With community insistence on quality early childhood programs in a time of diminishing resources, professionalism remains a major issue in early childhood care. This new Second Edition will be an invaluable resource to early childhood professionals who want to understand how to create successful childcare programs. Drawing on her extensive experience in the field, Jillian Rodd presents a framework for understanding the demands of leadership and for developing skills that are relevant to today’s early childhood setting, including: communication and interpersonal skills, building and leading an early childhood team, decision making, conflict management, implementing change, working with parents, and using research as a means of informed decision making.