Why Enlist the Help of Experts?

We are disappointed to hear, yet again, about a negative event involving a nanny.  This new occurrence, in Georgia, involves a nanny being accused of identity theft and stealing money via credit card charges.

Hiring a nanny can be tricky and complicated.  If we look at the odds of an impending hire gone awry, most times, things work out absent of catastrophe, whether a parent goes the professional, more expensive, nanny agency route with expert help or the cheaper “DIY” route.  This event highlights, however, why the DIY route may result with real disillusionment, no differently than going to Las Vegas and playing the roulette wheel.  It is 100% predictable that the outcome is unpredictable.

How can a parent avoid a negative outcome resulting from hiring, a basic stranger, to care for their children, pets and home?  This is a question on the minds of every parent hiring a nanny.  Though, the critical question all parents should ask themselves is…”how do I minimize the risk in hiring a stranger?”  Therein lays the core issue.

The majority of people working with children are safe and honest.  So most times, everyone is a winner, unlike playing roulette.  The real issue, though, is when a surprise rears its ugly head.  We all know there is a minority population of people who are not at all safe to leave alone with children, pets and give full access to the family fortune.  They don’t wear a label “DISHONEST” like a name tag.  That’s the world in which we live.

What’s the solution?  Because young children are involved, the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies, advocates using expert help to put together as many of the puzzles pieces about a person as possible so that a parent has a fully focused picture of who is getting hired.  This expert help can come in several versions to help provide transparency.  One option is to use the crème de la crème full service APNA member agency to do all the vetting work.  This option leaves a parent feeling most secure, least exposed, though admittedly, it is the most expensive route.  Another option is to enlist the help of the experts.  Many APNA agencies offer the next best solution which can help defray the cost, yet not take the full gamble.  These agencies will help with the screening process of a candidate a parent found through other resources.  As a result, this is a real blended alternative of DIY and expert help at a deeply discounted cost.

The pure DIY route was the option the Georgia family took.  Undoubtedly, they knew others who took that route successfully, and they decided to spin the wheel.  Unfortunately, it was too late when they discovered they lost the bet. While APNA doesn’t recommend spinning the wheel as such, there is the recognition that many parents find success.  Why not use the expertise of an APNA agency to vet a candidate a parent finds on their own if the cost to have the agency do the whole process is out of reach?  It is cost effective for those parents who have financial limitations but want to minimize the risk of discovering the unknown.  Admittedly, using experts will not take away every molecule of risk (humans aren’t perfect…yet!), but it does heavily minimize risk by adding a real degree of predictability.  After all, all parents strive for their kids to feel safe and secure. And the truth is, there is real help available to sidestep these events, no matter the budget.