Step1: Work Out Your Requirements in Full
Before you even place an advertisement or visit a nanny agency, sit down and decide your exact requirements in a childcare professional. Ask yourself questions.
• Will the nanny live with your family or will she come in each day on a regular schedule?
• To what degree will the nanny be allowed to discipline the child?
• Will the nanny be supervising any medications and if so is a degree of medical knowledge required, for instance administering insulin injections?
• Will the nanny be driving your child? If so, in whose vehicle? What are the insurance and liability ramifications?
In general it’s better to go completely overboard with your requirements. Think about everything and then narrow it all down into a workable set of responsibilities. Don’t expect someone to read your mind. The best nannies are those who completely understand their role in the life of your family as you delineate that role for them.
Step 2: Decide Whether or Not to Work with an Agency
In general, working with a nanny service is probably the stronger option in finding a childcare professional. You can advertise on your own, but you won’t have the agency’s resources for conducting background checks or filtering candidates through a screening process. Be aware that you will be responsible for fees to the agency, but that added layer of professionalism can pay off big in the long run.
Interview several different agencies before deciding on one with which to work. Find out:
• how they run background checks.
• how the applicant screening process works.
• what access you will have to resumés, references, and reports.
• how interviews will be conducted between you and the candidate and the candidate and your children.
Judge an agency the same way you would judge an individual. If the process doesn’t feel right to you, it probably isn’t.
Step 3: Conducting Interviews
Most parents have preferences in regard to nannies in the areas of age, marital status, education, experience, and philosophy of child care. Don’t be shy about asking questions in any of these areas. The candidate should be expecting such queries. During the interview:
• review the job description as you see it and make sure that you and the candidate are “on the same page.”
• air an concerns immediately and ask the candidate to do the same. For instance, if you have a dog and the person doesn’t like animals, but fails to say so, you’re already off to a bad start.
• pose hypotheticals. “My child does this and requires discipline. What do you do?”
Take notes and leave the option of a follow-up interview open so you can return with questions or concerns that may occur to you after the fact.
Make sure your child has an opportunity to interact with the candidate in your presence and alone, but under your observation. Children make it clear when they don’t like someone. Trust your instincts and those of your child.
Concluding Tip: Don’t Take the First Candidate You Like
While it’s tempting to take the first candidate you like, discipline yourself to interview all the potential nannies. To make a solid, informed decision you need several points of comparison. A winning personality does not always translate into a responsible childcare professional. You aren’t just getting a playmate for your child, but someone who will safeguard their well-being.
While many people find the process of selecting a nanny to be daunting, the key is to viewing it as just that -- a process. By taking the time to carefully organize your requirements and to follow good interview and vetting procedures, you will find someone who will integrate well into your family structure and be an important part of your child’s developmental years.
About the Author:
Nanny Poppinz provides 24Hr, Full or Part Time Live In or Out Corporate Child Care Services: Nannies, Newborn Specialists, Baby Nurses, Emergencies and Referrals for Single Parents, Families and Busy Corporate Employees.