealization I need some help and
guidance and now I'm ready tohear I'm really, I have the time
because a lot of people wereclosed, you know, help helped me
do this.
And so we saw that providerswere interested and the state
(10:12):
partners were interested andother organizations were
interested and it just reallybecame all front center.
And so we had to really improveour program.
We had to create it and tightenit and be ready for that
expansion.
It wasn't just gonna be this 13.
It was gonna be really bigger.
And so we had to develop thatprogram further.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
Yeah, that's amazing.
And so going back to that time,Carla, where you were working
with those 13 early providers,cause I kind of wanna maybe walk
through a little bit about howthings have changed over time
and what some of your learningswere from those early days with
those original providers.
So with those original 13, doyou remember as a business
(10:55):
coach, were you given like anoutline at that point of like,
Hey Carla, these are the thingswe want you to go into these
centers and focus on or was itmore of a discovery process for
you?
And if so, any takeaways thatyou can remember as like the
early learnings of like, Hey,these are things that are
consistent across theseproviders that they need help
with.
Speaker 3 (11:15):
So I love, I love that question because, um, I
didn't have an outline.
It really was a discoveryprocess.
We were working withopportunities to exchange and I
had been introduced to the irontriangle.
And so, you know, I had thisbusiness formula, but I think it
was really listening and hearingwhat they were going through
(11:36):
and, and then creating a assessso that we could get data.
But you know, it was helpingbuild capacity.
Cause a lot of these providersdidn't have budgets and so it
was helping them create budgets.
It was helping them understandtheir financial reports, create
financial reports.
And so when I really look backat that time and honestly Ryan
(11:59):
even bringing it today, it'sbuilding that capacity and then
also showing them ways, such asautomation to save, save them
time and money.
So it was really hearing themwhat were their, what were their
struggles and then creating aprogram that would work for
(12:20):
them.
And, and since then now we, ourprogram has four pillars that we
use.
And so those first 13, I thinkthey were, um, authors to help
create this program.
Speaker 2 (12:32):
Yeah.
I like the word authors I was,as you were saying that I was
saying like maybe they were alittle bit of like the Guinea
pigs and the testing, but I likeauthors.
That's a really like, theyhelped you guys build these
pillars.
I'm gonna come back to thosefour pillars cuz I would love to
talk a little bit about like,you know, how you've built your
program and some of the systemsand processes since then.
But I, I do wanna ask becauseopportunities exchange comes up
(12:56):
a lot.
Like for me personally, as wetalk and engage with providers
across the country and we'retalking with different
organizations that are, youknow, looking into shared
service alliances, you know,opportunities exchange obviously
plays a pretty critical role.
Uh, can you talk about how youwere introduced to that group
and maybe like what role doesopportunities exchange, play?
(13:18):
Maybe you can speak specificallywith your group and Southwest
human development.
Like what role did they play inhelping you guys, you know, kind
of launch your initiative?
Speaker 3 (13:27):
Yeah.
So our, um, CEO gender award hadbeen, um, connected with, with
Louis Stoney for, for many years.
And so when this idea of sharedservices and business practices
came up, um, we began consultingwith them, I think more formally
or I began consulting with themmore formally.
(13:47):
And it really was one of thebest resources that we, you
know, we have had.
And, and that, that relationshipwith our opportunities exchange,
it has driven and guided thisprogram work right from the
beginning.
And it helps has helped peopleconnect me to other alliances
and other people in this field,um, which I've been able to
(14:09):
learn from their learningexperiences.
And then I've been able to sharemy learning experiences for
others who are interested.
So, you know, we work with themquite intimately opportunities
exchange.
They have helped, um, guide usand really share their
knowledge, their resources, um,their best practices.
(14:29):
And then we have been able totake that, tweak it for the
state of Arizona and then sharethat with our providers, which
you know, has been amazing.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I love how you articulated thatbecause one of the things I was
gonna ask you and I asked thisto Monique too, a few weeks ago
when, when we spent some timetalking about what they're doing
in Georgia is to articulate,like if I'm a provider in
Arizona and, and you come to meor I get connected with you and
your group Carla, around, youknow, the, the initiative that
(15:00):
you guys are running with yourAlliance, like how do you guys
message to providers?
