For most entrepreneurs, time is of highest essence. They have to juggle between multiple tasks: from marketing, sales, customer service, product, and HR. These tasks are repetitive in nature, and irrespective of their priority, they may have to invest a significant time in completing them.

If you are in the same shoes, you are likely struggling to save up time for high-level tasks, which are most important for the growth of your business. This is where you can hire virtual assistants and delegate execution-level tasks to them so that you can focus on what truly matters: expanding your business operations.

But at the same time, you may wonder, “how do I hire a virtual assistant?” This quick guide is designed to help you navigate the intricacies of hiring a VA. So, let us dive in.

Decide what tasks will you assign to the virtual assistant

Before moving towards the job description creation process, look carefully at what tasks are eating up most of your precious time. Are you also working on the tasks that do not necessarily require your direct involvement or expertise? For instance, a lot of entrepreneurs end up giving unnecessary time and attention to these things:

  • Customer service
  • Email management and filtering
  • Calendar scheduling and appointment setting
  • Travel arrangements
  • Basic bookkeeping and invoicing
  • Research and data entry

Once you get a clear understanding, proceed to creating the job description. Remember that it should be clear, concise, and includes every essential job-related detail.

Choose whether you want to hire locally or remotely

Based on your budget to hire virtual assistants, you can decide to go either with local or remote talent. Each hiring model has advantages and disadvantages. Unlike remote talent hiring, which may require you to set up an entity in their country, you can skip these expenses by hiring local talent. Your pool of talent is generally limited to your geographical location, however, global hiring grants you access to a wider pool comprising talent with diverse skills, experiences, and backgrounds. For instance, Filipino virtual assistants are well-known for their experience with US companies. That’s why most businesses in the US prefer hiring VAs in the Philippines and even India, for time zone compatibility.

Decide on your hiring platform

The decision to choose either your internal HR and recruitment team or a 3rd party staffing platform depends on your needs, preferences, and priorities. Choose a staffing platform for a wider talent pool, pre-vetted candidates, and quick turnaround times. On the other hand, you can leverage your internal HR and recruitment team to hire virtual assistants who align with your company’s culture and values.

Lastly, once you start receiving the profiles, ensure to review each one, including their cover letter. Select the ones who closely match your job requirements across all aspects: skills, experience, certifications, education, etc. When interviewing them, assess their personality, communication skills, and problem-solving abilities. Be prepared with scenarios or questions where you can learn more about how they will handle your tasks. Make sure to clearly communicate your expectations from the role and also demonstrate their growth in the company in the long-term.

Once you have found your ideal VA, it is time to onboard them. Your onboarding process should be streamlined and structured so that the hired candidate gets integrated into your company quickly and without any hassle.