The effectiveness of elementary education hinges on the instructional and financial leadership capacities of school heads, as these competencies shape the quality of teaching and overall school governance. This study examined how instructional leadership competence and financial management proficiency relate to the administrative performance of elementary school heads using a descriptive-correlational design. A total of 217 teachers evaluated the performance of 43 school heads through validated questionnaires measuring key leadership and administrative dimensions. Findings indicate that school heads demonstrated high instructional leadership competence and very high financial management proficiency, both of which were reflected in their overall administrative effectiveness. Instructional leadership displayed a strong positive association with administrative performance, while financial management showed a moderate yet meaningful relationship. Conversely, no significant linkage was observed between instructional and financial competencies, suggesting that these capacities develop along separate pathways and therefore require differentiated professional learning and targeted capacity-building initiatives. The study underscores the complementary yet distinct contributions of instructional and financial leadership to school governance. The findings provide evidencebased insights for enhancing leadership development programs, improving instructional quality, strengthening fiscal accountability, and ultimately fostering enhanced governance and administrative effectiveness in elementary education institutions.

Keywords: instructional leadership competence, financial management proficiency, administrative performance, data-driven decision-making, school governance, fiscal accountability