The benefits that they're gonnareceive from being part of the
Alliance?
Like I know they're are somefunding benefits.
Obviously you hit on some of thecoaching benefits, but if you
were talking to a provider, asyour coaches has talked to
providers, like, what is that,what is that value proposition
(15:22):
or that pitch sound like what'sin it for me as a provider to
come partner with with the workthat you guys are doing.
Speaker 3 (15:27):
Yeah.
I love that.
So yes, there are some freebies,right?
So we provide their preparesoftware for them.
That's a benefit.
We give them the hardware tabletto utilize.
That's a benefit.
They get, um, a subscription toour Arizona tool kit, which is
the CCCA for good here inArizona.
(15:47):
So there, there are thoseFreed's and that, and that's a
really cool piece, but also talkto them about how now they have
a partner to walk beside them,um, with that individualized
coaching and training to reallyhelp them with the things that
they're struggling with.
And I think it's theindividualized piece that makes
it special because sure we havesome curriculum, some trainings
(16:11):
we use, but it's the one on onethat enforces that.
And it really is having apartner and then learning these
skills and U full utilization ofthese tools.
Cuz a lot of people have thesetools, a lot of providers, but
they're not fully utilizing them, but now they have a partner
that walks with them for fullutilization, understanding
(16:32):
terms, understanding bestbusiness practices can answer
their questions, can reinforcethose skills and risk, be a
support to them.
And so to me, that's time andmoney saved.
It's that upfront investment oftime that will save them time
and energy in the long run, itwill preventative, right?
(16:54):
Just like medical.
I wanna go to my doctor and Iwanna do those preventative
things.
I need to do that in my businessas well.
I need to put in thosepreventative practices, but this
time it's all about, I also havea relationship partner to walk
alongside.
I, I always call it like softtouch consulting, cuz I'm gonna
gimme you advice.
And I'm gonna give yousuggestions of what I think you
(17:16):
should do to improve yourbusiness.
But I'm not gonna just leave youhanging.
I am going to support you andwalk with you.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
Yeah.
I like how you described thatbecause there are a lot of like
consultants, I mean not just inour industry, but in all
industries that provide similartype of resources, but for
providers to be able to happento, like you said, the coaching
opportunities as well as like acommunity.
I that's one of the, thequestions I wanted to ask you
too, like as a provider in, andI think I use the term Alliance.
(17:46):
I don't know if that's how youguys refer to, you know, the
group of providers that are partof, um, this initiative, but as
a, as a childcare owner in thisAlliance, what does that
relationship look like on apractical level?
I know the concept or theinitiative is to have coaching
and to drive better outcomes,but you mentioned there's
(18:07):
one-on-one coaching as well asis there also like community
environments where as aprovider, I'm also interacting
with all of the other providersthat are part of the, the
program.
Is that accurate?
Speaker 3 (18:17):
Yeah, absolutely.
So in this project right now, wecall them a cohort.
So we have a cohort right nowthat we're working with with the
state of Arizona that has 80provider, family care and
centers and they also get, sothey get there twice a month, um
, individualized coaching, butthen they also get to come
(18:37):
together at least once a monthto hear from a professional in
the field.
So that might be an accountantthat might be someone, a pro
care trainer that might be amark specialists where they, um,
the DS, um, through the state ofArizona has come to talk to
them.
And those are opportunities.
These providers would never haveto hear from business
(19:02):
professionals to help them intheir business.
They get to come together as agroup, they get to listen, they
get to ask questions, they getto collaborate to get other.
And that's actually, when wesurvey them some of their
favorite parts is they just getthis two hours once a month to
come together and just talk andshare experiences and ask
(19:25):
questions and learn new skillsand, and have connections.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
Yeah, that's huge.
