Seeking your thoughts on a potential client....

TOUR
Potential DCM toured back in January / February shortly after her child was approx. 15 months old. The child was very young, into everything and mom had no control of the child. He was trying to put everything in his mouth, thrown things, hit her, etc. The child was intense and made the worse mess of any tour but I chopped it up to his age (and the parent not feeling responsible for his behavior). I did not hear from her and did not think much about it beyond that.

FOLLOW UP 5-6 MONTHS LATER
Last Friday mom sent me an email stating her son is almost 2 and wanted to secure a spot for him starting this November. On Monday I responded stating I currently do have a M/W/F spot available as she was seeking and informed her of our extended day rates as she requested. I also noted that we do not offer extended day on Fridays and have teacher meetings, etc. that day. (This would be a new policy and was not 100% set in stone but.... it's something I have been toying with since all my current clients that day pick up at 12:30pm and starting in September my own dd will be out of school at 1:00pm)

Mom responded:

I have to work 3 days a week. So you have any flexibility with the schedule? Would you be able to accommodate m/w/th schedule since I will need extended care on the days I work?

Also, would it be possible to observe the class while it's in session with my son? I can stop by for a little bit on Friday am if it's ok with you. It would help me make a final decision. Do you have an open door policy?

MY RANDOM THOUGHTS / CONCERNS

• I do have 2 open M/W/F spots but I am not going to hold them open until November when the child is 2. I'm not even sure how I would handle that.
• My M/W/F group is boy heavy and I really wanted those two spots filled with girls. I would not deny the right boy but am marketing in girl heavy places (like the ballet studios).
• Pro for them is they are a minority that I did not currently have enrolled and I do value diversity.
• I am not going to allow M/W/TH as that cuts into my income, I could offer M/W/F with extended day included on Friday - especially since I was only toying with the idea of not offering extended care on Fridays but I would be doing so for just 1-2 "potential" children since all the others are picked up half day. Not sure it's worth it for 1-2 children.

Potential DCM did her initial tour after hours when children were not present which was how I did tours when I initially opened I now allow tours during the day at a certain time but I already have 2 tours on the books this week (one took place this morning - AMAZING FAMILY - and one on Thursday for 2 siblings together) and it does change the energy of my dcks so I will not do more than 2 a week.


What are your thoughts?

Would you allow this potential mom and her child to visit and observe your class? (If so I will not allow until next week at the earliest.)

What would you say to her regarding days / hours she wants? No one has asked me to alter my enrollment days.... and it did not rub me the right way but she does not likely know any better.

Perhaps I have my guard up for no reason but wanted to check in with you all. TIA.

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From mom's point of view, she will need 3 days and m/w/t won't work for you.

Do you want to hold a spot that long? How much holding fee? I don't see any real red flags here, but you may along the way. If you are considering it, tell her when she can tour and see if that works for her. If the tour and agreements go fine, good. If you would rather not hold the spot, just tell her.

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If I opt to take her I would only offer her M/W/F but then I would have to keep my Friday hours full day while right now those currently enrolled on Friday are all 1/2 day.

I am not sure I am comfortable holding the spot.... which is a major hesitation on my part.

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I see this as a pretty clear cut case. She wants MWTH you only offer MWF. Done.

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I feel like this is a HMM (High Maintenance Mom).
No, I would not allow her to observe. If you want to conduct another tour during business hours then do that to see if HE would be a good fit now that he's getting older. Sounds like he wouldn't be, though.
No, I will not extend my hours for her (IF that is something you don't want to do/don't already do).
No, I would not change my schedule to be days that I don't offer. You said you have MWF. That's what is available.
No, I would not hold a spot open until November and lose income.

Keep holding out for some girls that are a better fit. I just said no to two poor fits and have a child enrolling who will be a GREAT fit. It was worth it.

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I say no.She is already not listening to you.I would not give up half day Fridays either.

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yup. I also doubt the child's behavior and/or the mother's responsibility for such behavior has changed much.

Dcm,

M/W/F is the only availability I have. Unfortunately we cannot offer extended days on Friday. As discussed previously, we have staff meetings every Friday. I offer tours during child care hours and have X day/time and X day/time available if our schedule works for you.

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My thoughts too. Your opening is MWF so you don't have an opening for her child.

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The fact that mom had no control over her child and felt no responsibility, even though it was months ago, was a "no" for me, unless you needed the money badly. She'll never help with behavior or even care.

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My 3-part interview process includes one 45 minute "playdate" with 1 parent and 1 child so doing this wouldn't be so bad for me. I personally don't think that allowing a sit-in isn't unrealistic.

Just do it on your terms.
If you typically only do 2 interviews during daycare hours each week and you've already have 2 scheduled just let her know that you're not available until XX.

Choose a day or two that work best for you. Maybe pick a slower day and think about holding it on a day that the child will be scheduled so you can see him interact with the kiddos he'll be spending his time with.

Choose a time that works best for you and the group. Maybe not during meal or snack times. Right after a meal or snack time seems to work for me because then the kids aren't hungry and irritable. I try for mid morning after snack or after pm snack so that they're also not tired. Mid morning means they're not needing a nap yet and after pm snack means that they've already had nap and are rested and fed.

Stick to your guns (if that's what you really want) when it comes to short Fridays since that's the direction that you want to be headed.

Also stick your guns about only offering a MTF spot and not a MWTh spot. Just tell her that you don't have a Tuesday or Thursday spot available at the moment.

As far as an open door policy let her know that you do have on and what it means for you. Do you allow parents to come and go freely as they please? Do you discourage visits during specific times (nap, meals etc.)? Do allow them to arrive and leave again? Or do they need to take their kids with them if they visit etc?

I'd also be clear that you will not hold a spot for that long and explain how it works in regards to her needing a spot in November. Do you offer a discounted rate to be paid weekly until the day she needs to start? Do you offer the opportunity for her to pay a holding fee? Do you require full payment even if they don't need the spot yet? Do you recommend that she call you 30 days before she needs care to see if you have an opening for her at that time?
I personally don't hold interviews for anyone unless they need immediate care or at least need to start within 2-3 weeks. I don't hold spots either.

All things to think about.

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I've only been in this for 5 years and I'm learning that I will only make it longer by having some absolutes. You have to decide what your absolutes are and answer accordingly.

I would let her know that you cannot accommodate her schedule (you're off early on Fridays for your little girl! ☺️, don't ruin that if you've already been able to make it work in the current situation). If she decides she still wants to visit and can maybe work her schedule out otherwise, then allow the visit (on your availability) and see how the behavior issue looks. If that is improved, let her know that you don't hold spots that long but you could place her on the waitlist if she were interested.

I've learned within the last year that speaking up for what I need / want will mostly filter out the ones that aren't willing to accommodate.

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