When Be the Best Nanny Newsletter asked nannies in 2007 how they found their nanny jobs the majority of jobs were found with the help of nanny placement agencies and only 20-percent of the caregivers found their jobs on nanny web sites. Things started to shift with less nanny job seekers using nanny placements in 2010, but dramatically changed with most caregivers using nanny web sites to find nanny jobs by 2012.
With so many job seekers finding nanny jobs on nanny web sites I have wondered if nanny placement agencies could compete.
But, recently nanny web site owners have purchased nanny placement agencies. With the agency acquisitions, perhaps the differences between nanny placement agencies and nanny web sites may start to become more blurred. Could the new acquisitions improve both the web sites and placement agencies? Below, I try to find out.
How Nannies Found Jobs in 2007
42% Nanny Placement Agency
20% Nanny Web Sites
15% Word-Of-Mouth
15% Classified Ads in Printed Publications
How Nannies Found Jobs in 2010
38% Nanny Web Site
29% Word-Of-Mouth
19% Nanny Placement Agency
14% Craigslist
How Nannies Found Jobs in 2012
79% Nanny Web Site
10% Word-Of-Mouth
9% Nanny Placement Agency
2% Craigslist
In December, 2012 Longhorn Leads, (owner of eNannySource.com, Nannypro.com, and
GoNannies.com), acquired Morningside Nannies, a brick and mortar nanny placement agency in Houston, Texas. And just last week, nanny web site giant Care.com announced they have purchased the Brookline, Massachusetts based nanny placement agency Parents in a Pinch.
I had to ask how the new acquisitions will change the nanny businesses and the experience for nanny candidates and parents.
Ken Myers, Founder and CEO of Longhorn Leads admits he’s looking forward to being more involved hands-on in helping parents find the right childcare solution for their family since purchasing Morningside Nannies. He says, “By acquiring an award-winning agency, we can offer parents the choice of using a full-service agency, an online recruiting site, or something in between.”
Sheila Lirio Marcelo, Founder and CEO of Care.com told me the union provides parents another avenue to find care. She explains, “For nannies, the acquisition means more potential job opportunities as we will now offer back-up care services to Care.com’s existing corporate clients.”
Mr. Myers explains that, “The online sites will fundamentally remain the do-it-yourself model where families take on a much greater share of the work involved with hiring an online caregiver.”
And while Mrs. Marcelo agrees there won’t be a difference to the user experience she told me there will be some great benefits to the online users. She says, “In-home back-up care through Parents in a Pinch will be available to Care.com members later this year, and immediately available through our employer offering. Likewise, Care.com expects to begin offering its full suite of corporate care services to corporate clients of Parents in a Pinch this month.”
The CEO of Care.com explains that Parents in a Pinch currently works with more than 60 corporate clients and directly with several thousand families. Care.com has an extensive corporate clientele as well, on top of our multi-million membership of individual families. As one company, they will now be able to cross-sell Care.com’s services to Parents in a Pinch corporate clients and offer back-up care via Parents in a Pinch to our corporate clients and consumer membership.
When I asked if parents and nanny candidates will see a difference in the way Morningside Nannies will operate Mr. Myers answers, “They will definitely notice a new and improved web site with tons of great content and resources to support Houston area families and businesses.”
“They will also see an increased level of commitment to customer service and the infusion of technologies that will support them better as we help them fulfill their family care needs,” says Mr. Myers.
He continues, “With Morningside Nannies and our portfolio of nanny related businesses we are able to offer parents the most comprehensive offerings.”
When asked if we will notice a difference in the way Parents in a Pinch is managed Mrs. Marcello assures me, “Absolutely not. Parents in a Pinch will continue to be managed by co-founders Barbara Siegel and Davida Manon and will continue to provide the high-quality reliable service they are known for.”
Despite owning nanny web sites and a nanny placement agency already Longhorn Leads still plans to grow all aspects all aspects of the nanny business in 2013, says Mr. Myers. And Mrs. Marcello also confirms, “We are always evaluating and are open to opportunities that we feel could expand the breadth and scope of our services.”
19 comments:
Here come the monopolies!
I think it's unfortunate. It will only be good if the web site owners learn from the agency owners. There is a serious lack of customer service on some nanny web sites. Nannies complain constantly about one listed in the article. They don't even have contact emails on their web site.
I hope the web sites learn how posting jobs for under minimum wage and lack of customer service hurt the nannies terribly. I hope they can listen and learn from the agency owners about labor laws when it comes to being paid legally and paying at least minimum wage.
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Is it terrible for me to say I am upset about this. I feel like nanny websites have hurt the nanny. They post low wage jobs. Agencies help parents develop a job description. Web sites have articles explaining important stuff but I doubt many parents read the articles. I just prefer agencies and this scares me that web sites are taking over.
