Identify Necessary Skills Your New Helper Should Have

 

Identify Necessary Skills Your New Helper Should Have

Define the Necessary Hard Skills

Point out the hard skills required to perform the duties and responsibilities previously identified. Some common hard skills sought after by employers include:

  • The ability to provide caregiving support, first aid, and CPR;
  • The ability to teamwork – particularly when helpers will be expected to work with another helper or a family member.
  • The proficiency in one or several languages – ensure that you mention if you are fine with applicants who get by in a given language or require that they be fluent or even able to write it too i.e. that is especially the case when helpers are expected to tutor children.
  • Cooking skills, etc.

Find out where you stand when it comes to managing and training an employee – be clear as to whether you are willing or have sufficient time to dedicate to training them into developing some of their skills further. If that is not an option, let applicants know that you are adamant about the level of experience and/or autonomy required to perform the work – be, however, prepared to pay a higher salary.

 

Identify the Essential Soft Skills and Qualities

Soft skills are non-tangible skills that an individual possesses. Some soft skills and qualities are more or less useful depending on what the main responsibilities of your helper-to-be will be. Ideally, if she will be in charge of taking care of your kids, you are looking for someone who:

  • is naturally patient and doesn’t mind taking time to repeat and explain things several times;
  • keeps calm in all circumstances;
  • knows how to communicate with kids – through stories, examples, and crafts;
  • is enthusiastic about spending time with children and acknowledges it can be challenging but yet rewarding;
  • is safety-conscious;
  • is caring and sensitive.

If you are looking for a domestic worker to care for an elderly parent, she should:

  • be responsible e.g. complies with regular medication times;
  • possess both good communication and listening skills;
  • be caring;
  • be respectful of the opinions and privacy of the individuals she cares for;
  • be patient;
  • be supportive at all times.

Take time to reflect on those qualities and personality traits that are important to you. Identify what you value the most – is it honesty, trustworthiness, the ability to work with minimal supervision, introversion or on the contrary extroversion, etc.? – and communicate them in your job description.

 

Highlight Any Specific or Special Requirements

Some common special requirements can be expressed in terms of:

  • Level or type of experience;
  • Latest contract status and how early you expect them to start. Depending on your country of residence and the status of the applicant (i.e. whether she is a finished vs. broken contract, or terminated, etc.) the delay to process the application varies.
  • Specific cooking skills to meet certain requirements or certain types of diets, ranging from pure veg, vegetarian, vegan, raw food to gluten-free, or any other particular diet.

Don’t forget to list all your criteria down – all of them – so you can refer to them later during the interview phase and ask related questions. Be specific – it is important to be able to communicate your needs in detail to the various candidates during the interviews in order to comprehensively assess their profiles against your needs.

In case you haven’t found the answer you were looking for, feel free to contact us at contact@helperchoice.com. 

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