Lead an established, high-performing early childhood service with a strong team, strong culture and the support to succeed.

Want to put your communication, leadership and educational skills to the test, challenge yourself to make a real difference, and support those shaping our next generation? Come be part of the future, today

We’re not your typical childcare centres; we’re a group of innovative thinkers and committed lifelong learners. We’re on a mission to do things a bit differently (and better) than the rest, and we’re looking for a help lead the charge. We are looking for an experienced and commercially minded Service Director to lead our Croydon service and continue building on its strong foundations.

We don’t just offer a job; we’re offering a rare opportunity for you to thrive, grow, and make a meaningful impact on the lives of children as part of our incredible team. At Choklits, we’re not just about childcare, we’re about building something truly special in early childhood education. We’re pushing the boundaries of what quality early learning looks and feels like, building careers and creating a brighter future along the way.

If you’re ready to take your coaching and leadership skills to new heights, then read on, we could be redefining what’s possible in early childhood education, together.

Croydon is a large, established service with strong occupancy, an experienced educator team, high family and educator retention, established systems and processes, and a strong reputation within its community.

We are looking for an experienced Director who can confidently lead a large team, understand the operational and commercial side of early childhood education and care, and maintain high standards across people,



pedagogy, compliance, family experience and business performance.

You won't be expected to walk in and figure everything out yourself. A comprehensive onboarding and handover process will be provided with our existing Service Director, alongside ongoing support from our Area Manager and broader leadership team.

About the Role

As Service Director, you will have overall responsibility for the leadership and performance of the Croydon service.

This is a hands‑on leadership role requiring someone who is equally comfortable supporting educators, engaging with families and children, analysing service performance, conducting tours, managing a CRM, reviewing financial and occupancy data, supporting educational quality and ensuring regulatory compliance.

You will be responsible for maintaining the strong culture and performance already established at Croydon while identifying opportunities for continued improvement.

Key Responsibilities

You will be responsible for:

- Leading, mentoring and developing a large team of educators and leaders.
- Maintaining robust occupancy and proactively managing enrolments, enquiries, waitlists and retention.
- Conducting high‑quality service tours and supporting strong enquiry‑to‑enrolment conversion.
- Managing and using CRM systems to track enquiries, tours, follow‑ups,



conversion and family engagement.
- Reading and interpreting service data to inform operational decisions.
- Managing labour costs, rostering and operational budgets while maintaining quality and compliance.
- Maintaining strong educator retention and a positive workplace culture.
- Supporting family retention and maintaining strong relationships with children, families and the wider community.
- Maintaining high standards of compliance across the NQF, NQS, Child Safe Standards, service policies and regulatory requirements.
- Leading continuous improvement and maintaining an active, meaningful QIP.
- Supporting strong pedagogical leadership, curriculum quality and reflective practice.
- Ensuring mandatory training and professional development requirements are maintained.
- Managing incidents, risks, complaints and family concerns confidently and professionally.
- Supporting leadership development and building capability across Room Leaders, Educational Leaders and emerging leaders.
- Working closely with the Area Manager and broader Choklits leadership team.
- Supporting community engagement, events and partnerships.
- Contributing to social media and service marketing, including being comfortable appearing on camera and showcasing the service.
- Monitoring family feedback, service reputation and opportunities for continuous improvement.

About You

We are looking for an experienced leader who can demonstrate:

- A minimum of three years' experience as a Service Director/Centre Director within Early Childhood Education and Care.
- Demonstrated experience leading a large ECEC service and large educator team.
- Proven experience ma

📌 Service Director | Full Time | Croydon (Melbourne)
🏢 Choklits Child Care
📍 Melbourne