New nanny hire question

[Anonymous]

We need to hire a nanny ASAP. We're using an agency and they sent us a few candidates. We had the strongest one come in for a trial this week and she did a good job. She left her last job in April because she wanted to have a break and then be able to do a few trials. She was able to work with us every day and it went very well. We would like to offer her the job but when I sat down to discuss the details with her this afternoon, she told me that she's going to do another trial next week with a different family, then she'll get back to me to let me know if she's interested in working for us.

I wasn't expecting this response! So the question is, how do I deal with it? Should I tell her we want to hire her and we'd like her to stay. Offer her some kind of signing bonus, or just let her go do the other trial and see if she gets back to us?

Thank you

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We need to hire a nanny ASAP. We're using an agency and they sent us a few candidates. We had the strongest one come in for a trial this week and she did a good job. She left her last job in April because she wanted to have a break and then be able to do a few trials. She was able to work with us every day and it went very well. We would like to offer her the job but when I sat down to discuss the details with her this afternoon, she told me that she's going to do another trial next week with a different family, then she'll get back to me to let me know if she's interested in working for us.

I wasn't expecting this response! So the question is, how do I deal with it? Should I tell her we want to hire her and we'd like her to stay. Offer her some kind of signing bonus, or just let her go do the other trial and see if she gets back to us?

Thank you

Do another trial; she is shopping around and you should be too.

[Anonymous]

The nanny market is extremely competitive and most nannies receive multiple offers.

A few thoughts:
-The agency should be the one extending the offer and doing contract negotiations on your behalf. They have protocols in place for situations exactly like this and would have been able to nip it in the bud with clear cut expectations.
-The nanny may have been caught off guard to hear an offer directly from you because agencies typically handle that.
-If time is of the essence, you are totally within reason to expect a response by X date. Again, the agency should have a policy for how long a candidate has to respond to a job offer.
-The agency should be experienced enough to know they shouldn't stop sending you candidates until you have a signed contract with a nanny. If the nanny is clearly pursuing other options, you should be as well.

-Another agency

[Anonymous]

She's doing what's best for her. What would be best for you is to keep looking for a nanny since you don't have one yet.

[Anonymous]

Probably two things -
1. She had these set up and she wants to honor that / see what is out there.
2. There is something about the position that is not 100% desirable to her- the commute, the hours, the number of kids, that you have a dog .... There is some part of the job that did not tick all the boxes, so she is looking to see if there is something else that does tick all the boxes.

If you are feeling bold, you could ask the agency if she indicated what concerns she had, you could see if those are something you can work with (hours, pay, dropping someone off at preschool) or not (number of kids, pets ...)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Probably two things -
1. She had these set up and she wants to honor that / see what is out there.
2. There is something about the position that is not 100% desirable to her- the commute, the hours, the number of kids, that you have a dog .... There is some part of the job that did not tick all the boxes, so she is looking to see if there is something else that does tick all the boxes.

If you are feeling bold, you could ask the agency if she indicated what concerns she had, you could see if those are something you can work with (hours, pay, dropping someone off at preschool) or not (number of kids, pets ...)

Thank you. I spoke to her again this morning and the other family have young children so she said she thinks it will be a longer tenure for her. I told her we plan to have a nanny until our kids go to college, we need the extra help. But since she had committed to a trial w them next week she wants to stick to that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The nanny market is extremely competitive and most nannies receive multiple offers.

A few thoughts:
-The agency should be the one extending the offer and doing contract negotiations on your behalf. They have protocols in place for situations exactly like this and would have been able to nip it in the bud with clear cut expectations.
-The nanny may have been caught off guard to hear an offer directly from you because agencies typically handle that.
-If time is of the essence, you are totally within reason to expect a response by X date. Again, the agency should have a policy for how long a candidate has to respond to a job offer.
-The agency should be experienced enough to know they shouldn't stop sending you candidates until you have a signed contract with a nanny. If the nanny is clearly pursuing other options, you should be as well.

