And What to Look for in a Personal Assistant
As an entrepreneur or senior executive in a growing business, deciding to invest in a virtual personal assistant marks a significant milestone, especially if it’s your first time hiring one.
You might be wondering if you or your business is ready for a virtual personal assistant. Or you may have questions about what to consider before hiring and what to look for in a personal assistant. After all, you want to ensure the PA is a good fit and maximise such an important investment in a new team member.
In this post, we’ll share 11 things you need (and don’t need) to do before hiring a personal assistant, to help save you time and money while ensuring the success of this new hire.
Why Knowing How to Prepare for a Virtual Personal Assistant is Important.
Whether you’re still deciding if you should hire a virtual personal assistant, or you’ve made the decision to go ahead, failure to prepare in advance will be a waste of your precious resources.
That’s why knowing what to do before hiring a virtual personal assistant will make the process of finding the perfect personal assistant easier and more efficient.
If you follow our advice, you’ll set yourself, and your personal assistant, up for success, making way for further business growth and reclaim your, or your team’s, time back.
“After just a short time the Energex team … began handing over bigger tasks such as the management of overseas events and complex admin. This all meant that the in house team were able to concentrate entirely on their job at hand and continue to grow the company.” – Steve Jones, Partner, Energex Partners
What You Don’t Need to Do When Preparing for a Virtual Personal Assistant
1. You Don’t Need a Big Budget to Hire a Virtual Personal Assistant
You only pay for the hours agreed each month. Plus, because the PA is self-employed, there’s no tax, pension, or national insurance to pay, and no office equipment or office space to pay for.
For instance, if you only have budget for 10 hours a month, equating to approximately 1.5 days a month, you only pay for that, no more.
By offloading administrative tasks to a PA for 1.5 days a month, you will free up your time to focus on revenue-generating activities, which will more than cover the cost.
2. You Don’t Need to Waste Hours Advertising and Interviewing a Virtual PA.
You don’t need to spend hours advertising and interviewing a PA unless you have time to handle the whole process yourself.
If you don’t have time, the hiring expertise, or you want someone else to choose the perfect virtual personal assistant for you:
Your best option is to choose an agency that has an efficient and proven recruitment process to do the legwork for you.
3. You Don’t Need to Spend Hours Every Month Line-Managing your Virtual PA.
They are a self-employed member of the team, so there’s none of the usual time required for performance reviews and line management involved in a permanent employee role.
However, you will need to allocate time for onboarding and training in the first month. And ongoingly, you’ll need time to prepare and brief them on new projects, systems, or tasks that come in.
Once the onboarding and training is complete, you’ll have more time and headspace freed up as your PA will be handling tasks that you’re either doing now or are on your to-do list but don’t have time for.
4. You Don’t Need to Write a Job Description for Your Virtual PA (With a Caveat).
You don’t need to create a job description unless you’re handling the hiring process yourself.
If you’re going through a PA agency, they will assess all the tasks and responsibilities involved in the role, and other skills and experience required to fulfil your requirements.
All you need to decide are the tasks you want delivered or the projects managed.
5. You Don’t Need Training Materials Before Hiring a Virtual PA.
Rest assured, you don’t need onboarding and training materials in place if this is the first time you have hired a PA.
When you do onboard your new PA, you could document the onboarding and training process to create materials for any future hire. A one-off project that’s worth the time spent.
This could include an introduction to your business, key contacts, software tools your PA will use, and steps on processes you want them to follow.
What You Need to Do When Preparing a Virtual Personal Assistant Role.
6. You Will Need Time for Onboarding and Training your Virtual PA in The First Month.
Plan time in your, or your team’s, diary in the first month to do any onboarding and training on your processes.
By doing so, your personal assistant will take on tasks and processes at the level of quality and attention to detail you expect.
The first month is also a crucial time for agreeing how to work together, securely sharing account logins, and agreeing priorities for the first few weeks.
Failing to do this crucial stage is a recipe for disappointment on both sides. Creating this time up front sets up your new virtual PA for success and saves you time and money in the long run.
7. You Will Need to Decide Which Tasks to Delegate to Your Virtual Personal Assistant.
You’re not alone if you’re unsure which tasks to delegate to a virtual PA, particularly if this is your first time hiring one. That’s why it’s important to spend time identifying the right tasks.
You can begin with small, manageable tasks and gradually increase as you gain confidence in your assistant’s initiative and capabilities.
First, make a list of all the things that need to occur on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis to run your business. Then, identify the tasks that you don’t like doing, don’t have time for, or which aren’t your area of expertise.
Duties and responsibilities you could delegate to your virtual personal assistant are:
- answering emails
- keeping your inbox clear and filed
- arranging meetings
- liaising with clients
- paying invoices
- chasing payments
- social media scheduling
Once you have your list, highlight which tasks you think are the most important to delegate first.
You now have multiple tasks you can delegate to your new virtual personal assistant.
8. You Will Need a List of the Tech Apps and Tools your Personal Assistant will use.
Communication skills and coordination are key for the role of a personal assistant. Having the right apps and tools in place is part of this.
However, if you don’t have many apps and tools yet, your new PA can demonstrate their computer literacy and set these up for you if required. They can even advise you on which ones will improve efficiency in your business.
If this is important to you, mention this in your discovery call with your chosen PA agency.
9. You Will Need to Reflect on How You Want to Work with Your Personal Assistant.
Knowing how you like to work and communicate is important. Think about the frequency and method of communication that works best for you.
Part of the onboarding stage will be to agree how you both want to work together, giving you the opportunity to communicate your expectations and focus your time management.
Some people like a weekly video call catch-up to look at priorities and discuss relevant work. Others like less frequent video calls, such as twice a month or monthly, with chat messaging or email in between.
However, it’s important to remember your relationship with your PA is collaborative and can even become a working partnership over time.
10. You Will Need to Choose an Experienced PA Agency to find a Personal Assistant you Can Trust.
If one of your concerns is trusting someone else to do tasks for you, your best route is to work with a PA agency that has a strong vetting process, client testimonials and years of experience matching businesses to their perfect PA.
Going through an agency means you can be specific about the skills and experience you’re looking for, no matter how niche your business is.
If you’re not willing to hand over bigger projects or responsibilities yet, that’s ok. Start with the smaller tasks and take time to build up your trust in your assistant, handing over bigger projects when you feel comfortable.
11. You Will Need an Experienced PA Agency If Handling Sensitive Data is a Part of the PA’s role.
Handling sensitive data might be essential to the interests and reputation of your business, meaning you need a PA who has knowledge, experience and skills in this area.
The most secure option for you in this case is to work with an agency who has a strict vetting process together with many years’ experience matching the right PA to a company’s requirements.
You can also require your PA to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
Final Thoughts: Setting Up for Success with Your Virtual PA’s Skills & Qualities
Hiring a virtual personal assistant becomes far less daunting when you’ve put in the upfront preparation.
Bringing on a virtual PA can establish a partnership that alleviates the pressure of your workload and plays an integral part in your business growth.
By acting on our advice, you’ll be well positioned to maximise your investment and enjoy a smooth and successful working relationship with a PA who has the essential qualities your business needs.
Reclaim Your Time and Grow Your Business with a Virtual PA.
If you’re ready to shift your focus from administrative tasks to growing your business, let a Virtual PA lighten your load. Call our team on 020 7952 1460 or email us at info@designatedgroup.com. We’re here to find you the perfect virtual PA.