Category: Client

America loves its private staffers. Nearly 3.4 million Americans work as secretaries and administrative assistants. These statistics may make you believe that the onboarding process for private staff is easy. In reality, you must make substantial safety considerations at every step of the hiring process.

What should your background checks and onboarding documents look like? What quarters should you provide for your staffers? How can you help train your staffers on the job? Answer these questions and you can create the perfect onboarding process for your private and personal staff.

Here is your quick guide.

Background Checks

Background checks are an essential part of the onboarding process. Before you hire any private staff, you must conduct a background check on each applicant.

Your check should be fairly extensive. You should ask for referrals so you get a good sense of their experience. Check the information on their resume with the referrals so you know the applicant gave accurate information.

You must check their criminal history. Do not hire someone with a history of violent crime or property damage. You can hire someone convicted of a misdemeanor years ago, but you should have a conversation with them about it.

If you’re hiring a staffer for your business, you should examine their financial background. Look at their credit history and see if they have any bankruptcies. It is okay to hire a staffer with a low credit score, but you should try to understand why their score is low.

Documents

Once you’re comfortable moving ahead with an applicant, you should ask them to sign several legal documents. Contact a lawyer and draft your documents with them so they carry full legal weight. You should allow your staffer to talk to a lawyer so they know what their rights are as well.

All personal staffers should sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). Staffers should not be allowed to discuss the nature of their job or details of their client’s personal life with other people.

You should also write a contract that outlines your staffer’s schedule and responsibilities. Be very clear with how they will be compensated and whether they qualify for overtime and other perks. A handbook could be helpful, as well. You and your lawyer should have all employment paperwork like pay stubs ready before work starts.

After you get their legal documents, you should hand them more information about their responsibilities. Give them written instructions about chores like how you like your laundry done or how you want them to organize documents.

Quarters for Your Private Staff

If your staff is expected to live on the premises for any duration of time, you should make a noticeable effort to make their quarters as comfortable and safe as possible. Your staffers will leave you if they have difficulty sleeping or don’t have enough room to store their belongings.

Before your staffer moves in, you should clean the room you are setting aside for them. Add new furniture to the room, including a desk and shelves where your staffer can put their belongings. Make sure the room has electricity, internet, and phone access.

You should give your staffer their own bathroom adjacent to their bedroom. You can give them a kitchenette, or you can allow them to use your kitchen to prepare their meals.

The quarters you provide should conform to fire safety regulations. Each room should have a smoke detector, and your staffer should be able to get out of the house within a few seconds of a fire breaking out.

Face Time

During your staffer’s first few weeks, you should spend plenty of time with them face-to-face. You can give them privacy at night, but you should vet how they are doing and determine if they are a good fit for you.

If you’re busy during the day, you can have a conversation with them in the morning and then talk to them at night. You can answer questions they have before they start their work. You can then debrief with them and resolve any concerns you have.

If you have a house manager, you should refer your staffer to them. As the onboarding process concludes, your staffer should start going to your house manager with any questions they have.

Safety Training

You should organize training for a new staffer so they know what to do in an emergency. If you or a family member has an urgent medical condition like a food allergy, you must tell your staffer. You should explain what they should do if you have an allergic reaction, and you should run a roleplay of an emergency situation.

You should organize evacuation and fire drills every few months. Everyone should be involved in these drills, including your family members. Schedule them randomly so you simulate an emergency and assess how everyone does. Make sure everyone knows where the fire extinguisher is stored.

Going forward, you should have regular meetings with everyone. At a minimum, you should update your staffers about security concerns like new medical conditions you have developed. You can also go over new policies you want to put in place and make performance evaluations.

Safety Considerations in Your Onboarding Process

Safety considerations are paramount whenever you hire a private staffer. You should conduct an extensive background check, especially on the criminal record of an applicant. If everything checks out, you should give them documents outlining their job.

Give your staffer a comfortable place to sleep so they can remain refreshed. Be with your staffer during their first weeks and answer all questions they have. As time goes on, conduct regular safety training sessions.

You can find the perfect staffers with the perfect recruiters. Private Staff Group serves families and business leaders across America. Get a free consultation today.

Estate management systems: Does your property need one?

Whether you’re in need of an estate manager or your existing manager is struggling to keep up with your property’s needs, you can add value to your property through the use of technology.

Technology has the ability to improve tasks ranging from inventory management to staff communication. Curious to learn more about how technology—specifically an estate management system—can streamline household and staffing operations? Read everything you need to know here.

Estate Management Systems

Estate manager systems allow estate managers the ability to input the full range of information needed to effectively manage a property in one place. The complexity of entire properties can be managed from the convenience of one device. 