-Another agency

Thank you, this is very helpful perspective for me
I wasn’t making the offer as opposed to letting her know that we liked her and planned to make an offer. She hasn’t worked for a month so I thought she’d appreciate getting our feedback and we’d both have a plan for next week. I did speak to the agency this morning. They were not aware that she has a different trial next week so they said they’d speak to her and get back to me. Do you think we should try to negotiate with her now or just wait to hear what she thinks after the other trial next week? I know we pay generously and we offered a better package than she expected

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Probably two things -
1. She had these set up and she wants to honor that / see what is out there.
2. There is something about the position that is not 100% desirable to her- the commute, the hours, the number of kids, that you have a dog .... There is some part of the job that did not tick all the boxes, so she is looking to see if there is something else that does tick all the boxes.

If you are feeling bold, you could ask the agency if she indicated what concerns she had, you could see if those are something you can work with (hours, pay, dropping someone off at preschool) or not (number of kids, pets ...)

Thank you. I spoke to her again this morning and the other family have young children so she said she thinks it will be a longer tenure for her. I told her we plan to have a nanny until our kids go to college, we need the extra help. But since she had committed to a trial w them next week she wants to stick to that.

Nannies take care of young children not teenagers. Maybe she doesn't want to be your nanny in perpetuity cum housekeeper cum maid. Keep looking because what you told her us not an attractive future for her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Probably two things -
1. She had these set up and she wants to honor that / see what is out there.
2. There is something about the position that is not 100% desirable to her- the commute, the hours, the number of kids, that you have a dog .... There is some part of the job that did not tick all the boxes, so she is looking to see if there is something else that does tick all the boxes.

If you are feeling bold, you could ask the agency if she indicated what concerns she had, you could see if those are something you can work with (hours, pay, dropping someone off at preschool) or not (number of kids, pets ...)

Thank you. I spoke to her again this morning and the other family have young children so she said she thinks it will be a longer tenure for her. I told her we plan to have a nanny until our kids go to college, we need the extra help. But since she had committed to a trial w them next week she wants to stick to that.

Nannies take care of young children not teenagers. Maybe she doesn't want to be your nanny in perpetuity cum housekeeper cum maid. Keep looking because what you told her us not an attractive future for her.

OP her goal is to find a long term position. Both of her last jobs ended after two years when the kids went to school. She drives and cooks which is valuable to us, we have a housekeeper too

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The nanny market is extremely competitive and most nannies receive multiple offers.

A few thoughts:
-The agency should be the one extending the offer and doing contract negotiations on your behalf. They have protocols in place for situations exactly like this and would have been able to nip it in the bud with clear cut expectations.
-The nanny may have been caught off guard to hear an offer directly from you because agencies typically handle that.
-If time is of the essence, you are totally within reason to expect a response by X date. Again, the agency should have a policy for how long a candidate has to respond to a job offer.
-The agency should be experienced enough to know they shouldn't stop sending you candidates until you have a signed contract with a nanny. If the nanny is clearly pursuing other options, you should be as well.

-Another agency

Thank you, this is very helpful perspective for me
I wasn’t making the offer as opposed to letting her know that we liked her and planned to make an offer. She hasn’t worked for a month so I thought she’d appreciate getting our feedback and we’d both have a plan for next week. I did speak to the agency this morning. They were not aware that she has a different trial next week so they said they’d speak to her and get back to me. Do you think we should try to negotiate with her now or just wait to hear what she thinks after the other trial next week? I know we pay generously and we offered a better package than she expected

Yes, I would definitely make her the offer. It sounds like a formal offer hasn't been extended so of course she should continue her job search process until she has a signed contract. I'm a little thrown that the agency didn't know she had another trial and heard that through you. Typically the agency should be following up with you right after the interview, being transparent (and aware) that nanny has another trial, and tell you the best game plan foe moving forward efficiently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The nanny market is extremely competitive and most nannies receive multiple offers.

A few thoughts:
-The agency should be the one extending the offer and doing contract negotiations on your behalf. They have protocols in place for situations exactly like this and would have been able to nip it in the bud with clear cut expectations.
-The nanny may have been caught off guard to hear an offer directly from you because agencies typically handle that.
-If time is of the essence, you are totally within reason to expect a response by X date. Again, the agency should have a policy for how long a candidate has to respond to a job offer.
-The agency should be experienced enough to know they shouldn't stop sending you candidates until you have a signed contract with a nanny. If the nanny is clearly pursuing other options, you should be as well.

