This master thesis is covering a project that focuses on developing both babysitting services and dog walking services and facilitating them through a mobile application. Only the user interface for the service of babysitting was created because the dog walking service was considered to be less of a complex service, and not add to more to the insights in this project. The project was started due to observations that the babysitting service is highly used in America, but it does not operate in a structured fashion. Many parents are new to babysitting which creates uncertainty when ordering and scheduling babysitter. Babysitter, on the other hand, are usually younger and inexperienced. The user interface is created with a service design approach. Developing the service though by creating stakeholder maps, customer journeys, and, service blueprints. Creating the user interface with the service blueprint as a reference. By taking this approach business insight where created and the babysitting service could be created as a hollow organization. An organization that combines more than one service to create greater value for the end user. / Den här examens rapporten innehåller arbetet att fram ta en barnvakts service och en service för att hjälpa hundägare att rasta hunden när de är frånvarande. Ett grönsint har designat för att tillgodo se användaren med servicen. Hund servicens användargränssnitt har dock inte designats på grund av att servicen ansågs mindre komplex och inte bedrog till insikterna i projektet. Projektet startade på grund av en observation baserad på barnvakts tjänster använd i Amerika. Observationen visade att många föreldar använder sig utav barnvakter men kommunikationen mellan föräldrar och barnvakter varierade mycket. Variationen skapar svårigheter i servicen. Mång föräldrar som aldrig använt sig av barnvakts tjänster har svårt att bedöma vad som kan begäras och hur mycket de ska betala. Barnvakter som oftast är unga människor är de som lider av situation. Unga och oerfarna som är drar sig för att säga till när allt inte stämmer överens. Användargränssnittet är skapat med en servicedesign approach. Arbeta fram en service genom att ska stakeholder maps, customer journeys och service blueprints. Användargränssnittet skapades genom att använda service blueprinten som en referens till vilka funktioner som ska finnas med. Genom att ta använda sig av servicedesign för att ta fram gränssnittet har insikter skapat ur en organisatorisk synpunkt. Insikter som lede till skapandet av en ”hollow” organisation. En organisation som combinera fler typer av service för att skapa mervärde till slutanvändaren.

近年來臺灣生育率快速下降，我國育齡婦女總生育率長期低於2.1之人口替換水準，政府為追求生育率之提升，祭出許多政策誘因。本研究係針對臺北市生育政策中「公辦民營托嬰中心」為焦點，欲探討雙薪生育家庭在尋找托育方式時所重視及關切考量之因素，以及探究臺北市公辦民營托嬰中心對於臺北市民在托育服務與育兒照顧方面的實質幫助。本研究透過質性研究之深度訪談法進行，經由訪談送托家長及中心主任藉以探究臺北市公辦民營托嬰中心此一政策的評價。 本研究結果發現，臺北市公辦民營托嬰中心受到育兒家庭歡迎之因素有(一)學費低廉，減少雙薪父母的經濟負擔；(二)環境新穎，硬體設備及教具資源豐富且多元；(三)師資專業，能夠依據孩子年齡給予適合的刺激互動與發展訓練；(四)緩和育兒家庭照顧孩子的壓力，給予暫時的喘息空間。對於育兒家庭希望改善之處有(一)師生比例較高；(二)孩子間容易發生交互感染的問題；(三)專業人員離職，易造成嬰幼兒重新適應主要照顧者之問題。對於公辦民營托嬰中心政策之建議則有(一)延長托育時間；(二)廣設平價托嬰中心。 針對研究結果，提出研究建議為(一)比照臺北市國小及幼兒園「課後照顧」方式，設立臨時托育服務；(二)加強居家保母與私立托嬰中心管理之責，建立積極監督機制；(三)設立保母及私立托嬰中心評比機制，給予績優者在硬軟體設備之補助，打造臺北市友善托育環境；(四)定期表揚績優居家保母與托嬰機構，並給予托育獎助費用。 / The fertility rate declines rapidly in recent years as the total fertility rate of childbearing age women has been below the population replacement level of 2.1 for a long time in Taiwan. The government promotes many incentive policies to raise fertility rate. Therefore, the study explores the factors that dual-earner households care and consider and the concrete assistances that the public babysitting center policy delivers to the residents in Taipei City for babysitting service and nurture caring. This study applies the deep interview method of qualitative research with the interviews with the parents who demand babysitting service and representatives of babysitting centers to evaluate the policy. The research reveals that the factors the public babysitting center policy is welcomed among nurturing families are derived from the following: 1. the financial burden of the dual-earner households is lightened by inexpensive tuition fee. 2. The facility is new with plenty and various of hardware equipment and teaching aids. 3. Professional teachers give children adequate stimulation of interaction and training of development according to their ages. 4. The policy alleviates the pressure of parenting, having the families relaxed temporarily. Regarding the issues to be improved, parenting families ask for the following: 1. slightly high student-teacher ratio. 2. Cross-infection problem among children. 3. The problem of readapting for children and infants due to the resignation of the professionals. The suggestions from the participants with respect to the public babysitting policy are as follows: 1. extending the time of babysitting. 2. Budget babysitting centers should be widely established. The study concludes with the following advices: 1. Interim babysitting service is to be set up in line with the after-school care for elementary school and kindergarten students in Taipei City. 2. Active supervision system is to be established to enhance the managerial duties of the home babysitters and private babysitting centers. 3. Assessment system is to be created to home babysitters and private babysitting centers while excellent units are encouraged with hardware equipment subsidies to build a babysitting-friendly environment. 4. Excellent home babysitters and babysitting centers are to be praised and rewarded with babysitting compliment regularly.

