By Ashley Thomas, Founder & CEO of Hānai Nanny Agency — Honolulu, Hawaiʻi
When my husband and I first started looking for childcare, I did exactly what most parents do: I went to Care.com.
It seemed like the obvious place. There were thousands of profiles, plenty of smiling photos, and lots of hopeful messages promising great care.
But after fifteen years in HR, even I found the process overwhelming.
Scrolling through endless profiles, messaging back and forth, running my own background checks, coordinating interviews, verifying references, figuring out payroll… It felt like a second full-time job. And if someone with professional hiring experience felt that way, how must every other busy parent feel?
That was the seed that grew into Hānai Nanny Agency.
What I Learned From That Experience
Care.com absolutely fills a need. It gives families access to a wide pool of caregivers. But a pool is just the beginning. What families actually need is a filter.
Between parenting, work, school drop-offs, and life in general, who has time to play recruiter, interviewer, reference checker, and payroll manager all at once?
I realized families in Hawaiʻi needed something built for them, a trusted local team that could narrow that massive search down to the best few people who are truly ready to work, fully vetted, and already employed through a compliant system.
Turning That Insight Into a Solution
- We handle the entire hiring process. Each caregiver completes a detailed application, multiple interviews, skills assessments, and background, reference, and social media checks before they ever meet a family.
- We employ every caregiver ourselves. That means you’re not the employer, we are. We manage payroll, taxes, insurance, and compliance, so you never have to worry about paperwork or “nanny tax” surprises.
- We focus on relationships, not transactions. We get to know your family personally and match you only with caregivers who fit your routines, personalities, and expectations.
Why Local Families Deserve Better Support
Families in Honolulu and across Hawaiʻi work incredibly hard to keep everything balanced. Reliable childcare isn’t just about convenience, it’s about being able to show up fully for work, for your partner, for yourself.
After my own Care.com experience, I knew our community needed a service that blended the best of both worlds:
the accessibility of a large platform and the trust and accountability of a local employer who stands behind every person they send to your home.
That’s what Hānai became, a bridge between families and caregivers built on trust, safety, and empathy.
From One Parent to Another
If you’re exploring Care.com right now, I completely understand why. I was there too. But if you’re craving something more personal, something where the hard parts are already handled, I invite you to experience what we have built here in Hawaiʻi.
We’ll do the heavy lifting, so you can spend your evenings enjoying family time instead of vetting resumes.
Let’s make childcare easy again.
Visit hanainannyagency.com to learn more or schedule a quick call.
From my family to yours,
Ashley Thomas
Founder & CEO, Hānai Nanny Agency LLC