-Another agency

Thank you, this is very helpful perspective for me
I wasn’t making the offer as opposed to letting her know that we liked her and planned to make an offer. She hasn’t worked for a month so I thought she’d appreciate getting our feedback and we’d both have a plan for next week. I did speak to the agency this morning. They were not aware that she has a different trial next week so they said they’d speak to her and get back to me. Do you think we should try to negotiate with her now or just wait to hear what she thinks after the other trial next week? I know we pay generously and we offered a better package than she expected

Yes, I would definitely make her the offer. It sounds like a formal offer hasn't been extended so of course she should continue her job search process until she has a signed contract. I'm a little thrown that the agency didn't know she had another trial and heard that through you. Typically the agency should be following up with you right after the interview, being transparent (and aware) that nanny has another trial, and tell you the best game plan foe moving forward efficiently.

Thanks so much. The agency said they didn’t set up the second trial so they didn’t know about it. But apparently she prefers to do five day trials which is a long time! We were ready to make an offer and I went through all of the details with the agency but she said she won’t make a decision until next weekend. We’re offering her 50% more pay than her last position!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The nanny market is extremely competitive and most nannies receive multiple offers.

A few thoughts:
-The agency should be the one extending the offer and doing contract negotiations on your behalf. They have protocols in place for situations exactly like this and would have been able to nip it in the bud with clear cut expectations.
-The nanny may have been caught off guard to hear an offer directly from you because agencies typically handle that.
-If time is of the essence, you are totally within reason to expect a response by X date. Again, the agency should have a policy for how long a candidate has to respond to a job offer.
-The agency should be experienced enough to know they shouldn't stop sending you candidates until you have a signed contract with a nanny. If the nanny is clearly pursuing other options, you should be as well.

-Another agency

Thank you, this is very helpful perspective for me
I wasn’t making the offer as opposed to letting her know that we liked her and planned to make an offer. She hasn’t worked for a month so I thought she’d appreciate getting our feedback and we’d both have a plan for next week. I did speak to the agency this morning. They were not aware that she has a different trial next week so they said they’d speak to her and get back to me. Do you think we should try to negotiate with her now or just wait to hear what she thinks after the other trial next week? I know we pay generously and we offered a better package than she expected

Yes, I would definitely make her the offer. It sounds like a formal offer hasn't been extended so of course she should continue her job search process until she has a signed contract. I'm a little thrown that the agency didn't know she had another trial and heard that through you. Typically the agency should be following up with you right after the interview, being transparent (and aware) that nanny has another trial, and tell you the best game plan foe moving forward efficiently.

Thanks so much. The agency said they didn’t set up the second trial so they didn’t know about it. But apparently she prefers to do five day trials which is a long time! We were ready to make an offer and I went through all of the details with the agency but she said she won’t make a decision until next weekend. We’re offering her 50% more pay than her last position!

This all still seems off to me! When my clients love a candidates, I'm on the phone with that nanny within minutes letting them know how well the family thought it went and asking if they have any other interviews, trials, or pending offers. If they do, I ask if they're comfortable sharing the details of any trials or pending offers so I can ensure my client puts their best foot forward in an offers. I also have 100 creative incentives up my sleeve to make our offer most attractive even if the logistics are similar. I do agree if your offer is that much higher than her last role there's something else at play here either with your job or the other one. Maybe the other one listed a higher pay range, includes international travel, the nanny just likes the age group better (but if that's the case agency should know and ideally isn't placing you with a candidate that doesn't love your kids' ages), the commute is better, better benefits, etc. Most people would JUMP on a 50% pay increase.

I really hope this works out for you the way it should- whether you get your great candidate or if she passes hopefully it's for a reason like she really just didn't want to be with older kids. In which case would be a giant waste of time, but best to know now in the long run. Hope you have some more interviews lined up in the interim!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The nanny market is extremely competitive and most nannies receive multiple offers.

