As you start hiring a virtual assistant for your business, you will need a lot of clarity on who it is you need. As an employer, it is your responsibility to be as clear as you can on who it is you need in your business and what it is they’re going to be doing.
In this article, I will be walking you through on how you can have a clear profile of the virtual assistant you want in your business so then as you start hiring, you know who to look out for.
DO YOU NEED YOUR VIRTUAL ASSISTANT TO BE ONLINE WHEN YOU ARE?
The first thing that you need to be clear about when it comes to hiring your virtual assistant is do you need them to be online when you are. This is such a small detail but really helps you be clear about the hours that your virtual assistant needs to be working and if they need to be in the same time zone as you, or if a few hours of overlap will do.
You must have clarity with this mainly because some people just can’t handle it, not having their assistant there when they’re giving tasks, and some people can. If you are clear about this, then you will be able to effectively filter out applicants who can and are willing to work on the specific hours that you need.
WILL YOUR VIRTUAL ASSISTANT HANDLE YOUR COMMUNICATIONS?
What I mean by this is you must be clear if you want someone to handle your emails, chats, or communicating to your customers or clients. The reason why you need clarity on this is for you to filter out applicants who have great communication skills in your preferred language. Based on what you need in your business, you can create a grammar test or a way to assess their communication skills effectively.
WHAT COMMUNICATION STYLE DO YOU NEED FROM YOUR VIRTUAL ASSISTANT?
Do you need someone who is straightforward, or do you want someone who has humor and is lively, or someone you can connect with as your virtual assistant. There is no right or wrong answer here. It really just depends on what your preferences are in order to be able to build that effective working dynamic.
WILL YOUR VIRTUAL ASSISTANT HAVE ACCESS TO PASSWORDS?
There are two tools that I usually recommend, one is LastPass and the other is Bitwarden. These tools give you the opportunity to share your passwords to your virtual assistant securely, although for Bitwarden, you have to pay for it.
The reason why you need clarity on this is all about security. Would it be okay for your virtual assistant’s laptop to be used by other people in their family, or they have to have a designated laptop just for work. You must set the standard for security with your virtual assistant having access to your passwords and other confidential aspects in your business.
WILL YOUR VIRTUAL ASSISTANT NEED TO MANAGE PEOPLE?
You must be clear if you need someone who has leadership and good communication skills who can effectively communicate with different people inside of your business. This is a big thing that you really need to consider as not all people are comfortable managing other people and if you’re unclear about this, you might end up hiring the wrong person and will end up costing you in your business.
DO YOU NEED SOMEONE WHO TAKES ACTION OR WAITS FOR PERMISSION?
Again, for this, there is no right or wrong answer. It really depends on if you need someone who takes initiative and gets things done right away or someone who waits until they can get your approval.
SOMEONE WHO IS ORGANIZED WITH A GOOD MEMORY OR ORGANIZED WITH EVERYTHING RECORDED?
Do you need someone who is organized because they have a really good memory which means that they remember everything if you ask them, they know how to respond or someone who has everything written down. Depending on what kind of business you have, if you need someone who has a really good note-taking system or documentation, or remember things on-the-go, the key takeaway is that you have to know which one would be most beneficial for you and in your business.
SOMEONE WHO IS CREATIVE OR LOGICAL?
Do you need someone who can think of different creative ideas on the spot or someone who could follow a series of processes, or maybe someone who could be both. Again, this is a range. It doesn’t have to be one or the other. You must set your preference to match applicants effectively.
SOMEONE WHO IS CURIOUS OR STAYS IN THEIR LANE?
These are two different characteristics of people, one who is someone who will go ahead and explore and dig things through as they’re trying to figure out a solution, and the other one who is someone that just follows a path, follows instructions given to them on point without trying to find other ways. Having clarity on this will help you find a virtual assistant who will fit right in with your working dynamics.
DO YOU NEED A VIRTUAL ASSISTANT OR A REMOTE EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT?
If you don’t know the difference between the two, a virtual assistant is more into general tasks and is usually task-based. A remote executive assistant, on the other hand, is more outcome-based. You don’t give them specific tasks to do, you give them an outcome that you’re hoping that they would be able to figure out, and then they work towards that.
You need to have that clarity if the person you need is just someone who’s going to do different tasks in your business or do you need that person to become your second brain in the long run.
Having a virtual assistant in your business is going to be super beneficial for you. The things that they could bring to the table are endless. However, if you’re unable to create a clear a profile of the type of virtual assistant that you want, chances are, you will end up hiring the wrong person and you won’t be able to fully take advantage of what a virtual assistant can do to help your business.
What are other things do you want to consider or add to your virtual assistant profile? Let me know in the comment section below!