When you start your search for a private domestic staff member, there is a process that will help you to succeed in finding the best candidate. Most recruitment agencies spend their day interviewing thousands of candidates in order to choose only the best ones to introduce to their clients. They will make sure that they have everything up to date from work references, DBS check and any other study certificate if they need one for the jobs for which they are applying.
One of the most important stages when you are hiring someone is the interview. Asking the right questions will give you an idea of the personality of the candidate, how they will act in an emergency or difficult situation and what their likes and dislikes are.
Before you start to talk about the details of the job with the candidate, it's a good idea to ask the person to introduce themselves and talk about general ideas about the job. This will give you an overall picture as to the kind of person they are and if their ideas and priorities match your own. Questions should be open to allow the candidate to express themselves in their own words.
You might want to consider describing certain situations and ask how the candidate would deal with them. Asking about their current or previous positions will give you a good idea about their experience. If you are interviewing a prospective nanny, asking them to describe the children that they have worked with will give you an insight into how they relate to children.
If you have not reviewed references before the interview, it is definitely worth doing so as soon as possible afterwards. You will then be in a position to make an offer and formalise a contract quickly, as you don't want to find yourself in a position where you have someone who you think would be perfect, but then they find a different position before you can get the contract signed.
Knowing the reason why the person you are interviewing has chosen to work as a chef or nanny, for example, is always important. Learning why the person is motivated to work as a domestic private staff member is the first thing we should know before continuing with the rest of the interview.
Asking the candidate to mention some of the skills that make a house manager, housekeeper or personal assistant a good employee will give you an insight into how the person will develop at your home. You could ask which values are important to them, like loyalty, punctuality, honesty and discretion.
Trying to put the other person in the position of the employer or the family will let you know if they will to try to meet the family’s expectations. Employees need to bear in mind that they will work in the family’s house and that every family is different, which is why they should understand the family’s needs before starting any job.
The person that you will hire needs to know what the risks are that the job can bring to the family and to themselves. For example, if you are looking to hire a nanny, it would be good to ask the candidate if they have a Paediatric First Aid certificate in case any emergency happens with the child, so they know how to react. Making sure that the future employee understands how to handle any emergency that could happen in the house is fundamental. You can ask them if they have been in any emergency situation in and out of work to know how they reacted.
Every person has their own and unique personality; this is why we react and handle different situations in different ways. Some people don’t have a problem confronting other people, but others prefer silence instead of seeing themselves in an uncomfortable position with another person; all this depends on the individual’s personality. Ask them if they will tell their employers when they don’t agree with them or if they are not happy with a specific situation; this will help you to know how they might act in the future when you disagree.
Some families would like the private domestic staff to stay long-term in the employment. Asking them what their plans are will give you an idea if they will stay short or long-term; hearing everything that the candidate will say in the interview is extremely important - you can tell what their plans will be with any small sentence they say to you.
It is always important to know why the candidate is searching for a new job; what they will say to you will let you know more about their personality, are they someone who stays for a long time in one job or do they change their jobs as soon as they’re not happy with it. There are many reasons why someone will look for a new job; it could be because they are moving to a new place, so they want to work close to their home, or they are looking for a higher salary, or they had an argument in the current/previous job.
It is always good to know what your future employee likes to do in their spare time. The type of hobbies or what they do when they are not working will tell you more about their personality. Getting this information will help you to know if they will fit in your job offer and if they will get on with the family members and other domestic private staff.
It is important to ask the candidate how they see themselves. Do they think they are extrovert or introvert? Do they consider themselves as someone calm or a more active person? Are they open to last minute change or do they always need to follow a plan and a rigid schedule? If you have had domestic private staff before, think of those people you hire with whom you have a good relationship; looking for people with a similar personality will help the family and the new employee to adapt to the job faster.
Nothing is better than asking candidates about their own experience; talking about hypothetic situations is completely different to talking about situations that actually happened. Asking them about why they didn’t like that situation or what they found difficult will let you know If they will be able to cope with scenarios when there are out of their comfort zone. Some domestic private staff will request the person to be in situations that might be a bit stressful, like if you are working as a chef, personal assistance or house manager.
After reading this article, you will probably ask yourself: how can I find the perfect private staff for me or my family?
We truly believe that finding any private staff is an important decision. It is not just because you will have to invest some money, but because you will open the door of one of your most important places to someone outside of the family. You are not only looking for someone who will come to clean, look after your children or cook for the family for a few hours a day - you are looking for someone who will become part of your family, someone that you will trust to be in your home and help you with any problem that might occur.
You can search for a private staff:
It’s here that Little Ones comes into the scenario to help you; we are a nanny and domestic staff agency with over 15 years of experience. Our specialist consultants will do their best to match the perfect housekeeper for you and your family. They will introduce you to housekeepers that will tick the majority of the requirements and qualifications that you need the person to have.
Call us for a free consultation, without compromise. Our consultant will be more than happy to assist you to find amazing private staff. For more information about our services, please feel free to contact us via our direct line 020 7183 0309.
