Why Schools Need Managers, Not Just Administrators

We’ve invested heavily in school administrators — but is administration really what drives performance in schools?

As someone who’s built, led, and repaired teacher teams in multiple countries, I can say with certainty: it’s not policy or protocol that changes a school — it’s people. And people need more than administrators. They need managers. Leaders.

Administrative systems handle logistics, resources, and compliance. That’s necessary — but insufficient.

What drives school culture, teacher retention, student outcomes, and long-term impact?

Management.

Not the kind that only counts hours and schedules meetings. I’m talking about real, hands-on academic management — leaders who build teams, guide behavior, diagnose dysfunction, and create clarity where confusion once reigned.

“School leaders should be focused less on managing and more on creating the conditions in which others can lead.”

— EdWeek, April 2024

• Strong managers:

  
  

• Build shared purpose and expectations

  
  

• Align teaching effort with product and outcome

  
  

• Create trust through feedback and accountability

  
  

• Amplify individual teachers into a collaborative team

  
  

• Engage with the wider business of education — not just the classroom

The research supports this. A 2024 piece from Emerald Insight makes a compelling case for change:

“The paradigm must shift from seeing leadership as a role to seeing it as a practice — one embedded at all levels of the school structure.”

In too many schools, leadership is top-heavy, abstract, and distant from the teaching teams that deliver the product. But real effectiveness comes from embedding leadership inside the teaching unit itself — in department heads, program leads, curriculum supervisors, and operations managers who understand both people and process.

This is exactly what we focus on in our work: helping education businesses build internal management capacity to unlock the performance of their teacher teams.

We don’t just train your people in compliance and HR policy. We train them to manage — to lead teachers, improve learning, and connect operations to outcomes.

If your school or organization is investing in systems but not getting results, this might be the missing link.

Let’s talk about what strong academic management and organization development could do for your team.

Send me a message or connect at AGNova.net

#SchoolLeadership #AcademicManagement #TeacherFirst #LeadershipDevelopment #OperationalEffectiveness #SchoolImprovement #TeamBuilding #EdLeadership