Steve Francis

Steve Francis is an experienced educator who has worked as the Principal at many schools of diverse sizes and student demographics – from tiny one teacher schools through to big city schools and even an international school in Hong Kong.

Drawing on his extensive experience and with a passion for helping people reach their potential, Steve connects with leaders of commercial businesses and government as well as staff working in schools. He helps them to create cultures and organisations that grow through learning and making the most of change opportunities.

Steve is the author of four books including First Semester Can Make or Break You!, Time Management For Teachers, A Gr8 Life Live It Now! and Attitude is Everything, co-written with Bruce Sullivan.

Teacher Stress was the subject of Steve’s thesis for his Masters in School Leadership. His research on teacher stress led him to develop the Happy School program. Over 600 schools across Australia and internationally subscribe to receive Steve’s weekly Happy School articles and use them to boost staff morale and reduce teacher stress. Steve has also developed the instruments SurveyMySchool and SurveyMyClass which help schools identify and quickly navigate paths to improvement.

In 2013 Steve was awarded the designation Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) – the highest, internationally recognised designation for professional speakers.

Steve Francis speaks about:

High Functioning Teams – Steve explains the four key aspects of high functioning teams and how missing one aspect will have a massive impact on team effectiveness.

Increasing WORK-LIFE Satisfaction – In this session Steve asks his audience to reflect on their current situation and teaches seven strategies for increasing satisfaction.

GR8 Leaders are GR8 People – In this session Steve explores the attributes of the people we like to work with and reflects on what we contribute to the teams we are part of. Self-awareness is a key attribute of effective leaders.

Leading an Effective Change Process – There are five reasons why change processes fail and can be avoided. Steve examines leadership practices that should be used to successfully implement change initiatives.

10 Things Great School Leaders Do Differently – This session examines 10 practices that researchers have identified that great school leaders do, that other school leaders don’t.

Difficult Conversations – In this session Steve unpacks four models as frameworks for important conversations. Each model serves a different purpose.

7 Strategies for Motivating and Engaging Students – Motivating and engaging students can be challenging. In this session Steve unpacks the seven key strategies that engage students.

Schools are People Places – Building Trust is Essential – Steve unpacks 13 behaviours that build trust are simple, straight forward and immediately transferable to schools. Having good intentions is not enough. It is behaviour that counts!

Leading an Effective Change Process – There are five reasons why change processes fail and can be avoided. Steve examines change leadership models that should be used to successfully guide change initiatives in schools.

Feedback – Helping Teachers Be the Best They Can Be – In this session Steve looks at the importance of feedback to teachers and the models used around the world.

Identifying and Utilising Your Strengths – Identifying, understanding and utilising your strengths is important. In preparation for this session, participants complete the StrengthsFinder 2.0 self-assessment to identify their 5 greatest strengths or talents. The results are debriefed and delegates discuss their strengths and examine how their strengths contribute to effective teamwork.

Understanding YOUR Leadership – Style Participants use LSI to reflect on their thinking and leadership styles. The debriefing session and supporting workbook increases self-awareness and helps each participant identify strategies for increasing helpful strategies and reducing less helpful approaches. 360 feedback option also available.

Boosting Staff Morale as a Leader – In this session Steve unpacks the keys to building staff morale. Attendees explore and apply six strategies and the associated behaviours.

Time Management for Leaders in Schools – This practical workshop has been especially developed for school leaders and applies the best ‘time management’ practices. Delegates leave with skills, knowledge and tools to be more efficient and effective.

Squeezed – Leading From the Middle – Leading from the middle requires a fine balance of skills – influencing up as well as leading others. In this session Steve examines the challenges and strategies needed to lead from the middle.

Differentiating Leadership – This session focuses on choosing the correct leadership style to suit the needs of the situation and the people being lead.

Getting Traction – From Goals to Action – Having goals and targets is a great start but to get traction it is vital that school leaders unpack their plans and get clarity on roles, responsibilities and timelines. Aligning meetings, roles, responsibilities and getting organised are essential to getting traction.