I know we, we do that ourselveswith our customer base
sometimes, you know, we, we pullthese trainings together and
sometimes the feedback that'sthe most valuable for our
customers is, oh, I got to talkwith other pro care customers.
And just to interact in thatcommunity is really valuable.
Are there for you guys, in termsof providers that participate,
(19:49):
they get the access to all theseamazing benefits.
Are there requirements that theyhave in order to participate
initially and also to continuein the cohort or in the
initiative that you guys measurethem by and expect as a provider
to participate in?
Speaker 3 (20:07):
Yeah, they're they, they do have some requirements.
Um, and so we call of themassignments, but they're not
grade, it's not graded homework.
Um, what we would be talkingabout would be assessments.
Like we do a pre-assessment anda post assessment.
We do an intake where we get toknow them and find out more
about their business.
Um, we have iron triangleassignments that they might
(20:30):
have.
So we like to look at it asevery assignment is just for
their, to help their business.
If they don't have a budget,we're gonna help them build one.
So they're gonna have to gathersome data and do that.
So every requirement,assignment, survey is all to
help their business.
And so, and that's how we'vecreated it.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Yeah.
That's amazing.
Not, not really any downside tobeing able to participate.
Now you mentioned, I wanna goback to the four pillars that
you guys have identified.
Cause you know, I, I, I lovegetting into the weeds around
the outcomes, the iron triangle,you've referenced a few times.
So I wanna talk a little bitabout how you guys view that and
maybe some of the common themesthat you see, but when you guys
(21:13):
have identified these pillars,can you talk about what those
are and then how that goes intoyour, like your coaching with
your providers and, and how youuse that?
Speaker 3 (21:25):
Yeah, thank you.
That, yeah.
I, I love to talk about the fourpillars because I really believe
just like our providers need tohave a strong foundation to be a
sustainable program.
Our program has to have a, a, astrong foundation to be
successful.
And so we do have these fourpillars.
The first really is thatopportunity exchange iron
(21:46):
triangle, um, that this, thisformula, we believe that just as
they do that full enrollment tostaff capacity and full fee
collection and understandingthat cost per child, whether I
have a gap or I have an excessis essential to understanding
the health of their business.
So that is a huge piece.
(22:06):
And we try to through out in theyear that providers are with us,
we try to bring that into theconversation every time.
And then it is really thatindividualized coaching that
retraining and keeping, maybethey learn something in a cohort
meeting, but they might needsome extra guidance.
So let's reteach it.
(22:27):
Or we have a career curriculumcould be budgeting, could be
financial reports, could bemarketing, could be staffing and
retention.
And so we might give them thatone-on-one training, but we're
also in that individualizedcoaching, listening to their
needs and tailoring thosecoaching sessions to what is the
(22:49):
leveling up for them as well.
And then we have what we, thevetted policies and procedures,
because we don't want providersjust pulling from anywhere.
And so we give them mostly theresources from that toolkit that
Arizona toolkit, but any othervetted policies and procedures,
cause we want them to have thosepractices.
(23:11):
Um, and then the fourth isautomation.
We believe that automation istied to all of that work in a
way to save providers, time andmoney, but just having
automation isn't enough.
So as part of thatindividualized coaching, we are
walking hand in hand with themthrough that automation to full
(23:31):
utilization.
And those are our pillars.
Speaker 2 (23:34):
I like that.
You've bucketed all for'em.
Are you when it, when it comesto that iron triangle?
Cause I know we we've talked alot about this.
I've talked a lot about it inthe industry.
When you guys initially doassessments with providers, is
there any of those items, thosethree items in the iron triangle
that stand out like as you know,what every single provider
(23:56):
struggles with this particulararea?
Or is it, is it different itwhen you go into each center or
are there some things that standout, like at least when for our
audience who's listening for aprovider, who's trying to look
at, maybe I don't have access toa shared service Alliance and
maybe I don't have access topersonalized coaching, but I'm
trying to figure out how to lookat my business a little more
(24:19):
strategically.