This thesis deals with the problems of babysitting children with special needs. The theoretical part is primarily devoted to the characteristics of healthy child development. Consequently, it provides a comparison of optimal child development with the development of handicapped children. It highlights the difficulty of care for disadvantaged children, the importance of preventing parents becoming overloaded and the various possibilities for support of the families. The next chapter focuses on the educational assessment of healthy children and children with special needs. It describes the availability of babysitting services for those children, the offers of current agencies and the profile of good quality carers. The last chapter presents the empirical part of this thesis. The quantitative research was, with the use of questionnaires, addressed to the parents of children with special needs. This section presents the course of the research and the method by which the goals were attained. It presents the views of parents of children with special needs with regards to: their level of interest in, and the problems with, babysitting services. Key words: baby, babysitting, nanny, promotion, prevention, parents, services, special needs, education, development, health disadvantage

This research explores the training needs of nannies in the United Kingdom in terms of the content and structure of introductory training. The research question formulated for this study is: What are the introductory training needs of nannies in the United Kingdom? The researcher approached the study qualitatively and empirical data was collected by means of a focus group discussion with a group of nannies. Empirical data indicates that nannies need training regarding: • The professional aspect of nannying; • the physical, emotional, and intellectual needs of children; • the various developmental levels of children and the role of the nanny within each phase; • working with parents; • different religions and cultures and their childcare practices. It was found that nannies need training that is structured in an affordable, brief, specific and practical way. The study therefore reveals that nannies have specific needs regarding both the content and structure of childcare training. / Thesis (M. Ed.)

This research explores the training needs of nannies in the United Kingdom in terms of the content and structure of introductory training. The research question formulated for this study is: What are the introductory training needs of nannies in the United Kingdom? The researcher approached the study qualitatively and empirical data was collected by means of a focus group discussion with a group of nannies. Empirical data indicates that nannies need training regarding: • The professional aspect of nannying; • the physical, emotional, and intellectual needs of children; • the various developmental levels of children and the role of the nanny within each phase; • working with parents; • different religions and cultures and their childcare practices. It was found that nannies need training that is structured in an affordable, brief, specific and practical way. The study therefore reveals that nannies have specific needs regarding both the content and structure of childcare training. / Thesis (M. Ed.)

This thesis deals with marketing activities of the Baby Agency, a babysitting company. The aim of this thesis is to map current marketing strategies of the company and to recommend improvements. The thesis itself is divided into two parts. The first theoretical part describes specific sections of marketing, such as marketing strategies, marketing mix of services, communication targeting at children and teenagers, market research techniques or new trends in marketing. The second part analyzes current marketing activities of the company and maps the competition. In the conclusion the thesis suggests the steps to be undertaken to improve the current marketing strategy of the Baby Agency are suggested, based on theoretical findings, analyses and surveys.