A few thoughts:
-The agency should be the one extending the offer and doing contract negotiations on your behalf. They have protocols in place for situations exactly like this and would have been able to nip it in the bud with clear cut expectations.
-The nanny may have been caught off guard to hear an offer directly from you because agencies typically handle that.
-If time is of the essence, you are totally within reason to expect a response by X date. Again, the agency should have a policy for how long a candidate has to respond to a job offer.
-The agency should be experienced enough to know they shouldn't stop sending you candidates until you have a signed contract with a nanny. If the nanny is clearly pursuing other options, you should be as well.

-Another agency

Thank you, this is very helpful perspective for me
I wasn’t making the offer as opposed to letting her know that we liked her and planned to make an offer. She hasn’t worked for a month so I thought she’d appreciate getting our feedback and we’d both have a plan for next week. I did speak to the agency this morning. They were not aware that she has a different trial next week so they said they’d speak to her and get back to me. Do you think we should try to negotiate with her now or just wait to hear what she thinks after the other trial next week? I know we pay generously and we offered a better package than she expected

Yes, I would definitely make her the offer. It sounds like a formal offer hasn't been extended so of course she should continue her job search process until she has a signed contract. I'm a little thrown that the agency didn't know she had another trial and heard that through you. Typically the agency should be following up with you right after the interview, being transparent (and aware) that nanny has another trial, and tell you the best game plan foe moving forward efficiently.

Thanks so much. The agency said they didn’t set up the second trial so they didn’t know about it. But apparently she prefers to do five day trials which is a long time! We were ready to make an offer and I went through all of the details with the agency but she said she won’t make a decision until next weekend. We’re offering her 50% more pay than her last position!

This all still seems off to me! When my clients love a candidates, I'm on the phone with that nanny within minutes letting them know how well the family thought it went and asking if they have any other interviews, trials, or pending offers. If they do, I ask if they're comfortable sharing the details of any trials or pending offers so I can ensure my client puts their best foot forward in an offers. I also have 100 creative incentives up my sleeve to make our offer most attractive even if the logistics are similar. I do agree if your offer is that much higher than her last role there's something else at play here either with your job or the other one. Maybe the other one listed a higher pay range, includes international travel, the nanny just likes the age group better (but if that's the case agency should know and ideally isn't placing you with a candidate that doesn't love your kids' ages), the commute is better, better benefits, etc. Most people would JUMP on a 50% pay increase.

I really hope this works out for you the way it should- whether you get your great candidate or if she passes hopefully it's for a reason like she really just didn't want to be with older kids. In which case would be a giant waste of time, but best to know now in the long run. Hope you have some more interviews lined up in the interim!

The agency has not been that engaged overall unfortunately. They were not aware that she had set up another trial. She told me that since she had agreed to to the five days she didn’t want to let them down. I told her that as an employer I wouldn’t want someone to do a one week trial if they weren’t seriously considering the opportunity. She’s young and the agent is not assertive. She told me that she loves younger kids which is fine but annoying because she knew the age of her kids and told me she loved that age before we met her!! I know we’ll offer a better package than anyone else so she’ll just need to make her decision.
We did interview two other candidates this week who we’ll meet asap. Both are from care.com so at least I can speak to them directly about their goals.

Thank you very much for your input

[Anonymous]

OP, You may have created a big problem for her by contacting the agency and telling them about the other prospect. It may well be that she did not want them to know as some agencies want exclusivity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, You may have created a big problem for her by contacting the agency and telling them about the other prospect. It may well be that she did not want them to know as some agencies want exclusivity.

OP - when I spoke to the agency they said she wanted to honor the commitment to the other family and they’d get back to me this weekend when she makes a decision. They weren’t bothered about it at all. In fact the only that is inconvenienced is me! I paid the agency and upfront fee and this is the only viable candidate they’ve presented. She wanted to do a full week trial which we accommodated and paid her for, then she told us she wasn’t ready to make a decision. We also paid our current nanny to take last week off as she’s staying with us until we hire someone.