Bernama Radio: A Teacher’s Journey and Starting up Pre-school Franchise
With Special Guest Puan Norazita, winner of Best Franchisee Award 2018/2019
Recently, we had the winner of Genius Aulad Franchisee Award 2018-2019 join us on our #gogenius segment on Bernama Radio. Puan Norazita has 4 Genius Aulad centres under her belt, and was awarded for how well-run her centres are. She used to be a teacher, who then ventured into the early childhood industry by setting up a regular kindergarten. In 2012, the opportunity to continue her journey through the industry by joining the Genius Aulad family popped up, and by 2012 she was able to open Genius Aulad Bandar Tun Hussein Onn. She went on to open a Genius Aulad centre every two years after that, their location being Bandar Sri Permaisuri, Bandar Mahkota Cheras and Sungai Besi. Here are some excerpts from her exclusive segment at Bernama Radio
“What is your opinion on the kindergarten franchise in the local market?”
In my opinion, parents have turned to early childhood education centres in ensuring that their children are well-prepared for primary school. With the availability of an education system or specialized programme by franchises, I’m sure that it will be a great help in upgrading the quality of education in accordance to the regulations. Due to the fact that they are experienced experts in the industry. At the same time, quality can be maintained and controlled. For example: in Malaysia, Genius Aulad is one of the first pioneers to offer English-based Islamic kindergarten services. Genius Aulad offers various programmes, specially-curated modules and detailed curriculum planning. Other than that, Genius Aulad really prioritizes the quality of education in all aspects, following our Standard Operating Procedures. It was what sparked my interest in Genius Aulad. Alhamdullilah, that’s why I’ve been here for 8 years (soon to be 9). Genius Aulad constantly guides business owners and principals through CME Coaching, training and even online coaching. Besides that, Genius Aulad’s EQC (Education Quality Control) Team will visit every centre every term to check up on whether we really follow the guidelines and SOP. From there we can see that the quality in Genius Aulad is truly well-maintained, whether it’s through the content, classroom arrangement, safety precautions and more.
What are the challenges that you face as a franchisee?
With children, there aren’t any challenges. But one of the challenges that we do encounter is finding quality educators who are really good at what they do, and are really passionate about it. That is a common challenge that we franchisees face in maintaining the quality of the service that we provide.
“How you deal with that particular challenge?
Alhamdullilah, from the beginning we really follow every training and coaching session provided by Genius Aulad. Hence, we are able to lead and coach our teachers at our respective centres, through monthly in-house training and motivational talks. We always ensure that they have all the resources they need.
What is the most important thing to have in the early childhood industry?
To me, the industry is always expanding, and does not really go through much changes when faced with economic challenges because it is a need in Malaysia. I would like to share a little bit about my experience with Genius Aulad. Genius Aulad is the first early childhood enrichment centre to be franchised in Malaysia and its growth has been really good. This can be proven through the existence of a franchisee system that is well planned, easy to follow and the fact that we move together as a team. Every decision that is made is done together.
“Thoughts on Genius Aulad’s Social Entrepreneurship?”
For the services that we offer, we actually build it on the CSR that we engage in with our community. An example would be our First We Need Love programmes, where we reach out to orphanages, retirement homes, hospitals and more. Recently, we’ve worked with Lembaga Penduduk Pembangunan Keluarga Negara (LPPKN), where we distributed food and necessities to the homeless. We’re also industrial partners with a few universities and welcome interns who seek experience and knowledge on the industry, so from there you can see that Genius Aulad is not just a preschool.
Look for us on Bernama Radio’s Facebook Page, or tune in to FM 93.9 MHz every WEDNESDAY to catch us on our #GOGENIUS segment, or listen to past recordings! If you’d like to know more about owning a Genius Aulad centre, get in touch with our Business Development team today at [email protected]
