An increasing number of business owners are opting to hire virtual assistants to cut down on in-house office staff.
Entrepreneurs are hiring virtual assistants to do various administrative tasks that office-based personal assistants perform.
The main difference between the two workers is that virtual assistants work remotely and are paid by the hour. In contrast, standard personal assistants work at a company’s office as salaried workers.
We look at some of the benefits and drawbacks of a personal assistant vs a virtual assistant and show you what your next steps should be.
Virtual Assistant Benefits
1 – Time Savings
Every business owner craves to save more time, and hiring a virtual assistant is one way of saving heaps of time.
Many business executives and managers are shocked at how much time small daily tasks amount to over the working week.
When you hire personal and virtual assistants, they take care of all the daily laborious administered tasks, which allows extra focus on attracting additional revenue to the business as the objective of any business is to increase turnover, which in turn increases profit.
2 – Cost-Effective
Being cost-effective is a vital element of any business.
Hiring a virtual assistant who works remotely and gets paid per hour for the task you set them saves you a considerable amount of money.
Another benefit is that you don’t have to stress about added costs such as a pension plan, holiday pay, sick pay, or any bonuses.
The person you hire for the virtual assistant position will be just as effective at their job but will cost a lot less than an in-house administrative assistant.
3 – Remote Working
Remote working has become commonplace in business due to advancements in superfast broadband speeds.
The powerful technology means that virtual assistants can be based anywhere worldwide. Indeed, most virtual assistants work in India and The Philippines.
It is not uncommon for the virtual assistant you hire to work from a different time zone to your business.
However, this can bring additional benefits because many virtual assistants can work on tasks outside your office hours.
4 – Variety Of Tasks
Knowing what tasks you want to delegate to your virtual personal assistant is essential. In addition, you may hire a virtual assistant for short-term projects throughout the year that needs a specific skill set.
A virtual assistant can’t run personal errands for you and offer in-person support. However, they can do multiple other services at a low cost.
A great virtual assistant can take charge of project management or digital marketing and routine data entry work.
5 – Productivity
Your overall productivity will increase when you hire a virtual assistant meaning more working hours are spent on things that add value to your business.
Not having to deal with time-consuming phone calls, checking social media accounts, or ordering new office supplies means you can achieve a better work-life balance.
Having the time and using it more productively will make a key difference when dealing with multiple clients on vital business tasks.
Virtual Assistant Downsides
There are a few downsides you need to prepare for as well.
1 – Communication Issues
Sometimes a breakdown in communication can stem from something as simple as a poor broadband connection.
Unfortunately, you can expect internet issues due to power outages from your virtual assistant working from another country.
This will have an impact because your line of communication always needs the internet, whether it be to use email, video call, or instant messenger.
This cannot be avoided from time to time and is something you need to be aware of.
Also, communication issues may arise from your virtual assistant speaking English as a foreign language. Sometimes things get mixed up in translation.
2 – Lack Of Direct Supervision
One of the downsides of hiring virtual assistants is that you can’t directly supervise each task, which means you can’t give them tasks that need hands-on support.
Time tracker software is used to track a task’s progress, but the work’s quality can only be assessed when the job is completed.
3 – Personality Clash
All workplaces encounter personality clashes between co-workers who work closely together, even when the virtual PA is working remotely.
Sometimes a personality clash is down to simple miscommunication, through the tone of someone’s voice or the way they word an email.
It is worth noting that you must fully understand the strengths and weaknesses of all staff members to build a strong workforce.
4 – Data Security
The data security of your company is vital. Therefore, you will need to do plenty of background checks on the person you hire.
The broadband connection your virtual assistant uses in the Philippines may be more open to hackers, which significantly compromises your company’s security.
5 – Loyalty
If you treat your workforce well, then the likelihood is they will remain loyal to your business.
Virtual assistants will work for various companies as independent contractors, so it is vital to pay them a competitive hourly wage to ensure they make your company a priority.
Flexibility in the hours they work goes a long way toward building loyalty.
Personal Assistant Benefits
Here are the main benefits you’ll get from hiring a PA.
1 – Free Up Time
As a company owner, you may hire executive assistants and personal assistants because you can see other benefits it brings.
However, the main benefit is that it frees up a lot of time.
Your office-based personal assistant can take a lot of stress off you by doing admin tasks such as making travel planning arrangements, scheduling your calendar, and email management.
2 – Diversify Available Skills
The person you hire as your assistant may have transferable skills beneficial to your business.
Many personal assistants have various skills and can offer far more than just primary admin duties.
If your assistant shows potential to progress to a more senior position within your company, such as an executive assistant, then you need to give them the opportunity.
When someone has experience doing other jobs, their skills can lead to many benefits for your business outside their primary job role.
3 – Improved Management Skills
Management skills can be taught, but only to a certain extent. Therefore, the best way to improve your management skills is by learning through experience.
Trying to do everything yourself and not delegating tasks to others will only lead to unwanted stress. Therefore, your first chance to delegate office admin tasks is employing a personal assistant.
Business owners find delegating hard because they feel they are the only ones who can perform to a high standard. Still, the sooner you give responsibility to your assistant, the quicker your management skills develop.
4 – Flexible Time Availability
Being flexible with your time is vital in any business. When you hire a flexible personal assistant who can perform various duties, it allows them to stand in for other staff members when they are sick or on holiday.
5 – Improved Admin Tasks
Personal assistants prove invaluable assets to any business administration department.
Yes, they do all the admin jobs you would expect them to do, but they can also offer added support in terms of fresh ideas they may have and play a pivotal role in helping to prepare presentations.
It is the additional skills, outside of their job description, they offer that added value to your company.
Personal Assistant Downsides
Keep these downsides in mind before hiring a PA.
1 – Cost Increases
When you employ a personal assistant, you incur far more costs than hiring a virtual assistant.
Personal assistants are employed on a full-time set salary instead of paying an hourly rate for their administrative work.
Additional costs include paying sick pay, holiday pay, pension contributions, and maternity and paternity leave.
2 – Finding A Personal Assistant
Sourcing the right personal assistant can prove problematic, then you have to have a good understanding of the hiring, training, and managing processes.
The whole process can take a lot of time and effort. This is why many companies allow outside agencies to hire a personal assistant on their behalf.
Whichever way you hire, it is best practice to set a non-paid trial before you hire them long-term.
3 – Time Constraints
The typical working day is eight hours per day, with one of these hours used as a lunch hour. In addition to this, time is also taken up by staff having coffee/tea breaks, toilet breaks, and smoking breaks. Then you have to account for the amount of time wasted chatting, using social media, etc.
When all this wasted time is added up, it amounts to at least 8-10 hours per week of non-productive work time.
If an employer requires their assistants to work extra hours, they must pay them overtime.
4 – Office Space
When you fully employ an executive or personal assistant, they may require their own office.
This can prove problematic as most businesses are designed to suit an open-plan working environment.
You don’t need the added cost of designing an office for your assistants and executive assistant.
5 – Confidentiality
Every business that hires personal assistants requires them to work with confidential information, so you must ensure the proper training processes are implemented.
It would be detrimental to your business if any data breaches leaked, damaging your company’s reputation.
We Can Help You Find The Ideal Virtual Assistant
Deciding to hire a personal assistant vs a virtual assistant can prove tricky. And hiring and training a VA is very different to hiring in-house staff.
It’s time consuming and can result in realising after a few months that you hired the wrong person.
But we can help you with sourcing, hiring, training, and managing a VA for you.
With our deep talent pool of virtual assistants, we can make your company more dollar productive and have you up and running in less than a week.
Give us a call for a hassle-free consultation.