Ethical Employment Is the New Excellence. Is Your School Keeping Up?

In international schools, transience is often seen as part of the deal. Educators come and go. Families and students move on. Contracts end. But this long-standing norm is no longer sustainable. It is not just an operational issue. It is a leadership one. To thrive, schools must treat retention with the same strategic focus as recruitment.

Why Retention Is a Strategic Imperative

Evidence shows that with the global teacher shortage worsening, candidates are becoming more selective. They are not only choosing a role but evaluating the culture, leadership, and commitment to wellbeing. Staff are more likely to stay in environments where they feel supported and respected. When these elements are missing, burnout rises, and student experience suffers.

What Today’s Educators Expect from Employers

Behind every great school are the people who keep it running. Yet many do not receive the employment experience they deserve. When staff feel safe, trusted, and purposeful, it shows in their energy, their relationships, and their contribution to student learning. A stable and engaged workforce strengthens school culture and lays the foundation for a values-driven organisation. Recent work with schools shows that forward-thinking leaders are already putting ethical employment into practice.

When Systems Fail, So Does Culture

Too often, key systems are outdated. Career development is left to chance. Contracts are vague or outdated. Grievance channels are weak or missing. Human resources focuses on compliance rather than care, often excluded from strategic decision-making.

When HR is not positioned as a full partner in shaping culture and supporting people, it leaves room for inconsistency, favouritism, and even nepotism. Elevating HR to a People and Culture function is not about rebranding. It requires strategic investment in professionals who can design and lead systems that protect and empower employees. Without this, staff are left without clear processes or protection, which can erode trust and create a sense of powerlessness. These gaps add daily friction for those who want to contribute meaningfully and be part of a healthy, fair workplace.

From HR to People and Culture

When staff feel unseen or overextended, the effects are immediate. Absenteeism rises. Collaboration weakens. Recruitment becomes reactive. And students, who rely on the stability of the adults around them, notice the shift.

Data consistently links staff wellbeing to retention. High turnover leads to churn. And churn damages the continuity, trust, and relationships that hold schools and their communities together.

Embedding Wellbeing into Organisational Design

What is missing in many schools is a serious focus on employment as a foundation of organisational wellbeing. Legal compliance and surface-level benefits are not enough. Employees want clear roles, support to grow, and leadership that values their work beyond performance metrics.

NexGen Talent Group was created in response to this gap. We work with strategic school leaders who recognise that employment practices are levers for long-term success. The schools engaging in this work are shaping the future of ethical leadership in international education. As expectations shift, those who do not examine how their staff are treated risk being left behind. Through a confidential, standards-based process, we partner with schools to reflect on how they hire, support, and retain staff, placing employee experience at the centre of sustainable improvement.

When wellbeing is embedded through realistic workloads, clear responsibilities, structured career pathways, and humanised policies, trust increases. Purposeful appraisal systems also matter. These systems should allow individuals to see their impact, feel connected to the school’s direction, and understand how they contribute to its success. Organisational structures and professional titles also play a role in this clarity, helping staff understand where they fit, how they can grow, and how their contributions are recognised. For those in operational roles, where the link to student outcomes may feel less direct, making that alignment visible is essential. It builds shared purpose across the organisation.

The Future Belongs to People-First Schools

Ethical employment and a strong internal culture are not extras. They are core to delivering quality education. Schools should be able to demonstrate that they put people first, not just in language but in practice. That includes recognising those making progress, endorsing responsible employment, and celebrating cultures where people have a reason to stay.

Today’s candidates are not only seeking greater pay. They are looking for environments where people thrive, where feedback is handled with respect, and where leadership creates the conditions for growth. They want to join schools where wellbeing is real, not just a word in a strategy document.

If you’re already making these changes, keep going. If not, the first step is understanding that employment strategy is mission-critical.

 It’s time to stop filling vacancies and start building commitment. To move from managing people to supporting and leading them.

 When you invest in your employees, you invest in your mission.

Yael Cass, PhD Organizational strategy, behaviour and development expert

References

Learning Policy Institute (2016) Solving the teacher shortage: How to attract and retain excellent educators. [online] Available at: https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/solving-teacher-shortage [Accessed 17 Apr. 2025].

RAND Corporation (2021) Supporting the well-being of educators and students during and after COVID-19. [online] Available at: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1108-1.html [Accessed 17 Apr. 2025].

Washington Association of School Administrators (WASA) (2020) Virtual recruitment and hiring strategies: Lessons learned from spring 2020. [online] Available at: https://wasa-oly.org/WASA/images/WASA/6.0%20Resources/6.1.7%20Miscellaneous/Download_Files/COVID19/Virtual%20Recruitment%20and%20Hiring%20Strategies.pdf [Accessed 17 Apr. 2025].