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What to Include in Your Nanny’s Annual Review


Posted on August 25, 2013 by admin | in Nannies

After the often long and involved process of finding and securing the right private, in-home childcare provider, it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that your work is finished. After all, you’ve found a nanny who works well with your family and everything is running smoothly. Still, it’s important to make a point of holding an annual nanny review, if for no other reason than to discuss the upcoming year and address any changes that may have taken place since you first drafted a nanny contract. When you’re preparing for your annual review with your childcare provider, these are a few of the things that you’ll want to make a point of addressing.

Compensation Changes

If your nanny has requested a raise or a cost-of-living wage increase, it’s essential that you address that request as part of your annual review. Whether you plan to grant the increase or can’t find room in the budget, you shouldn’t neglect to mention the subject. It’s also wise to broach the subject if your nanny hasn’t mentioned a raise, as it’s likely the first thing on her mind when the time for a review rolls around. Establishing whether or not there will be a change in her current compensation package early in the review gets the subject out of the way, making room for other productive conversations without keeping her on tenterhooks regarding her salary.

Change of Duty Agreements

Typically, a nanny is responsible only for household chores related directly to the care of your children. In some situations, your nanny may be willing to perform other tasks if she’s compensated accordingly, but it’s important to ensure that those duties are outlined in her nanny contract. The relationship between a nanny and her employer is an ever-evolving thing, so there will almost certainly be changes in the way that your nanny works over the course of a year. If her hours will be decreasing due to a child’s enrollment in preschool, increasing because you’re expecting another child or you’re interested in expanding her role into a household manager capacity, the annual review is an ideal time to discuss the subject.

Performance Evaluation

Even if you’re happy with the way that your nanny cares for your children and maintains the household while you’re away, there are probably areas in which you feel that she could use some improvement. If not, you certainly should be telling her that she’s doing an outstanding job and reiterating how important she is to your family. One of the primary purposes of an annual review is to discuss her performance, so make a point of including your observations.

Nanny Log Review

If your nanny keeps a written log or documents major milestones, this is a great time to talk about the difference she’s made in your kids’ lives and their leaps and bounds in development under her care. You can also address negative situations or events, and talk about ways that they could be handled differently in the future.

Her Expectations and Observations

Your nanny may have questions or situations that she’d like to address, or changing expectations as her position evolves and your children get older. Make sure that you set aside a bit of time to listen to your nanny’s thoughts, what she expects going into the year ahead and any grievances she may have. Your nanny needs to feel free to discuss things that she sees or how she feels without fear of repercussion, so make your annual review a safe, judgment-free zone in which she can do just that.

Projected View of the Upcoming Year

When you go into your annual review, it’s wise to have a mental overview of what you expect from the year to come. While it’s not possible to accurately predict every change in a busy family’s routine a year in advance, you should be able to make a few guesses. An impending new addition to the family, the beginning of a preschool or kindergarten routine, an upcoming promotion that will require you to be away from home more or any other major lifestyle change that affects your nanny should be discussed. The review is a great time to get on the same page about the year ahead and to prepare to face the challenges and excitement that is sure to follow together.

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