While also used for property management professionals to track multiple properties, an estate management system has features including maintenance and events calendars, inventory trackers, and capabilities to assign tasks to staff. The system takes a proactive approach so that property operations never fall behind. To follow are a few examples of the estate management service applications currently available:

1. Estate Management Systems
2. Latitude356
3. Buildium
4. Skyline

Luxury estate programs can be used by estate managers who are responsible for overseeing large properties. These programs will ensure that they can keep a close eye on every staff member and task from anywhere on the property.

The key to smooth operations is strong communication. Estate manager systems emphasize communication by assigning tasks to staff and setting deadlines. Your entire staff will have a clear idea of what is expected from them and when they need to complete their responsibilities. 

Some services go above and beyond, like Kelly Fore Dixon’s Estate Management Systems, which integrates every aspect of managing household assets, domestic staffing, and a principal’s exceedingly high expectations. The All-In Package, allows you to input every piece of information you need to ensure your employer’s estate runs like a well-oiled machine. Plus, get access to emergency preparedness plans, paper house manuals, and staff training guides.

No detail is too small to be captured and revisited on-demand or updated as needed. Its customizable checklists, templates, and attachments are arranged in modules that allow you to share some material with your team while keeping other, more sensitive content, completely confidential. 

Estate Managers – the Human Element

An estate manager ensures that the operations of an employer’s residence run smoothly. Usually, they will have years of experience working in private homes.

Estate managers act on behalf of the resident or property owner and make decisions regarding the property. If they are taking care of luxury homes, they will be trained in formal etiquette and know how to care for fine furnishings, art, and antiques.

An estate manager is expected to be both professional and personable. They will need to have strong financial and organization skills since they will be responsible for making the most important decisions regarding the property.

The professional must be able to organize work schedules, train staff, and manage everyone who works on the property to ensure that all standards are being met. Click here to learn more about the general role and responsibilities of an estate manager.

How Estate Managers Add Even More Value Through Technology

In this era, everything is becoming digitized. It’s only natural that estate managers have an understanding of technology. Below are just a few of the ways that using technology will add value to the estate.

Online Shopping

Online shopping is becoming an increasingly popular method for buying household items. In 2020, categories, where expected growth in online shopping exceeded 35%, included essentials like groceries, household supplies, and personal care products.

An estate manager who is savvy with technology can work with staff to buy household items online. Performing personal shopping tasks for the estate can be accomplished most quickly online.

Budgeting

The ability not only for your estate manager to keep track of expenses but also for staff to play a part in the budget, is crucial for the smooth operation of an estate.

Estate managers can train employees in certain skills like editing spreadsheets online and monitoring expenses. They can then use this information to create budgets and future spending strategies.

Employees who are well-versed in basic technology programs can add record expenses to give the most accurate information to the estate manager and the property owner.

Inventory

Large estates will require a close eye on inventory. Manually tracking is both timely and error-prone. Using technology streamlines the process and can be very useful.

Estate managers can train staff members to use a digital spreadsheet to keep an eye on inventory. They can keep track of the quantities of specific items and identify when items need to be replaced. They can also use a spreadsheet to see if items are expired or no longer needed.

With all of the property’s inventory in one place, it will be much easier to stay ahead of potential shortages and keep the right amount of items on the property at the right time.

Smart Home Technology

Many luxury homes now implement the use of technology throughout their home. This includes heating and cooling systems, security systems, and entertainment options.

Estate managers who are well-versed in technology can use these systems to automate certain processes of property management. This will streamline operations as 57% of smart home technology users say that they save time with the technology.

For instance, say that the estate resides in a location that receives high amounts of sunlight during the day. This sunlight can strip the color from carpeting, furniture, and art. The estate manager can use technology to program window blinds to come down during the peak hours of sunlight, then rise up to let the late afternoon sun in at 4 pm every day.

Security concerns are often a concern for larger estates. Estate managers can use technology to keep a close watch on various access points throughout the estate. They can also program technology to set up alerts for suspicious activity.

Selecting The Professional Staff You Need

Estate managers who can integrate technology into their work are invaluable to your property. Finding the right estate manager who can leverage the technology of an estate management system can transform how your entire estate functions.

Private Staff Group is eager to help you find the best and right talent. We have specialized knowledge in urban, country, remote, luxury, and resort communities.

We are confident that we can find the right candidate for you. Contact us to learn more.

Call it overlap or a gray area, but the responsibility of an assistant—executive, family, personal, or otherwise​​—often spills into other roles to get the job done. From helping to hold down the fort, coordinating travel arrangements, and taking care of event planning, an assistant becomes an integral part of their client’s life.

