What do you do when your Early Childhood Education Service needs tailored support to deal with a critical issue? ELAA’s expert consultancy partners can work with your team to find solutions to industrial relations, conflict management, Human Resources, governance, OHS, and other needs. As an ELAA member you’ll get great ELAA member rates on specialised consultancies.
Our Preferred Consultancy Partners
Kathy Townley - Human Resource Management
Kathy Townley is a Management Consultant delivering valuable support and guidance specialising in the not-for-profit sector. Kathy has held board positions across the Early Years sector and been an advisor and consultant with Early Learning Association Australia for over 15 years. She has been instrumental in delivering many successful projects in the Early Years sector and provided HR support in different sectors including local government and retail, with a focus on driving positive change. From these engagements, Kathy has refined key skills in influencing and negotiation, which complement her established qualifications and experience in human resources, and people and performance management systems and structures.
Prior to her commencement as a consultant, Kathy previously managed various departments and large teams in the financial services industry. She has gained valuable knowledge and expertise in achieving successful outcomes through good planning, developing capable and committed people, and implementing effective policies and practical processes that work. Kathy holds formal qualifications with a Bachelor of Education and Master of Business Administration.
ideas2outcomes
ideas2outcomes transforms business ideas, issues, and insights into successful, sustainable outcomes. ideas2outcomes offers an effective combination of many years of practical business and people leadership experience and formal business qualifications working with start-ups to large corporates across diverse industries in the private and public sector
Nick Church - Industrial Relations Management
Nick Church is an established industrial relations practitioner, with over 25 years of experience in a variety of advisory and advocacy roles, as well as holding formal qualifications including a Masters of Work and Employment Relations.
Nick is committed to a professional, pragmatic and ethical approach to industrial relations issues and processes. This is driven by his extensive experience working for both employers and trade unions across a variety of industries.
Nick was the Industrial Relations Advisor for Kindergarten Parents Victoria (precursor to ELAA) from 2007 – 2010, and represented KPV in the negotiations for the first sector-wide enterprise agreement.
Since 2019 Nick has provided ongoing industrial relations support to ELAA, including representing ELAA in the VECTEA negotiations and assisting members with complex industrial relations matters.
EC Workplace
In 2021 Nick launched EC Workplace, an industrial relations firm specialising in supporting the not-for-profit early childhood sector via an exclusive strategic partnership with ELAA.
EC Workplace is available to provide ELAA members access to strategic industrial relations support via a range of services – please see below.
Services
- General Human Resources Management
- Recruitment and selection
- Employee engagement
- Employee performance planning and evaluation
- Governance and policy
- Organisational review and design
- Early Years program review
- Strategy and planning
- Financial management
- Operational management and compliance
- Mentoring and coaching
- Facilitated discussions
- Training and workshops
- Support in considering and moving to an Early Years Manager (EYM)
- Other services (as mutually agreed)
Services
- Workplace investigations
- Workplace mediation (facilitated by a nationally accredited mediator)
- Workplace issue and dispute resolution
- Review of industrial relations practices
- Fair Work Commission representation
- Workshop facilitation and tailed training
- Specialists Occupational Health and Safety advice
- General Work Cover advice
- Liaising with unions and other relevant stakeholders
- Workplace change management
- Support for the review, negotiation and implementation of industrial agreements including the Victorian Early Childhood Teachers and Educators Agreement
- Other services (as mutually agreed)
