Having a personal assistant will free up your time and headspace for the tasks that matter most – but should your PA be real or virtual?
Unrivalled value
There are a number of reasons why hiring a virtual assistant (VA) makes good business sense. The first is that a VA provides unrivalled value, as a result of both lower costs and higher productivity. On the costs side, VAs are independent contractors so you won’t need to provide a salary, employment contract or paid holiday. Your HR department will not have to bother with a whole host of issues such as PAYE, employer’s National Insurance contributions, a pension or employee benefits.
Being self-employed, virtual PAs have to sort these things out themselves. You won’t have to pay recruitment agency fees when hiring either. You also benefit from continuity with a VA whereas it would be unlikely that you could hire the same temp every time you needed one. This avoids the continual cost of training temps on company-specific issues. In fact, you won’t need to provide any training for a VA, as they will already be fully skilled for the job. You won’t even need to find them a free desk, a spare computer or that rare-as-hen’s-teeth item. And no issue with parking space!
Productivity
When it comes to productivity – the other aspect of the value equation – virtual workers leave employees standing. According to a survey in 2016 of almost 2,000 UK office workers, the average employee achieves slightly less than three hours of work each day, regardless of how many hours they actually spend in the office. The remainder of their time is spent on tasks such as checking social media, chatting socially with colleagues or consuming snacks. They often nip out for a cigarette, making personal phone calls and – ironically – searching for a new job! Whereas employees and temps are paid by their employer for all these unproductive activities, self-employed VAs charge only for the time they spend actually doing the tasks they are set.
Scalability
Hiring a virtual assistant allows you to scale operations while minimising your investment, thereby reducing risk. This can be invaluable when your business is a start-up, or when it’s growing rapidly but the future seems unclear. Instead of taking on employees, you can hire a VA for exactly the number of hours you need to help you manage your workload. Of course, as well as scaling up in busy periods, this gives you the ability to scale back if necessary. What’s more, having a virtual PA is better than having a part-time employee. Your VA will be on call when needed, whereas your part-timer may be on their day off when you need them most.
Commitment
People who are self-employed are generally only perceived as being as good as their last project. As virtual PAs need to have a steady flow of work to keep afloat, they are committed to doing their best, every single day. They have a vested interest in the success of your business. They offer great flexibility – often being available outside of normal office hours – so they are usually there when you need them and, to a large degree, can work around your schedule.
These are powerful reasons to hire a virtual PA rather an employee, don’t you think?
If these benefits sound attractive and you think that having a virtual PA could transform the way you work, please get in touch for an informal chat – I’d love to hear from you.