The Virtual Assistant Part I

Writing

e-Writing
from the desk of Elsie Lee, ELIX Virtual Management

The Virtual Assistant Part I

By Elsie Lee
Thursday, February 28, 2002

HOORAY! IT’S THE ALL-NEW GIRL FRIDAY

Small businesses can look to a growing Virtual Assistant industry to supply their management and administrative needs – without the costs of full-time staff.

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Dr Denis Waitley, author of The Psychology of Winning, predicted that with the advent of the virtual office, the notion of a full-time permanent job would be obsolete in less than 20 years.

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The economic rationale for engaging the services of a VA is compelling. Since a VA is not an employee, businesses save cost on staff-related benefits such as Central Provident Fund contributions, insurance, medical benefits and manpower training.

The arrival of the new economy -- or the Internet Economy-- has had a great impact on our lives and is fast changing the way we do business, the way we live and learn, and the way we work.

Businesses will not only have to compete with others locally but also globally in this Internet driven economy.

The virtual world is borderless. Goods and services are changing hands with Internet speed as the supply chain shortened and productivity is increased.

E-commerce, e-business and e-learning are the trends today. We are also witnessing a rapidly changing face of the workplace – downsizing, automation, teleworkers, virtual offices and increased small business start-ups.

Dr Denis Waitley, author of The Psychology of Winning, predicted that with the advent of the virtual office, the notion of a full-time permanent job would be obsolete in less than 20 years.

Employees will then be hired on a temporary, contractual basis to work on projects and assignments until they are completed.

And as businesses strive for higher profitability by becoming leaner and more efficient, outsourcing will be the guiding mode of employment.

Companies will outsource the non-core functions of their businesses so that they can concentrate on the core functions of building and growing their businesses.

As outsourcing continues, many people will work out of their homes for a variety of clients. Thanks to the Internet and rapid breakthroughs in interactive telecommunications services, the Virtual Assisting industry is an emerging industry embraced by many in the online community.

What is a Virtual Assistant?

A Virtual Assistant is an independent contractor, usually working from a fully equipped home office, who provides management or administrative support services for entrepreneurs, start-ups, small and medium-sized enterprises or business executives via the Internet. The services provided by VAs vary from one individual to another, based on their area of expertise. In addition to administrative support, many VAs offer other more specialized skills, running the gamut of website maintenance to “virtual foreign office” for companies going international.

Work assignments are communicated through E-mail, phone, fax, diskette or file transfer, and real-time online messaging. So clients virtually have an office and someone working for them but not in reality because a VA is not their employee at their place of business. A VA is self-employed, an entrepreneur in essence.

The economic rationale for engaging the services of a VA is compelling. Since a VA is not an employee, businesses save cost on staff-related benefits such as Central Provident Fund contributions, insurance, medical benefits and manpower training.

There is also substantial cost-savings in capital outlay since no equipment or extra space is needed. Clients can tap on the expertise of a VA in areas beyond their scopes of competence. There is also more time left for core functions of a business such as planning, marketing, financing, customers support.

¨Tomorrow: Find out how viable it is for small businesses to use Virtual Assistants.

First published on Monday, May 1, 2000 in The Straits Times, Recruit Section.

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