Loyalty has to be earned! How to retain good staff
INterview with OPMG CEO Elmar huber | 11.09.2025
Once you have found the ideal staff, they will stay with you for years to come. Elmar Huber knows the recipe for successful, long-term collaboration. Together with his team at OPMG, he places outstanding staff in exclusive private households. A conversation about loyalty, genuine appreciation, and unrealistic expectations.
Every company wants to have good employees. How do you find the right colleagues? How do you keep morale high in the team? Of course, the matter becomes particularly complex when you are not looking for employees for a company, but for your own family, for your intimate home. This is exactly what Elmar Huber does with his agency OPMG. Originally working internationally as a private chef himself, he knows only too well what it takes to successfully match hand-picked domestic staff with decision-makers in Europe and around the world. Together with his team, he scrutinizes resumes, references, financial aspects, certificates of good conduct, and the duration of previous employment relationships in a multi-stage screening process. The aim is not only to find the perfect match, but above all to ensure that this match lasts as long as possible. But what is his secret recipe?
Mr. Huber, what factors are decisive when it comes to loyalty, retention, and turnover?
Elmar Huber: The order is pretty clear: the most important thing is appreciation – genuine, active appreciation, not just a polite “please” or “thank you.” Employees immediately notice whether their work is truly appreciated or whether they are simply being used as service providers who are being squeezed for maximum profit. Where appreciation is lacking, staff turnover is high. Other factors such as salary, flexible working hours, and additional benefits come next. In the private service sector, pay is usually better than in the restaurant industry or general services anyway. One sign of appreciation, for example, is when a family leaves their villa at Christmas and moves into a hotel instead so that the staff can spend the holidays with their own families. Gestures like this leave a particularly lasting impression.
What causes dissatisfaction and resignation among domestic staff?
Elmar Huber: Ultimately, it’s all about the working culture. From my many years of experience – over ten years as an active service provider in private households – I know that households with little experience of private staff often have unrealistic expectations. Sometimes, to put it bluntly, “new money” brings with it expectations that staff simply cannot meet. For example, if you have a toothache, you go to the dentist, and probably the best one you can find. If you have knee problems, you go to the best orthopedist. You would never let the dentist treat your knee. But it is precisely these kinds of misjudgments that cause employment relationships in private households to fail. This is usually due to disinterest, ignorance, or simply naivety. Often, staff who have proven themselves to be reliable are given more responsibility. What is sometimes forgotten is that this person is also a human being with a family, leisure time, and their own needs. One employee cannot split into eight parts and walk the dog, go shopping, iron, cook, and clean all at the same time. A lack of consideration for stress limits then leads to a split.
“One employee cannot split into eight parts and walk the dog, go shopping, iron, cook, and clean all at the same time.”
So ultimately, it’s a question of interpersonal relationships. How do you manage to build genuine trust?
Elmar Huber: Mutual trust is the be-all and end-all. Employees can always be divided into two categories: those who do what they say they will do, and the others. The stability and, above all, the security that you offer your employers are crucial to earning their trust. On the part of households, there is already a very high level of basic trust. For example, when a silk carpet or an ashtray costs several thousand euros and jewelry or works of art can reach values in the millions or even tens of millions. Accordingly, there is already an enormous amount of trust in advance. That’s why our team invests a lot of time and energy in the pre-selection, presentation, and drafting of the employment contract. Our goal: maximum security for everyone involved.
Can loyalty and trust turn into friendship over the years?
Elmar Huber: That definitely happens. You can’t rule it out. When you work closely together in a relationship of trust for years, you can develop an almost friendly relationship. But one thing remains: you are never part of the “boss’s party,” but always stand a little apart. Professional distance should be maintained.
Back to maximum security: How is this ensured during the recruitment process?
Elmar Huber: Our screening process involves several stages. However, the most important factor is and always will be the personal interview. I almost always call the references myself. In addition to written references, we insist on at least two verbal references per candidate. With a little knowledge of human nature, you can often tell within ten seconds how credible and positive a recommendation really is. References from family members or friends of our candidates are not relevant to us, by the way. We prefer to talk to former bosses or direct supervisors. This doesn’t always work with aristocrats or billionaires, but it does happen.
“The most important thing is appreciation – genuine, active appreciation, not just a polite ‘please’ or ‘thank you’.”
What happens if there is a crisis in a recruited working relationship?
Elmar Huber: Legally speaking, our assignment ends when the trial and guarantee period is over. Personally, however, we at OPMG live by a code of honor: We continue to provide active support, talk to the families, and call the employees at appropriate intervals to find out how things are going. Working in a private household is often very rewarding, but it is also demanding. Therefore, we are of course available as contact persons if there are any problems.
How can clients be protected from more complicated personalities?
Elmar Huber: There is no such thing as 100% security. However, our candidates’ qualifications and personal impressions paint a very clear picture. We thoroughly review their résumés, check financial aspects, legal history, references, certificates, and the duration of previous employment relationships. Those who demonstrate stability in their lives and careers are already on the right track. Our experience and intuition help us minimize the risks here. And to date – knock on wood – we have done very well with this approach.
You can reach OPMG by phone at +49 89 414243 99-0 or by email at office@opmgstaff.com.
Their clientele includes global entrepreneurs and corporations, aristocrats, icons from sport and lifestyle, and world-class decision-makers. The team operates internationally and across borders, with Europe as its base – and soon with an office in Zurich, Switzerland. OPMG works exclusively on a success-based model – no upfront fees, no hidden costs. Placement is always free for candidates.
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