Are there some things that youguys have found to be consistent
patterns that you would direct aprovider to look at first, maybe
from your experience?
Speaker 3 (24:28):
Yeah, so it's really, really interesting.
I love that.
So pre COVID, I would say beingfully enrolled to staff capacity
was huge because providers feltlike they weren't fully enrolled
or didn't understand what fullenrollment to staff capacity
meant.
Um, for your family, childproviders.
(24:48):
I would say universally becausesometimes the full enrollment to
staff capacity is doesn't applyto them in the way that they sta
cause it's them in their housewith their four to 10 children.
Um, but it's understanding thatcost for child or they paying
them or do they, they have, youknow, are they making money?
(25:10):
Are they losing money that costper child for family childcare
has been a huge eye opener forour participants.
And so that has stood out.
And then I would say for ourcenters really, um, is
understanding, um, that full feecollection on time, every time.
Um, because often what I've seenwith providers here in Arizona
(25:32):
is they don't know their worth,that they have a value that they
are providing, that they, asproviders have value and that
they also have a valuableservice that they're providing
and they deserve to get paid ontime.
Every, their teachers deservethat they deserve that.
(25:52):
And so we've done a lot ofcoaching on how to have
difficult conversations withfamilies about money, how to
have those internal and externalpolicies about how you collect
those fees and then ways likeautomation to make easier for
them.
So it's doing the work for themso that they're not happy to
(26:14):
stand at the door collectingbecause the parents are getting
a reminder to pay and then theycan just do a little click and
make the payment orautomatically have those, um,
tuitions paid.
So I would say really postpandemic for family childcare at
the at cost trials stands out asa really important team and for
our centers really understandingthat they should and can collect
(26:39):
that within on time every time.
Speaker 2 (26:41):
Yeah.
Do you guys find like Carla,when you talk with providers, do
you find that that fear ofcollecting tuition or having
those conversations?
Is it more like an unrealisticfear that people are just
uncomfortable with that once youput process and policy in place?
Yeah.
Parents will pay you on time,but oftentimes they, they, the
path of least resistance is as aparent, if there's not really a
(27:03):
policy and I can pay you whenI'd like, that's kind of what I
default to.
Right.
And is it so for providers, it'smore the fear of it more than
the reality of it, right?
Speaker 3 (27:12):
Oh, a hundred percent because parents know that they
are, are getting a service andthat service has to be paid for,
but as providers, most of us didnot get into this business.
Um, because we were businesspeople, we got into this
business cuz we loved children.
We loved families.
We wanted to do good things forthem.
And so I see it more, not as weneed to teach parents to pay us,
(27:36):
we need to teach providers thattheir business leaders and that
they can act as such that theycan have those policies in place
and they can have a handbook andthey can have to tell parents,
this is when your tuition isdue.
And, and they'll be a late feeif you don't pay that.
And once they get that over thathurdle and that confidence, it
(27:57):
is so exciting to see theseproviders really become business
leaders.
Speaker 2 (28:03):
I love that you how they're empowered and they
understand their worth.
And you know, actually I don'tknow if it was Monique or Louise
or maybe even yourself that hadarticulated this way to me, but
I thought it was reallyinsightful that you know, the
best way that you can be a greatservice to your community as a
childcare provider is to run asustainable business, meaning
(28:23):
get to a spot where yourbusinesses sound that not any
small economic shift coulddisrupt your ability to provide
your service.
And you know, part of that iscollecting fees on time and
making sure that you'rerequiring parents to pay you,
like you said, when payment isdue because as a community
member being in a sustainablebusiness is the best way for you
(28:44):
to be, be, you know, steward, soto speak.
And I thought that was, youknow, sometimes providers think
of it as, oh, I'm just being abill collector or that's a
difficult conversation withsomebody that I really have a
friendship with.
Um, but when you flip it arounda little bit from a standpoint
of what's the best way for me tobe a resource for these
families, it's it's to run atight business.
