As soon as you have decided to hire a nanny, let everyone know that you are looking for a caregiver. Tell co-workers, friends, people you work out with or friends from hobby groups you have joined. A nanny that comes with a reference from someone you know can go a long way in creating peace of mind for yourself about the person you could potentially hire.
Nanny Agencies
Check if there is a nanny agency in your city. Reputable agencies will have already screened potential nanny candidates, as well as allow you to conduct your own interview. There will be fees charged for this screening service, but again, there is some peace of mind with a pre-screen. As well, you could end up with a nanny who has been working with the agency for some time and therefore comes highly recommended.
Don't Rush the Nanny Hiring Process
Allow yourself plenty of time to hire a nanny. Feeling stressed about starting back to work in a week’s time will only push you to hire someone you are not entirely comfortable with. Should you be in a dire situation, where your current child care has abruptly ended and you are forced to quickly re-hire, ask for help from friends and family or use some holiday time to get you through the period of not having child care.
Interviewing a Nanny
Be fully prepared for your interview with nanny candidates. Have a list of questions ready, including potential scenarios involving your child and nanny and how this nanny would handle the situation. Be prepared to discuss salary and benefits, including holiday time and raises. Here are some interview questions that may be a little more in depth than the usual:
- How will you entertain my child?
- What are your views on discipline?
- What would a typical day be for you and my child?
- How do you feel about household tasks such as laundry or vacuuming?
- Do you have any fear of animals? (This is important if you have pets, but also because you want your child to have a healthy attitude toward animals)
- What have you enjoyed or disliked about past positions you have had as a nanny?
- Why did you leave your last position?
- Share a happy memory from your own childhood. Do you remember a time when you were misunderstood as a child?
- What do you find most frustrating about child care?
- How will you communicate on the job frustrations with us?
Trust Your Nanny Hiring Instincts
Be relaxed and open during the interview process, allowing you to be receptive to the person you are interviewing. Trust your instincts – if you just do not get a good feel from a person, don’t hire her, despite what others have told you. Someone who was a great fit for one family just may not fit in with yours and that is okay.
More Than One Good Nanny Candidate
Hopefully you will have a few fabulous choices to choose from, but this of course only makes the final decision more difficult. Consider commuting times of candidates and the potential to be late if there are congested bridges to be crossed or connecting buses to be taken. Think about who may be more apt to be long term – someone who is young or newly married may be considering a family of her own fairly soon.
Of course, don’t let possible "negatives" like those suggested above dissuade you from hiring the perfect nanny (18 months of great child care is worth it!). Use this advice only if you are having to make a choice between two or three candidates. And again, trust your instincts! You were given “gut feelings” for exactly these kinds of scenarios. Hire the nanny you feel most confident about and don't be afraid to check on her a lot that first week back to work!
For further resources on hiring a nanny try:
Carlton, Susan and Myers, Coco. The Nanny Book: The Smart parent's Guide to Hiring, Firing and Every Sticky Situation in Between. NY: St. Martin's Press, 1999.
Auerbach, Jessica. And Nanny Makes Three: Mothers and Nannies Tell the Truth About Work, Love, Money and each Other. NY: St. Martin's Press, 2007.