I'm hoping the websites will start being regulated like the agencies.
I hope it will be great for everyone. I don't worry about monopolies, the agency staff will still be working, no one is losing their jobs.
I am very upset that care.com is buying this nanny agency and very upset that the nanny agency sold to care.com. IMO- care.com is lowering the bar for quality care. care.com has a very bad rep amoung my network of nannies that have been in the business a very long time as they have false advertising saying the nannies are screened and background checked- but we all know that is not the case- and many parents have complained to me that the quality of those listed on care.com is horrible. Care.com does not have type of customer service- you can't even speak to a live person-but boast they have hundred of employees. This type of sell-out will surely hurt the nanny profession.
I have agreed with your complaints anonymous. I even heard that they have told nanny candidates that nannies are independent contractors which is wrong. According to the IRS nannies are employees. They don't take the nanny industry seriously.
But, that is why I am hopeful that those working at Parents in a Pinch can teach Care.com what they need to know.
No excuse for nanny web sites to not follow same rules and regulations and get lisences agencies are forced to have. It would protect us all and better the nanny industry.
I feel like the agencies make excuses that they don't have to make these changes. But they ought to as the moral thing to do.
I'm afraid the answer Ms. Marcello gave to the question about Parents In A Pich future may have been inomplete, or misunderstood by the author: "When asked if we will notice a difference in the way Parents in a Pinch is managed Mrs. Marcello assures me, “Absolutely not. Parents in a Pinch ...will continue to provide the high-quality reliable service they are known for.”
That is NOT what Care.com's press-release stated. In the press release, it was noted that PiP will close the operation of it's traditional nanny agency and operate only it's corporate care and back-up care programs.
Dear Anonymous,
I didn't quote a press release. I interviewed the CEO and Founder myself. I just checked my notes. Exact question and answer to the question:
I Asked:
Will parents and nanny candidates see a difference in the way Parents in a Pinch is managed now that you have acquired the nanny agency?
Sheila Lirio Marcelo, Founder and CEO of Care.com Answered:
Absolutely not. Parents in a Pinch will continue to be managed by co-founders Barbara Siegel and Davida Manon and will continue to provide the high-quality reliable service they are known for.”
The question was if there would be a difference in how it will be "MANAGED" (not services that will be provided). She answered the question as quoted in the article.
Stephanie Felzenberg
Be the Best Nanny Newsletter
Anonymous said...
I'm hoping the websites will start being regulated like the agencies.
Since when are agencies regulated?
If agencies were regulated, the industry would be a different.
Just g
I don't think it's regulated well enough.
It can be. For example, in NYC undercover police posed as parents looking for nannies and asked that the nanny agencies not send nannies from the West Indies, (or only send white or only send Jewish or only send Christian) nannies on interviews and the agency owners and staff complied. That broke labor laws and they were fined.
They do have to have licenses. You are right it's a highly unregulated industry though.
People are always afraid of change. It's obviously beneficial to all the parties or they wouldn't have made the changes.
Although I wish things would go back to the way they used to be when we had to use agencies it's not reality.
I know it seems like a monopoly but the agencies that were bought by the web sites will have more marketing now and that will help those agencies.
We can be mad, but it won't change anything.
How can Parents in a Pinch in a metro Boston based office possibly screen nannies to provide back up care outside of the area. There is a sense of urgency in situations like that and things can get slipped through the cracks all in the name of filling the temporary position.
This leads to children possibly being neglected, abused, or inadequately cared for.
What will be the qualifications for backup caregivers that they will have, one would think at the least it would need to include cpr/first aid and medicine administration training.
Plus there is no liability insurance coverage for this.
Good points Lisa. I'm scared about the way the industry is changing.
I think you made good points Lisa. We can't fight it nanny web sites are here to stay but in general they are partly to blame for lower wages for nanny canddates but they make finding jobs easier for parents and nannies too.
i believe if the nannies are on the payroll of the temp service, the liability coverage of the company extends to them.
Hi Stephanie -
Don't you think that PiP closing their nanny agency business is a change in how the company is managed? It's not just symantics - They are now out of the nanny placement business. I think your reporting was spot-on - but it appears that Ms Marcelo dodged your question.
Lisa - you asked: "How can Parents in a Pinch in a metro Boston based office possibly screen nannies to provide back up care outside of the area."? PiP has over 30 corporate accounts nationally, already. They manage the screening, background checks and assignments by utilizing the services of (partnering with) local professional agencies. (In a similar way to how Bright Horizons does in many areas)
I keep reading the comments on this blog and I'm a little confused why so many people hate care.com so much and why anonymous commenters are so angry.
I actually think parents probably won't see a difference in the way Parents in a Pinch is managed. That was the question. That's how I see it.
But, I do think it's a shame in general small agencies aren't going to last. Web sites are dominating the nanny job finding market.
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