So I like how you said that.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
Yeah, absolutely.
Because if you think about it,what we want more than anything,
and I think this is whatSouthwest wants more than
anything is quality childcareprograms for children and their
families.
Right?
And so there's nothing worsethan a quality for early care
and education program that isn'tsustainable and goes way.
(29:26):
And so what our program hopes todo and wants to do, and I think
is doing, is helping thosequality programs stay, stay
sustainable.
And so that they are spaces forthose children and families.
I think that's just essential.
Speaker 2 (29:42):
Yeah.
That's amazing.
And is that, is that an outcomethat you guys track Carly?
Because like you just said atthe end of the day, obviously
providing better environmentsfor the providers is a really
critical initiative of yourprogram.
But if you play that all the wayout, it's focused on making sure
that these families and thesechildren particular are being
(30:02):
set up for success in theseearly years as part of your
program, like maybe it's throughenrollment capacities, maybe
it's through like testing intolike the public school system,
once kids reach kindergarten.
Is there that type of dataavailable yet where you're able
to start seeing the impact ofquality care to outcomes for
(30:22):
children?
Or is, is it, do you thinkthat's still a work in progress
getting to that point?
Speaker 3 (30:27):
Yeah.
I think some of that data isstill a work in progress for us
because we're still reallysmall, but we do track their
enrollment to staff capacity.
We attract their fee collectionsand we also track their patient
and call quality improvementprograms and, and we collaborate
with, so if they have a qualityfirst coach, we collaborate with
(30:50):
that coach.
So we are tracking theirparticipation and are we seeing
improvements in theircollection, in their enrollment
and, and really even smallthings, did they have a, a
budget at start?
Do they have a budget now?
And so I really see this ascapacity building, but I think
we will get there as we getbigger as we expand.
(31:12):
And as we're able to collectmore data on more providers.
Speaker 2 (31:16):
Yeah.
That that's really exciting.
I know that's kind of a theme ofconversations.
You and I have often, or atleast our twos organizations
around, like how can we helpyour team have visibility to
some of this data so that youcan track, like, what was the
baseline where this providerstarted when they started
participating and what are the,you know, the fancy KPIs, you
(31:37):
know, um, key performanceindicators that show the success
that we're having withproviders.
Cause that's only gonna helpeverybody as you guys move
forward.
What do you think the go forwardis for you guys in terms of
these initiatives in Arizona?
Because I, I know there's beenlots of conversation, especially
over the past couple years, postCOVID with government funding
(31:59):
and, and money coming from thefederal government to the state
level.
Do, do you see shared servicesin Arizona continuing to build
momentum?
Is it staying steady?
Is it continuing to be a fightto get funding?
What's what's the, the current,uh, I guess temperature.
Speaker 3 (32:15):
Yeah.
So I see for us and our programjust expanding and we have a
great relationship with thestate of Arizona, the department
of economic security childcareadministration.
So I see us expanding.
I think that the funding isthere currently, um, so that we
will be able to expand to moreproviders in the state with our
(32:38):
current model of thistraditional, that four pillars
that I talked about.
I also think that there is anopportunity to, um, expand more
in as far as automation andtechnology and being able to
ready providers for futuretechnology in the state.
And so I think that is coming inthat side.
(32:59):
And then we have plans to, um,pilot, some small, uh, shared
service Alliance hubs throughoutMaricopa county, so that we can
give that back office, thesupport that of often other
alliances are doing.
And then we're also working onsomething really cool.
Ryan is also, we wanna helptackle these staffing issues
(33:22):
that are affecting all of theproviders, right?
And so we're working onsolutions to provide both
training and education for a, astrong workforce and offering
that in those shared serviceAlliance hubs that we're hoping
to pilot.
And so I think there's so muchcoming for us.
I think we have support inArizona, which is amazing.
(33:43):
People are interested.
I think funding is there rightnow and that this program will
continue just to evolve andexpand and be able to help many,
many more providers.
