现代管家职业揭秘

成功的管家不仅收入可观，还能享受一个月的带薪假期，参加401(k)养老金计划。据费贡说，顶级家政管家年薪可达30万美元。最近有好几个招工岗位都给出了20万到25万美元不等的年薪，工作地点要么在波士顿，要么在洛杉矶一带。按照这样的年薪水平，管家想必需要掌管数量可观的仆役和几十个承包商。

    管家还需要及时了解最新的软件和安全系统。“家居管理太复杂了，房子太大了，不仅如此，屋里还配备了酒窖、智能家居技术、安全监控屏，”更别提厨房和洗衣房里那些五花八门的设备了，米勒表示。管家需要处理的是主人不可预知的需求，而家政员处理的是可预知的需求，比如打扫房间。

现代管家的新面貌

    尽管古装剧里的管家都是男性，而且年龄偏大，但在现实生活中，越来越多的女性和年轻男性也开始加入到管家的行列。身为管家，最重要的是“要融入主人的家庭，”费贡的合伙人盖尔•汉密尔顿表示。她说，除了找猎头公司，有些富豪家庭还会要求管家及其他核心仆役参加人格测验。

    很多管家为了找到新的工作，纷纷与猎头公司合作。费贡表示，有很多人是在别的岗位上脱颖而出以后，才转行做的管家。比如他们先前做的可能是私人厨师或者保姆。有些人在为数不多的“专门学校”或者培训机构报过班，还有些人是在实战中学习。

    费贡表示，上世纪90年代末，科技蓬勃发展，人们对管家的需求也随之上升。预计这一趋势还将随着人们的财富增加而保持下去。此外，近年来，很多豪华酒店也开始纷纷招募管家。

    但是其他人认为管家的机会没有以前多了。家居管理协会的创始人及会长马特•哈克表示，在美国，管家及家政、地产管理者的人数与以前相比下降了。之所以得出这个结论，是与猎头公司、执业管家及业内协会成员交流的结果。哈克表示，在经济不景气的情况下，连富豪家庭都在集中家政人员的职能。他还补充道，随着《唐顿庄园》的热播，“垂询管家这一职业的人大大增加。”

    米勒认为，有些新晋富豪还没有意识到请专人打理财产、打点生活的重要性。以前，优秀的管家联系好中介后，不出几天就能找到工作，而且还有挑选的余地。“现在就不是这样了。我见过好几个很有资质的管家，他们等了好几个月，连面试的机会都没有，更别提找到工作了。”米勒表示。正因为如此，米勒正打算谋求第二职业。

    显然，管家这一行业正在不断地发展演化，日后将有越来越多的管家在酒店和公司就职，担当礼宾员的角色。利桑德罗•洛扎诺•阿吉亚尔以前是一名酒店保安，现在在墨西哥巴亚尔塔港的海滨度假酒店Villa Premiere Hotel & Spa担任管家。为了当好管家，他不得不学好英语，还在墨西哥城的一家酒店培训学校培训了两周。一开始，为客人熨衣服这种事情对他来说“有点小难”。当了七年管家之后，他不仅掌握了这项技能，还能为客人提供称心如意的预订服务，挑选生日和周年纪念日的插花，为度蜜月的新婚夫妇布置铺满玫瑰花瓣的婚床。“我们能想客人所想，提前为他们考虑好所有的事情。客人还没开口，我们就已经准备好为他们服务了。”（财富中文网）

    译者：Nasca

Successful butlers can earn handsome salaries, plus as much as a month's paid vacation and a 401(k) plan. Top household managers can earn up to $300,000 a year, says Feigon. Several jobs posted recently paid $200,000 to $250,000 in Boston and near San Francisco. At those pay grades the job likely includes managing a sizable staff and dozens of contractors.

    The butler is also expected to stay abreast of the latest software and security systems. "Homes are so complex, estates are so large, with wine cellars, smart home technologies, and security screens," not to mention all kinds of commercial equipment in kitchens and laundries, says Miller. Butlers handle all the unpredictable needs of the household, while housekeepers manage the predictable ones such as cleaning rooms.

The new face of today's butler

    Though butlers in period dramas are all male and somewhat older, today women are working in the field, as are younger men. What's most important is that the butler "needs to mesh with the family," explains Gail Hamilton, Feigon's business partner. Besides using placement agencies, some wealthy families require butlers and other key household staff to take personality tests, she says.

    To land a new assignment, many butlers work with placement firms. Many become butlers after they outgrow another job as a personal chef or a nanny, Feigon says. Some attend one of a handful of "schools" or institutes that offer training, or they may learn on the job.

    Demand for butlers increased during the tech boom of the late 1990s, she says. Feigon sees continued growth in the field, driven by gains in wealth. And many luxury hotels have added butlers to their ranks in recent years.

    But others claim that opportunities for butlers are scarcer than they have been in the past. The number of butlers and estate or household managers working in the U.S. has declined, says Matt Haack, founder and president of the Domestic Estate Managers Association, who bases his estimates on conversations he's had with placement agencies, working butlers, and his members, individuals who work in the field. Even wealthy families have consolidated and combined some jobs in a tighter economy, he says, adding that Downton Abbey has spurred "an influx of information requests about butlers."

    Miller thinks some newly wealthy individuals do not understand the need for professional help managing their property and their lives. A talented butler used to be able to contact his agent and within days, decide on a position to pursue. "Today, it's not so. I've seen some very qualified people wait for months and months for even an interview, let alone an offer," says Miller, who's starting to plan a second career.

    It's clear that the butler's world is evolving, so that more and more, they will work in hotels and for companies as a sort of concierge. Lisandro Lozano Aguiar worked in hotel security before becoming a butler at Villa Premiere Hotel & Spa in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. He had to learn English and spent two weeks at a hotel training school in Mexico City. At first, ironing garments for guests "was a little bit kind of hard for me," he says. After seven years as a butler, he has mastered that skill, as well as locating the right book for a guest, choosing a flower arrangement for birthdays and anniversaries, and creating a rose petal-covered bed for honeymooners. "We are ahead of our guests' needs. We like to be there before they ask."