One of the most important decisions you have to make in your children's lives is the hiring of their nannies. You will be entrusting your children's well-being to complete strangers! Though nanny cams can serve as deterrents to a nanny abusing your children (if she knows that these are present, with emphasis on "can" as spy cameras will only capture footages and not actually stop abuse and neglect), there is no substitute for a comprehensive hiring process.

Nanny Agency

Unless you have a good friend and neighbor who happens to be an experienced nanny, the best place to go for prospective childcare providers are nanny agencies. These agencies usually perform preliminary background checks - education, experience, personal references, and even psychological testing - copies of which should be forwarded to you.

Also, nanny agencies can have policies and draft agreements on nanny cams that you can refer to. You have to clearly understand these policies so that you can search for other agencies should you find them unsuitable to your needs.

Personal References

You should not rely on the documentary personal references alone. Call the persons listed in the resume as character references. You can ask questions like work performance, duties and responsibilities, and even reaction to nanny cams. You must, however, introduce yourself and state the reason for your call.

Background Checks

You should be as thorough as possible about performing background checks. This does not mean that you have to enlist the Federal Bureau of Investigation, only that you must insist that all background checks are completed by the agency.

Incomplete background checks can lead to abuse and neglect being captured on your nanny cams. Even if the nanny performed well in past employments, you might just be unlucky enough to be the victim of nanny duplicity.

Interviews

You should avoid hiring nannies on the first interview. You can conduct two personal interviews at the minimum, where you can ask questions like childcare philosophy and ideas, personal interests, discuss compensation package and work expectations, and opinions on nanny cams.

The disclosure and discussion on nanny cams is a must. You can give the prospective nanny the opportunity to back out of the hiring process without negative implications should she express hesitance with their presence.

After the two personal interviews, you also need to conduct a working interview. You can observe how she interacts with the children (under your supervision) as well as study how the children take to her. Only after being satisfied with the above procedures should you consider hiring the nanny.

Work Agreement

Before actually employing the nanny, be sure to formulate a detailed work agreement signed by you and the nanny. This document should spell out specific duties like house chores, childcare tasks, and use of supplies, provisions for meals, accommodations and transportation, among others.

During the first few days of employment, you have to spend time getting acquainted with your nanny like daily conversations and updates, occasional and surprise visits during working hours, and if necessary, scheduled meetings on important matters. Most important of all, respect your nanny and show confidence in her abilities.

When the time comes, you might even consider spy gears almost disposable and your nanny indispensable!