Speaker 2 (33:54):
Yeah, well, well said.
I mean, I definitely, from, frommy perspective, for whatever
it's worth, continue to feellike it's, it's going to have a
much bigger place in theindustry as a whole, not just in
Arizona, but nationwide, as youknow, we see more and more
individuals becoming aware ofthe benefits of, of shared
services and some of theoutcomes that states like
Arizona are being able to showdo.
(34:15):
I'm curious about that lastpiece you were talking about
with the staffing help becauseit's one of the, of things even
internally, like for us as asoftware company, providing
technology, trying to provideworkflow automation to our end
users, our providers, one of thethings that's a consistent theme
is the challenge aroundstaffing.
Like I don't have time as aprovider, as an owner for
(34:36):
anything right now because I'mshort staffed and I'm trying to
find teachers.
What kind of things have youguys, um, thought through or
that you're testing with tryingto help centers in that area?
Are you helping them recruitteachers or when you talk about
like training, is that theirexisting workforce or is it
both?
Speaker 3 (34:54):
Yeah, so, so we're looking at kind some, both.
Um, so some, and, and so, um,Southwest is currently in our
professional development andtraining department created a
leadership program for ownersand directors to go through to,
to help retain staff.
Right.
So it's great when we get theminto our building, but if we
(35:17):
can't keep them, um, then thatcosts us time and money.
So we've been working onleadership program that's
supposed to launch next month sothat we can train those
directors and owner inleadership practices that I
think is really important.
And then through our head startprograms right now, we have a
CDA program, um, where thatchild development, um,
(35:39):
credential, um, is they gothrough it.
They it's free to them.
They get internships and jobpractice.
They have mentors that help themwith their portfolio.
So we are looking at, can weexpand this into community
partners?
Can we take this program and putit into our third services hub,
(36:02):
where we have a well trainedstaff that can go and be a sub
pool for these programs, um,that they're well trained.
They're state, they meet all thestate licensing requirements.
Um, they're ready to, and so weare working on that for, for
that shared services.
And then that other piece isthat continued education, right?
(36:25):
Like, so they get a CDA or, orthey get their training hours to
be qualified to teach here inArizona, but what are the
barriers to help them get anassociate's degree?
What are the barriers to helpget a bachelor's degree?
And how can we assist them inthat?
Is it applying for AAF?
Are there some languagebarriers?
(36:46):
Do we need work with, um,community colleges to help with
those barriers?
So right now we're looking atthe whole GAM of how can we help
?
How can we create betterleaders?
Just like we want betterbusiness leaders, we want also
managing leaders.
And so we wanna help them withthat.
(37:07):
And then how can we help trainthe workforce, have them well
trained and help them with thefurther education.
Speaker 2 (37:14):
Yeah, that's, that's amazing.
I think that's going to be justlike the iron triangle been such
a big focus, looking back andstill currently that staffing
piece, um, I think is gonna beextremely critical.
I mean, we, as an industry needto show ourselves attractive to
potential candidates, you know,people to invite them into the
industry and it's a meaningfulcareer.
(37:35):
And to be a teacher, anadministrator in ECE has always
been a rewarding career.
I think it's been reallydifficult the last couple of
years with all the things thathave happened, but to get back
to, like you said, Hey, this iswhy it's a great career path to
come into our industry.
And for those who do here'sresources and training and open
(37:56):
doors to go, you know, havecareer growth, which is really
important.
So good for you guys doing that.
Are you, when, when you guys gothrough this, um, expansion and
I think that's a conversationyou guys are having to try to
open it up to Mo more cohorts.
The last question I was gonnaask you just specifically about
your program is how do you guys,um, identify the providers that
(38:18):
are gonna participate?
Is it, do you have to recruitpeople because it's tough to
fill those spots?
Or is it like literally like awaiting list?
There's more people that wannaparticipate than space
available.
And then how do you guysidentify, who's gonna be part of
it.
Maybe you could use your first,the first 80 as an example of
how you got to that group.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
Yeah.
