If your nanny has worked with you for more than a year, it’s time to seriously consider scheduling an annual review with them.
Over the course of the year, your nanny has had time to settle into her role and develop a routine to accomplish her responsibilities and meld into the daily schedule of the family.
Although they may feel like a part of the family by now, they’re still a professional who deserves to hear your input as their employer on how they’re performing their job.
1. Schedule the Annual Review
While some families choose to hold the annual review on their nanny’s anniversary, other families decide that the beginning of the year is a good time to schedule this conversation.
After the holidays, the excitement has worn down, and there’s a fresh new feeling that people get about the New Year. Resolutions are made, and people seem more open to new ideas, so it seems like a good time for many families for reviewing the past year and thinking about how to approach the New Year with their nanny.
2. Talk to Your Nanny Before the Meeting
Tell your nanny that you would like to reflect on the past year with them, and try not to make them feel like they’re in trouble.
Tell them that they can bring a list of their own thoughts about the past year, including what has worked and what hasn’t. They can also write down things they have struggled with and their possible ideas for solutions.
Also, be sure to let them know that if they have any ideas about moving forward in the future that could be useful, to write them down, too. Explain briefly that you feel like they deserve, as an employee, to have an annual review; this will help them understand that they are not being reviewed as a family member or friend.
3. Write Down Your Ideas
Before the meeting, you are going to want to write similar lists, too. This is a wonderful opportunity for you and your nanny to discuss her performance, starting with praise for their accomplishments and effort throughout the past year.
You can highlight some of the moments when their helping hand really made a positive impact on the family. This is also a great time for you to let your nanny know where you think they could make improvements or restructure their position.
4. The Review
Be sure to set aside enough time to discuss ideas at length and iron out any issues that you talk about with your nanny – at least an hour should be marked on your schedule. The review should be held at a time when the children are at school or not at liberty to be a distraction.
Start by saying something positive at the beginning of the review, and give your nanny the compliments that she deserves.
Then, progress to constructive criticism for the areas where you think they need to improve. Allow your nanny to provide her feedback about your concerns and discuss her concerns as well at this point in time. Air out all of the issues, even the little bitty issues, and iron the details out so that you can both approach the future with common goals.
This is also a good time to ask your nanny if they have any concerns or suggestions for the year ahead. How can things run more smoothly? Nannies can be super-creative – you may be surprised at their ideas.
5. Compensation for a Good Year
There are mixed feelings about attaching raises or changes to compensation packages to the annual review. Some families feel like their nanny shouldn’t expect to receive a raise at the annual review, while others feel like their nanny deserves one due to the rise in the cost of living. Only you can decide which is right for you and your nanny; you are not obligated to raise their salary.
Of course, if you feel like your nanny goes above and beyond for you and your family, and they would be irreplaceable, giving them a raise would be a great way to say “thank you”. If you want to thank your nanny in the form of compensation, but cannot squeeze another penny out of the budget at the time, you can add more vacation time to their package or offer a stipend for health care.
Establishing an annual review will set the stage for future reviews and your nanny will keep in the back of her mind that they are performing a job and want to look forward to positive and promising reviews in the future.