1. There’s More than One Kind of Assistant

Depending on their needs, clients will seek out different types of assistants to help them in their day-to-day.

Personal Assistants

A personal assistant can take up many different roles but at the end of the day, they’re meant to be 100% focused on the needs of their clients. A personal assistant becomes their client’s proxy, often representing their interests in face-to-face interactions or phone calls.

That could entail performing administrative tasks and managing their client’s schedule or running errands and maintaining peace and order on the homefront.

Virtual Assistants

In recent years, becoming a virtual assistant has become more popular. Young professionals are enjoying the ability to create their own schedules, offering bespoke digital solutions for even a few clients at a time. Their major responsibility is to assist their clients by managing and optimizing their digital workspace.

Virtual assistants work remotely but continue to deliver the same level of support as a personal or executive assistant. By nature of their remote setting, they are particularly equipped to help clients who travel often.

Executive Assistants

An executive assistant is typically more senior than a personal or virtual assistant. Executive assistants typically work in corporate settings. In addition to being their employer’s proxy, they often act as a gatekeeper, a measure of security to ensure that work is being done efficiently and without needless interruption. Executive assistants should also be prepared for a degree of interdepartmental collaboration, navigating the delicate relationship between various stakeholders in a project while prioritizing the interests of their employer.

Family Assistants

While executive assistants have a handle on all things in business, family assistants step in to support the entire household.

As a result, the role is an exceptionally diverse one with a range of responsibilities including working with household contractors, helping with homework, driving and running errands, planning events, mailing out holiday cards, taking care of the pets, and so much more. In short, the family assistant is like an additional head of the household.

2. Staying Organized is as Important as Being Flexible

An effective and reliable assistant is one that’s willing to roll up their sleeves to assist their client any time and in any way possible. Most job descriptions do explain that an individual must be flexible with their hours of availability and scope of duties, however, those duties can range from responding to an email or scheduling an appointment to cleaning up after the family dog or helping in the kitchen.

With all these moving parts, staying organized is paramount so that clients can better focus on their responsibilities knowing that they have a trusted agent keeping things running on all other fronts.

Depending on a client’s level of comfort and the personal assistant’s skill set, it is not uncommon for some to be trusted with managing personal finances like budgeting, bill paying, and bookkeeping, which are just a few skills that require excellent organizational skills.

3. The Stakes are Always High

An assistant is someone whose trusted with their client’s private information. They’re welcomed into homes and workplaces and are expected to perform their duties efficiently, professionally, and with their client’s best interests at top of mind. From time-sensitive project proposals to routine carpools, every aspect of the assistant’s responsibilities is of equal importance.

When working with someone as closely as assistants do with their clients, there’s an understandable overlap between personal and professional lives. Both parties may find themselves in situations that will challenge their sense of boundaries. Sometimes, the most valuable skill an assistant can have is an understanding of prioritization.

Knowing when to step back, even when their employer might insist otherwise—or vice versa—can make the difference between a good employee and a great one.

4. In-Person and Online, There’s an Image to Uphold

An assistant represents their employer in every aspect of life. To their personal and professional contacts, the assistant may be the first person they interface with. Everything they do is a representation of the person they work for. As such, the mannerisms, polish, and professionalism of an assistant must be aligned with that of their employer.

For some clients, where their personal security is a top priority, their assistants must be trained and advised in manners and protocols that mitigate security risks. This might be something as small as disabling social media profiles or making them private. Either way, having an employee handbook that clearly outlines the personal, professional, and security obligations of the assistant is key to facilitating a successful working relationship.

5. An Assistant is a Lasting Investment

Family assistant or executive, while these roles may be unique, their goal is to always support their clients. An assistant helps save time by supporting their client in whatever way is needed. For this reason, their flexibility paired with their ability to stay organized, helps them develop into a critical member of a team or family.

When prioritization forces their client to move things to the back burner, the assistant steps in to support some of that workload. Even the smallest task can have a monumental impact in the grand scheme of things. Having someone to rely on increases output so that the to-do list stays manageable throughout the course of the project.

Find the Perfect Assistant with Private Staff Group

An assistant can make your life easier so find a top-notch candidate that is trustworthy and highly skilled.

The Private Staff Group can help you find the best and most qualified candidates. Our recruitment process has met precise estate employment requirements across the globe. For more information, contact us online or by phone at 1-866-282-7729. Our team is always ready to provide you with the professionalism and courtesy you deserve!

The ultra-luxury estate market continues to climb steadily, according to Redfin. The world’s most expensive estates currently range from $200 million to over $6 billion.

The rise in luxury estates creates a higher demand for estate managers. The position for directors of residences is also evolving as complex estate management spans the globe.