So we were really lucky becauseof the interest.
We really, when we are inrecruitment mode, it's like an
email out to providers.
So, um, DS childcareadministration sent us a list of
their providers and response outfor response was amazing, far
(38:58):
more than slots that we had.
And so we definitely had awaiting list.
Um, so it was really just here'sone email.
Maybe we sent one or two emails,and then we, because we wanted
participants to really know whatthey were getting into.
We sent a whole month of infosession.
And so we invited them tovirtual info sessions where we
(39:19):
talked all about the program,the program requirements, um,
what we would provide to them,what we had our expectations.
And then we did, um, intakemeetings where we went over a
participation agreement.
So they, it would be clear, um,what was being provided, but
also the expectations.
And so I feel like everyone wasable to come in fully
(39:42):
transparent with their eye fly,to open and participate, and you
know, that provider tells theirprovider friends.
And so we're always working offof a waiting list and, and we've
just been really lucky.
We've had a, a couple of smallerprojects for projects through
business, um, donations orphilanthropic donations.
(40:04):
And so we've been able to doeven some smaller ones and, and,
and it's basically no recruitingbecause we've had this list of
interested providers.
Speaker 2 (40:14):
Yeah.
The reputation now is out theretoo, and people will wanna
participate.
Any advice, Carla, that youwould give for like anybody
who's listening to our show inmaybe an area where either a
there's not shared serviceoptions available to them, or
maybe wanting to start to lookat like, how could we form one
of these on our own, anysuggestions, a on like what
(40:38):
resources somebody could lookinto start exploring, Hey, would
this be a good fit or a goodresource for our community?
Speaker 3 (40:44):
Yeah.
So I love, I love that question.
And first and foremost, I thinkthey need to reach out to people
like me or people who otherpeople in other states who are
doing this work right forresources and those best
practices and the lessons more.
I think it's the lessonslearned.
I love the best cuz youshouldn't recreate the will.
If someone else has alreadycreated it, let's share those
(41:05):
resources and it makes us allbetter.
Right?
It helps all of us, but theopportunities exchange website
has an excellent startup guideon their website and it walks
you through the process.
And I think it's a must haveresource, um, connecting with
opportunity exchange, if there'sthe means to do that.
Um, they have amazingconsultants who will walk you
(41:26):
through this process, connectingwith you pro care.
I think that that has beenessential in helping this work
go forward and for it to be sosuccessful.
So I think those are some ofthose first, I also think, um,
serving your providers and yourcommunity and your state
partners so that you can findout what's important to your
(41:48):
stakeholders so that what youcreate is a benefit to them and
it will have value so that theywill wanna participate.
Speaker 2 (41:56):
Yeah.
That's good.
Insight opportunities exchangealways seems to be somehow a
central figure in that did just,um, to elaborate on that a
little bit in order to form ashared service Alliance, mm-hmm
a nonprofit organiz in thecommunity and then that
organization can, you know,request or apply for funding to
(42:19):
help basically fund, is it, isthat an accurate statement or is
that, um, too generic?
Speaker 3 (42:25):
Yeah.
I mean, I think there, andagain, I'm not the expert in
this piece, but I think that ifyou look around at the other
states, um, all throughout thecountry, you have some shared
services Alliance that arethrough the actual, you know,
they're state agencies, they'renonprofits, there are local just
provider groups who have gottentogether.
(42:47):
Um, so I think it works reallywell when it's a, a nonprofit
who has like out west who has somany resources because we're so
large, we can really providethat back office support, um, or
state agencies that do that.
Um, but that's, what's reallygreat about the resource startup
(43:07):
it on the opportunity exchangewebsite, because it goes through
step by step, by step of whatyou need.
And, and really some providerswho I think have been in the
business a really long time, Ithink to do it on their own.
But I think having the supportof a bigger agency or a state
partner is really essential tothe success of it.
Speaker 2 (43:27):
That that seems to be at least the model that as we
see, it seems to be the mostcommon and the most successful
model, at least that we've seen,you know, so far across the
country.
