Hiring a full time, in-house personal assistant is a job in itself. There’s the lengthy recruitment process (time and money), the office space (more money), the constant management (time and money), the annual salary (money, money) and a constant flow of work to delegate, because if you’re not delegating you’re paying for someone to sit doodling using your stationery, in your office (lots of money and stress).
If you’re a big firm with a backlog of administration to carry you through to Christmas, you’ll need full time helping hands, but for most small businesses and entrepreneurs it’s a waste of money and more stress. The solution? A virtual part-time PA who works a set number of hours a week, exactly when you need them the most. Here’s how it works:
Choose one of Outsourcery’s price plans according to the hours of assistance you need. The entry package provides 5 hours of dedicated assistance a month for those who need someone to keep their accounts ticking over, manage spreadsheets and prepare research for just £133 a month, but if you’re suffocating under piles of disorganised papers and a bursting inbox you might be better to opt for a semi part time virtual PA who can work with you for up to 50 hours a week (it’s still cheap at only £820 a month). There’s several packages in-between or we can even prepare you a bespoke deal to suit your specific needs.
So when you’re choosing the hours your assistant works according to the work you’re delegating, you know the time you’re paying for is productive, but how can you be sure it’s actually cheap?
What if we told you that it will cost you 137% more to employ an in-house PA in UK compared to the cost of hiring a part-time Outsourcery assistant? Plus, Outsourcery saves you time by handpicking only the very best assistants so that when you sign up you know it’s not only much cheaper, but also completely reliable. You don’t have to worry about the finding or paying for extra office space, HR costs, sickness or maternity leave, or even technical issues. In our Cape Town offices, we expertly manage the whole process for you so that you never have to see the seams.
Right so we know it’s going to save you time, money and grey hairs, but what about the importance of establishing a team and company loyalty?
Top 5 tips for integrating your part-time virtual PA into your professional culture
- Introduce your PA to your other employees and include them in meetings
Your Outsourcery PA might be based in Cape Town, but it’s important that your office get to know who they’re speaking to on a day to day basis. It will create a greater sense of trust and a feeling of togetherness. Provide your PA with profiles of your in-house employees, explaining exactly what their role is within the company and ask them to prepare their own profile that you can show your team. If you’re the type of business to hold regular meetings, invite your part-time PA to join over Skype so that they can take notes, listen and learn the inner workings of your organisation.
- Provide formatting templates, colour schemes and logos
We ask all of our clients to send us profiles so that our PAs can be briefed before they start working for you, but it’s always a good idea to share any style guides you might have so that your assistant can get to know how you like things to be presented. If you do this early on it will save you time and it will make your PA feel part of the business.
- Encourage your part-time assistant to share their ideas
Make it clear from the start that your virtual PA’s ideas and suggestions are valued and appreciated. They might discover a new app that your company should try or be able to recommend a particularly good graphic designer. The more you encourage collaboration, the greater enthusiasm and loyalty your assistant will feel for the business.
- Give them a call
Sometimes calling someone seems like more of an effort than sending a email, but generally it’s a better way to communicate with your virtual PA as you’re able to more fully explain the tasks and respond immediately to their questions. It’s more personable than sending an email too, especially if you use Facetime or Skype.
- Provide feedback
You might not always have the time to fully respond to tasks your virtual assistant has completed, but make sure you show your gratitude when you can. Try sending an email every now and then thanking them for their hard work, and provide suggestions of how they might be able to improve their work.
If you’re still unsure as to how much and what kind of assistance you need, why not sign up to a free trial so that one of our talented PAs can impress you first hand.
