Finding and employing a nanny in Nigeria can be a painstaking and overwhelming process. The safety of your children comes first in making a choice. You must ascertain the person’s personality to know if she/he will be a good fit for your family, you are required to make many critical considerations. Even more, with the frequent release of videos showing nannies in Nigeria and other parts of Africa maltreating their wards, it is important that parents remain skeptical when making a choice. That's where Pukena steps in to help.

To help the parents looking to engage a caregiver in Nigeria, Pukena shares five tips to help them not only hire a nanny in Nigeria, but also remain confident about the situation afterwards.

1. Decide on what you want
Before you contact us for a nanny, make a list of your expectations and consider them to know if they are real or far-fetched. You must first decide on the kind of nanny you are looking for, disciplinary practices, demonstrated ability of any potential nanny to care for more than one child e.t.c. Ask yourself questions like: What days/hours do you need your nanny to work? Are you looking for a live-in or live-out nanny? What time will the nanny arrive and depart? What hourly rate can you comfortably afford in your household budget? Ensure you create a thorough list of “must haves” for your nanny search. Knowing your priorities will not only help you attract the right candidate, but also make the right decision. These preference are captured in the nanny order form on our website when you finally contact us for a nanny.

2. Interview the candidates
Even though we do thorough background check on all our registered nannies and mandatorily train them for 2 weeks, ensure you first interview the nanny before going any step further. Pick the best 3 to 10 candidates and arrange a meeting at a neutral location, like an eatery or restaurant. Alternatively, you can interview them via video phone or Skype. This gives you a chance to consider each one with an eye towards professionalism and experience. You also get answers to such questions as: Do they have experience? Do their qualifications match your needs? How well do they convey why they want this job, etc.

3. Conduct an in-depth reference check.
After the interview, do not just rely on the information we gave you on the nanny's background check. Conduct your own research. Contact the nanny’s past employers and make inquiries, do a thorough criminal background check, and identity verification. If hiring a nanny on your own, you can contact a private detective do these background checks. Most importantly, ask her for her medical records and ask her to take vital tests including HIV test, Hepatitis test and other tests to ensure she is healthy enough to work for you and your children are not at risk of any sort of infection from her. Pukena actually carries out an extensive background checks on all our registered nannies, however, clients are encouraged to carry out their independent findings too.

4. Arrange an initial meeting with the finalist and your family.
After the interview, go ahead and cut the list down to your top two candidates, invite them to your home for an in-person interview. Ask detailed questions about her background and child care philosophies and give them a chance to meet your child(ren) to see how she interacts with them. Take close note of how the children interact with the nanny. Is the nanny comfortable and acting natural? What is the child’s response to the nanny? if they are old enough, ask them for their opinion. In all, do not be overbearing, rather, trust your instincts. If you do not think the nanny is the perfect fit for your family, keep looking; however, if it seems to be a good pairing, then move forward with the negotiations.

5. Include a trial period in the contract
After you have concluded on terms of employment with Pukena and the nanny, ensure that the Service Level Contract spelling out all terms and conditions of contract is duly signed by all parties involved. However, it is important to include a trial period before full hiring. It could be a period of 4 weeks to about 12 weeks. During this trial period you train her and stay back for a while to see how well she gets on. If you are satisfied, you can seal a more permanent deal.

To find out more about hiring a nanny from Pukena, click here: https://pukena.ng/professional-nannies-in-lagos