The Performance Review

After you have hired your nanny or babysitter, it's important to conduct an annual or bi-annual performance review. Your nanny or sitter is considered your employee and as such you should perform the review. The performance review will allow you to discuss any concerns and provide your nanny or sitter with positive feedback as well as areas for improvement. It will keep your lines of communication open and also allow your nanny or sitter to voice any concerns he or she may have. Overall, if the performance review is managed in the right way, it will make your relationship with your nanny or babysitter stronger and increase the trust you have in each other.

How to conduct the Performance Review

Like most other full- and part-time jobs, the nanny and babysitter job requires a Performance Review at least once a year. The objectives of a nanny or babysitter performance review are as follows:

• Review the nanny's or babysitter's performance given his or her job responsibilities and work agreement
• Create an open forum of communication to allow both parties to voice any concerns
• Provide each other with as much feedback as possible
• Discuss any improvements that can be made
• Discuss new job responsibilities or nanny / babysitter requests
• Discuss Raises and Bonuses

With everybody's busy schedule it is easy to forget to sit down with your nanny or babysitter once in a while to keep the lines of communication open. The performance review will create an opportunity for you to do just that. Whether you would like to have a more formal or casual performance review with your nanny or babysitter is completely up to you. The main goal of the review should be to create an open forum for you and your nanny to discuss your relationship and situation overall including giving praise to your nanny or babysitter for a job well done and/or addressing any concerns you may have and how to implement positive change wherever necessary. It is important to keep in mind that the performance review should never be one-sided and allow your nanny or babysitter to speak up so that any concerns can be resolved and questions are answered.

Performance Reviews are generally scheduled once a year. The first review should take place on your nanny's or babysitter's 1 year anniversary or earlier.  Bi-annual performance reviews may work better for your family if you would like to have more frequent opportunities to sit down with your nanny or babysitter to discuss your situation. In addition to the more formal performance review you conduct once or twice a year, we recommend you schedule some brief monthly or quarterly meetings with your nanny or babysitter that allow you to take time to review any new developments, have the nanny or babysitter provide you with important updates on your child(ren), exchange new ideas, and discuss anything else of importance to both of you.

Raises and Bonuses

Like any other employee, nannies and babysitters are entitled to periodic salary reviews and bonuses at the discretion of their employer. Salary reviews may be scheduled at the same time of the performance review or conducted on separate occasion, but should occur at least once a year. Generally, salary reviews include merit as well as cost of living increases.

Merit increases are based on the nanny's or babysitter's performance since the last review period. The merit increase is generally calculated as a % of base pay and commonly ranges from 0% to 5%. 0% would indicate the nanny or babysitter does not meet requirements and only does the bare minimum on the job. 5% would indicate the nanny or babysitter continuously exceeds your expectations. The nanny or babysitter may exceed your expectations by frequently taking care of tasks that are not part of your work agreement such as housekeeping, running errands, etc.

Cost of living increases are based on inflation and general increases in nanny or babysitter pay levels. The cost of living increase is also calculated as a % of base pay and commonly ranges from 2% - 3%.

Adding both the merit and cost of living increase will result in your nanny's or babysitter's pay raise for the period (e.g. the following year).

An exception should be made when new responsibilities or tasks are added to the nanny's or babysitter's work agreement such as new housekeeping duties, change in work schedule, or a new baby.  We recommend a pay raise of at least $60 per week for a new baby.