What are estate managers and directors of residences, and what is the difference between the two functions? Read on for our guide to these important private staff positions.

What is an Estate Manager?

An estate manager oversees a property for the owner(s). Similar terms include butler or majordomo, who also manage households.

Estate managers typically work on large and complex estates managing both the household and grounds. They require a wide range of skill sets. Soft skills include attention to detail, strategic thinking, and problem-solving.

They may also require certain hard skills, depending on the estate type and functions to manage. Hard skills can include:

• Relevant degrees (property management, business administration, etc.)
• Finance
• Logistics
• Agriculture
• Building Maintenance
• Hospitality
• Computer/technical
• Multi-language fluency
• Accounting
• Landscaping
• Security

Estate managers generally occupy the highest staff position of a property. They may directly supervise all estate employees or designate supervisors for specific areas, such as a groundskeeper.

What Does an Estate Manager Do?

Estates can require lots of work, from human resources to land management. Estate managers must also safeguard their client’s privacy and safety while fulfilling their job roles.

The estate manager has the vital responsibility to ensure daily estate operations run smoothly. They plan long-term strategies such as budgets, maintenance, and contracts.

As they occupy the highest staff leadership position, estate managers typically remain on call 24/7 for any issues that arise unexpectedly.

What Human Resource Responsibilities Does an Estate Manager Have?

An estate manager oversees property staff, vendors, and contractors. Human resource management duties can include:

• Hiring and onboarding
• Background checks
• Suspensions or terminations
• Training and skill-building
• Work schedules
• Salaries and payrolls
• Promotions and retention
• Regular performance reviews
• Vetting hired company services
• Negotiating contractors

Estate managers rely on strong people skills and knowledge of many different jobs. They are responsible for the quality of goods and services provided to the estate.

How Can Estate Managers Help with Land and Building Management?

The estate manager job role includes the property grounds and buildings. The estate can have many functions or features. These duties can include overseeing:

• Pool and spa maintenance
• Landscaping, garden, and lawn upkeep
• Building repairs, renovations, and regular maintenance
• Domestic animal care
• Animal husbandry
• Guest services
• Private recreation services (golf courses, airfields, etc.)
• Vehicle upkeep
• Luxury item management (art, antiques, jewelry)

These duties will depend on the type of estate. An estate that includes horses, for example, will require care, feeding, veterinary, and breeding services.

What is a Director of Residences? How Do They Compare to an Estate Manager?

Estate managers can oversee multiple properties. But for estates that span long distances or with very complex functions, it may not be practical to rely on an estate manager alone.

A director of residences (not to be confused with a resident director) oversees all estates or estate functions. They also oversee the individual estate managers for each property or estate.

A director of residences should have all the soft and hard skills required of an estate manager, applied to a larger scale. This also includes relevant degrees and certifications.

For example, an estate manager manages the multiple household and property budgets needed for an estate. A director of residences manages the entire operating budget for all estates.

What are the Responsibilities of a Director of Residences?

Like skills, the director of residences has similar duties to an estate manager but more expansive. An estate manager can hire private security staff for a property. A director of residences will contract a security firm to provide security services across all estates.

Other duties may include:

• Human resource policy development
• Land expansion
• Construction project planning
• Business analysis
• Operational budget planning

Directors of residences can be required to represent their clients. This can include any capacity from the brand ambassador, meeting stand-in, or negotiator on their client’s behalf.

How Can a Director of Residences Help with Human Resource Management?

The director of residences maintains employer policies and procedures across all estates. They may even develop the estate management infrastructure.

The director of residences will work with staff in many instances. This can include inspections and crisis response. However, they will coordinate daily operations between estate managers.

They may also work directly with their employer. Examples include planning annual budgets or guest events. They also can be required to directly attend regular meetings or submit reports.

How Can a Director of Residences Support Land and Building Management?

The director of residences may be required to purchase new land, expand existing properties, or coordinate major construction projects. They may also work with estate managers for major renovations and property improvements.

Their land and building duties also depend on the type of estate. An estate that includes goods or services will require more business and hospitality skills, while a private estate retreat will focus more on security and amenities.

Like estate managers, directors of residences must have a wide field of knowledge. International ranch estates must know each country’s animal care laws, for example. Or how to use veterinary services in local languages.

How to Find the Ideal Staff for Your Estate Needs?

An estate manager and director of residences keep your estate running. You want to hire top-notch and trustworthy people for these highly skilled positions.

The Private Staff Group can help you find the best and most qualified candidates. Our recruitment process has met precise estate employment requirements across the globe. For more information, contact us online or by phone at 1-866-282-7729. Our team is always ready to provide you with the professionalism and courtesy you deserve!