The Association of Premier Nanny Agencies - News and Articles Blog

(June 2007) – “It can damage your company’s reputation if your employees, or someone you are recommending for a job, has an unprofessional online profile,” warns Annie Davis, president of the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies – A Household Staffing Alliance (APNA).  A suggestive e-mail address or revealing post on a MySpace profile can kill a person’s chance of landing a job.  “We’ve seen it happen to a number of nanny candidates, and it’s why we’re raising the red flag.”

Davis recounts the story of one set of parents that did an Internet search on a nanny they wanted to hire.  It was a rude awakening when they found her MySpace account with details of drunken, all-night parties on her recent vacation to Mexico.  But the real deal breaker was that she had written at length about the family she used to work for, listing things she didn’t like about them and the job.

Ellen Pack of Town & Country Resources, a childcare and household staffing agency in the San Francisco Bay Area, says her agency has added one more thing to its screening process - an Internet search of each potential job candidate’s name.  “We will not represent candidates who have an unprofessional online persona.  We advise them to keep their private lives private.”  Candidates who make it through Town & Country’s screening process are reminded to mind their online P’s & Q’s forever.
Here are the tips Town & Country gives to the people it sends out for job interviews:

• If your e-mail address is suggestive or otherwise unprofessional, change it.
  
• Make sure your voicemail greeting has only a brief, professional message during your job search.
• If you have an Internet page or profile, make it private and available only to pre-approved viewers. (It’s a simple setting on MySpace.)

APNA is Waiving Membership Application Fees
 
June and July only!

Did you know that APNA is the only nanny/household-staffing agency association that sets standards of practice for its members?
In a business built on trust, the APNA seal is the only way for potential clients to be certain they will receive the best service possible.
If you are not a member, here are a few reasons you should apply:

• Distinguish yourself from your competition
• Learn from veteran owners who are proven to be the best in the industry
• Belong to a network that supports its members
• List your agency on the APNA website
• Attend APNA conferences at reduced rates
• Nominate yourself to be Agency of the Year (award given during even year conferences)

Until July 31st, APNA will be waiving its $45 membership-application fee. Apply now and you may have time to qualify for the special, member-rate for APNA’S 2007 Conference. You’ll be glad you did.

(Las Vegas — May 2007)  The APNA seal always means you are dealing with a staffing agency of the highest quality, but APNA now stands for the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies-A Household Staffing Alliance.  “The board of the National Alliance of Professional Nanny Agencies has changed APNA’s name to reflect the industry trend of providing not only nannies, but many other types of household staff,” explains APNA President Annie Davis.

The world is fast-paced, and life is stressful.  As the cost of living continues to rise, more and more families find they require two incomes to meet their needs.  That often means the added stress of hiring someone to clean house, run errands or care for family members.

“Searching for the right nanny or elder-care assistant is a daunting task,” says Daryl Camarillo, APNA membership coordinator and co-owner of Stanford Park Nannies in Menlo Park, California.  There are hundreds of household staffing agencies across the country.  Camarillo says one way families can ensure they are getting trustworthy home help is to find an agency that displays the APNA seal.

Established in 1993, APNA holds its member agencies to high standards of business practice and ethics.  APNA agencies thoroughly screen all job candidates.  Families are guaranteed customized service and full confidentiality.  “The best part of dealing with an APNA agency is walking through its door confident its business practices meet the standards required for APNA membership,” says Camarillo.  “APNA members are the best of the best.” 

“Since there are no federal guidelines for household staffing, Families should look for the APNA seal when choosing an agency to help them hire a household staff member,” says Davis.  Go to www.theapna.org to find an APNA agency in your community.  The web site has other valuable information for families, nannies and staffing agencies.

Only the most professional household staffing agencies in the country belong to the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies.

The long-running debate over the merits of day care for children is getting a new jolt of evidence that may worry working parents.

Children who spend large amounts of time in child-care centers exhibit more minor behavior problems, such as aggression and disobedience, than other children, at least through sixth grade, according to a long-term study that followed 1,364 children from birth through age 12. The problems had surfaced intermittently in studies of the same children at younger ages, but some researchers had expected the behavior issues to disappear by age 11 or 12. Children who spent large amounts of time in other setups, such as nanny care or family child-care homes, weren’t affected.

The study, published in the March-April issue of the journal Child Development, includes some good news too: Children who experience high-quality child care — whether in child-care centers or family child-care homes, or with sitters or nannies — have better vocabulary skills through fifth grade than children who get lower-quality care. However, math and reading gains, seen at younger ages in children who had spent time in high-quality care setups, didn’t last past first grade. High-quality care is defined as care by an engaged, responsive adult or adults in a rich, nurturing setting.

The study comes at a time when many parents are choosing child-care centers over other kinds of care in the belief that they’re more reliable and offer educational benefits. The proportion of preschool children of employed mothers enrolled in child-care centers and preschools rose to 24% in 2002, the latest data available, from about 21% in the late 1990s, the Census Bureau says.

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………..Complicated tax returns

Because of the complexity of their returns, many self-employed workers must pay someone to do their taxes, which reduces their profits, says Todd McCracken, president of the National Small Business Association. Those who can’t afford to hire a professional must take time away from their businesses to meet complex reporting requirements, such as filing estimated taxes every quarter, he says.

They need to keep comprehensive records, too, because sole proprietors are up to three times more likely to be audited than are individual taxpayers who don’t file a Schedule C, the form used by self-employed workers to report their business income.

“Chances are, you’ll be audited if you’re in business long enough,” says Frederick Daily, a tax attorney and author of Stand Up to the IRS.

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Do your Candidates think that their e-mail address or the information on their MySpace profile won’t impact their ability to get a job?

 They need to think again.
 
While having an online profile is all the rage and everyone has an e-mail account, the details of this information could be more important to your Candidates’ professional image and your agency than you or they realize…
 
(While this is based on a true story, the names and details have been changed. The actual family and Nanny were not associated with Town & Country Resources.)

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Blogging has become very popular in the last few years and it’s not surprising.  Blogging offers the amazing ability to communicate on a global scale with other people in your industry.  You can get feed back from your Website and touch lives like never before.

APNA invites you to take advantage of this exciting opportunity to make your views, suggestions, or rants, heard by voicing them on the APNA Website blog.  Parents and nannies alike can benefit from your knowledge and expertise.  Make your APNA blog a resource for your industry by supplying articles and news items effecting nannies, parents and nanny agencies alike.

Find out how you can participate and become a valuable asset to your APNA Website and the nanny agency community.

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Is your Website taking advantage?

Since the APNA Website has been redesigned by Seattle Design Group Website Development, it’s received a boost in Google ranking.  It went from a “0” to a “5” in just 4 short months.  What does this mean to APNA members?

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This year’s APNA conference was held at the Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort & Spa Oct 19-22, 2006 in Destin, Flordia.  We had a great turn out, learned from each other and attendees had wonderful things to say.

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May 3rd through 6th, 2006, Starkey International hosted a conference for Estate Managers, Household Managers, Butlers, Enlisted Aides, Personal Chefs and Personal Assistants serving the Luxury Market.  Also in attendance were several agency owners who are also members of the National Alliance of Professional Nanny Agencies:

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