How does anyone manage to keep a job they love for more than a decade? This weekend in Orlando I had the privilege of seeing Kellie Geres, a White House Nanny, receive the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Domestic Estate Managers Association (DEMA). When I placed Kellie  in her current position 11 years ago, she had already been named Nanny of the Year by the International Nanny Association (INA). Kellie started her childcare career right out of high school. She also started volunteering early in life. She continued to join organizations that helped her grow professionally. I first met Kellie when we both served on the Board of the INA. When she moved to the DC area for her job, she joined a local nanny support group called ADCAN (Association of DC Area Nannies). And then—no surprise – she became its president. More recently, she was asked to head up the local DC chapter of DEMA. I know, lots of acronyms and also lots of time devoted to nonprofit organizations that count on people with her organizational skills to survive.
The point is that most nannies age out of their jobs. No, let me restate that. Most children age out of their nannies. Many childcare providers are great from ages 0-3 or until 5. Then the kids are off to school. It’s hard for nannies to have their work day shrink to 4 hours a day from the 10 that supported them. They love those kids, but they see the limitations of their usefulness. They think they need to move on to the next family with young children.

There is, however, another path for those nannies who see themselves as service professionals and want to stay with their employer families. They go from nanny to nanny manager to household manager. A nanny manager tends to work in households where the children are school age but still in need of supervision when they are home. During school hours, the nanny manager assists with all manner of errands including grocery shopping, dry cleaner runs, and birthday party gifts to name a few. They help keep the house stocked with supplies. They may also oversee workers in the home or simply be on site for deliveries. They are, of course, still in charge of anything to do with the children: laundry, cooking, cleaning children’s rooms, etc. When the children are at home, the focus of the job shifts to them. Carpooling to activities and overseeing homework become their primary functions.

A household manager oversees the general operation of the home. Household managers generally have the responsibilities of planning, organizing and coordinating events, managing household calendars and schedules, arranging appointments, scheduling and supervising home maintenance projects, paying household bills and completing any other requested administrative tasks. On average nanny managers and household managers work between 40 – 55 hours per week and may either live-in or live-out of the residence. Their combined duties and years of experience also translate into higher salaries.

Kellie figured out how to make herself indispensable to her current employers by improving her knowledge of the many things she could do for them to make their domestic lives run more smoothly. She now manages their household because the kids pretty much manage themselves. One went off to college and the other is in high school. So Kellie went from nanny to nanny manager and is now household manager.

It was great  to be able to be part of Kellie’s celebration and to raise a glass in toast to someone who has achieved both personal and professional success.