Um, I was also gonna ask youthis, this has nothing to do
with shared services, cuz I knowwe're running short on time and
I wanna make sure that we giveyou your, the rest of your
(43:47):
afternoon back, but I've been inthe Phoenix area a couple times
over the past couple of yearsrecently once was just like a
month ago in February.
It's beautiful.
It's like 80 degrees.
I come from, you know, mountainclimate where it's freezing, um,
during the winter.
So it was nice reprieve, but Iwas also there in July when it
was 118 degrees.
(44:10):
Like when that happens inPhoenix, what do people do?
Like is that like, do people gooutside?
It's just normal.
Like if you're a thirdgeneration Arizona, is that just
like we don't, we just acclimateand it's fine.
Or when it's 118 use bunker downin air conditioning and wait it
out.
What, what is what happens,Carla?
Speaker 3 (44:29):
So I think there are a few things I think avid
golfers they push through andthey still golf here in Arizona
if they are used to the heat,most of us stay inside.
Um, and they, we just turn upthose, that air conditioning.
Although I will tell you, I alove, hate relationship with
August, cuz there's nothing likewalking out your door and have
(44:51):
that heat take your breath away.
So it is both wonderful andawful all at the same time
Speaker 2 (44:56):
At the same time.
Yeah.
It's the love hate.
Yeah, it's wonderful for thefirst 32nd or as long as you can
get by a body of water or if youhave air conditioning in size.
Beautiful.
I literally, when we were there,it was a, a school district we
were meeting with and theindividual at the school
district was saying like the,and I don't know if it's a real
term or not, but she called itshade hopping and like literally
(45:17):
we're outside and they're inshade and she's like, we're just
always looking for where thenext shade is before we move
from this shade.
Um, and that made sense to me118 is kind of, uh, next level.
But this time of year, um, you,You what's the temperature in
Phoenix day, is it like 80 andperfect.
Speaker 3 (45:37):
It's 80 degrees today.
Yep.
Speaker 2 (45:39):
Yeah.
So if you're listening to thisfrom New York, uh, Colorado,
Oregon, Washington, Alaska, youcan be jealous cuz it's, um,
it's beautiful in Phoenix and I,I do appreciate Carl.
It's always fun to get togetherand connect with you.
I mentioned this earlier in theshow, um, ton of respect for
what you have done with thegroup there in Arizona, the work
(46:00):
you've done for providers, wereally appreciate, you know, you
kind of leading the charge andif, and if people did the last
thing I wanted to give you anopportunity to do is is if in
anybody wanted to reach out to,and I know I probably don't give
out your cell phone or anything,but just in terms of the
organization and how they mightbe able to learn more about
Southwest human development,what you guys are doing, how
(46:20):
could people find you to, to tapinto that?
Speaker 3 (46:23):
Yeah.
So I would love that and I wouldlove to connect with anyone who
wants to talk about sharedservices.
So first I, I encourage anyoneto find out more about Southwest
human to development@swhd.org.
And then I'd love for you toreach out to me by email.
That is K H O U G HT a L I N S whd.org.
(46:49):
Happy to talk to anyone aboutour experience and to help with
the things that we've learnedalong the way.
Speaker 2 (46:56):
Excellent.
And if you do reach out to Carlaand you ask for her at the
organization, you'll pronounceher last name as
Speaker 3 (47:02):
Hoff talent
Speaker 2 (47:04):
H talent.
Excellent.
Thank you.
Well, Carla, it's a pleasure.
Have a great afternoon.
And uh, we appreciate your time.
Speaker 3 (47:09):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (47:11):
Thank you for listening to this episode of the
healthcare business podcast, toget more insights on ways to
succeed in your childcarebusiness, make sure to hit
subscribe in your podcast app.
So you never miss an episode.
And if you want even morechildcare business tips, tricks
and strategies, head over to ourresource
center@procaresoftware.com untilnext time.
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