Hiring "executive" virtual assistant

[TRGali]

Hey guys,

Anyone would like to share their experience about their virtual assistant? Also, how / where to hire (country + recommended website or alternative) a remote assistant to deal with both personal and work topics would be helpful in my case now.

I previously went with a ukrainian woman as assistant, but it feels she is at the maximum she can give and it's clearly not good enough for me, in terms of skills and also of being able to think outside the box and deliver a result no matter what. But I also wonder if it can ever be enough for people like us...

Which countries have you found to breed their people with a good education and skillset and remain reasonable in terms of wage (in my case, I need someone to speak fluently both russian and english). I suspect the country may play an important role due to education/skills but of course there are exceptions. I don't look for cheap, as I understood that when you pay peanuts, you tend to get monkeys. But I also don't want someone from a high wage country, pay a high price and still get a monkey. What's the country/salary range you have found to get someone that you don't want to loose?

I would appreciate your experiences if you have and are willing to share them.

 

[clemens]

I previously went with a ukrainian woman as assistant, but it feels she is at the maximum she can give and it's clearly not good enough for me, in terms of skills and also of being able to think outside the box and deliver a result no matter what. But I also wonder if it can ever be enough for people like us...

I've tried over the last year to find reasonable VAs, but it just seems impossible. Most take on more work than they can handle, and yes, some can't even think for themselves and are dumb as a doorknob! I'm very frustrated that there aren't reasonable and responsible VAs out there that I can find.

Maybe this thread can help uncover where to find sensible and skilled virtual assistants who can be used for more than just simple tasks.

 

[jafo]

I've tried over the last year to find reasonable VAs, but it just seems impossible. Most take on more work than they can handle, and yes, some can't even think for themselves and are dumb as a doorknob! I'm very frustrated that there aren't reasonable and responsible VAs out there that I can find.

Maybe this thread can help uncover where to find sensible and skilled virtual assistants who can be used for more than just simple tasks.

Forget this! This is like finding a diamond in a gold mine!

I was going to write my experiences here, but why? This is a foolish path to follow. Try to automate. That's what I do. I dumped this idea in 2003 and life has been great with automation.

 

[boomy]

you can't automate everything and for some stuff you really need extra hands.

 

[jafo]

you can't automate everything and for some stuff you really need extra hands.

Then find time!

In addition, I would like to introduce to you all the statistics on getting a

1. productive,
2. loyal,
3. educated,
4. energetic,
5. intelligent personal assistant with
6. integrity.

The odds are worse than getting a successful marriage.

Think about what you all are trying to do. Numbers do NOT lie!

 

[369]

Experience is there are two types of workers.

First one to dumb to execute anything properly where you spend more time than saving
second one smart enough to execute your tasks for a limited time frame before moving on and creating your own competition.

 

[boomy]

You can't do everything alone, who has learned you guys that. If you want to grow big you have to employee people to help you do so.

 

[Cavendish]

My wife has been a full time VA for the last 6 years after spending a career in the Corporate arena with COO's, CEO's etc (UK). As a result I have heard many stories of incompetent VA's that have dumped their clients as they didn't know what to do, and on numerous occasions the other half was called to pick up the pieces and restore the client relationship. A reoccurring problem is that clients who are on say 10 hours a week expect an instant response and task completion and don't recognize that 75% of the time the VA is working for other clients. She has gone PAYE now as the unpredictability of clients scheduled hours didn't promote a regular stable income, and also the average pay is less than 50% of what clients pay agencies for the services. Just a view from the other side!

 

[Frank in Bangkok]

you can't automate everything and for some stuff you really need extra hands.

Agree 100% with @boomy.

I have assistant now; middle-age woman, with computer saavy and willingness to learn and willingness to help.

BUT ... I think mistake is thinking that "virtual assistant" means hiring virtually, i.e. over the Internet.
Nooooo.

I hired face-to-face, from an on-line ad I placed in the city where I live.
She came to my condo for the interview, and since two years has been doing a great job.
Lives only about 5 Km away, but I don't actually see her for months at a time.
We communicate by "chat" messages and email almost every day.

And -- wait for it -- she cooks, too!
I send her 2-3 recipes every week, and send money for ingredients, and she prepares the food and sends to me by motorcycle messenger delivery.

So my contribution to this thread is this: sure, go ahead and work "virtually", but don't hire that way.
Hire in person, face-to-face, someone who lives nearby.

 

[Cavendish]

Agree 100% with @boomy.

I have assistant now; middle-age woman, with computer saavy and willingness to learn and willingness to help.

BUT ... I think mistake is thinking that "virtual assistant" means hiring virtually, i.e. over the Internet.
Nooooo.

I hired face-to-face, from an on-line ad I placed in the city where I live.
She came to my condo for the interview, and since two years has been doing a great job.
Lives only about 5 Km away, but I don't actually see her for months at a time.
We communicate by "chat" messages and email almost every day.

And -- wait for it -- she cooks, too!
I send her 2-3 recipes every week, and send money for ingredients, and she prepares the food and sends to me by motorcycle messenger delivery.

So my contribution to this thread is this: sure, go ahead and work "virtually", but don't hire that way.
Hire in person, face-to-face, someone who lives nearby.

Great advice, and sounds like she is definitely a keeper!

 

[JohnLocke]

I hired face-to-face, from an on-line ad I placed in the city where I live.
She came to my condo for the interview, and since two years has been doing a great job.
Lives only about 5 Km away, but I don't actually see her for months at a time.
We communicate by "chat" messages and email almost every day.

That's actually a really great method you've come up with there. I've personally tried to find VAs a ton of times and never really found one where it worked as it should.
In which country do you live that allowed you to create such a job posting, and where did you post it?

 

[Frank in Bangkok]

In which country do you live that allowed you to create such a job posting, and where did you post it?

Location is Bangkok, Thailand.

Ah, where did I post it?
That's a problem.
I do NOT recommend at all, but I posted on Craig's List.
In years past, I had good success with Craig's, but NOT recently.
The List Police keep taking down my posts for "violations of posting guidelines", but they never say what the violations are.

But there's a better way, if you live in a "second world" country.
The culture here -- and throughout the Orient, is low-trust.
Most people won't trust strangers on the Internet.
With my assistant/helper mentioned above I just got lucky.
But if I had to hire another one, I would NOT post on the Internet.

Instead, I've hired other helpers by word-of-mouth.
That works so much better, for me and for them.
I tell the receptionist in my building that I'm looking for
a helper, and the security guard at the front gate, and the
clerk in the pharmacy across the street, etc.
Each of them tells some of their friends.
And each of those tells more friends and/or family members.
In addition to telling about the job I have available, they also pass
on information about me; my attitudes, my curmudgeonly personality, etc.
And with a little patience on my part, after a few weeks, someone appears who is just right for the job.

Because there are links of trust in that method, no matter how thin, it usually works out very well, in a "second tier" society like this.
If the original poster of this thread lives in a second tier country, that's what I would suggest he do.
But in a Western country, that approach to hiring probably wouldn't work very well because friendship networks are not so strong.

 

[0xDEADBEEF]

Just wondering out of curiosity.

What access to your personal life/data do you give to your VA/PA?

 

[cuno]

You could definitely create a standard job posting on various job databases in Western European countries, looking for an assistant for various online tasks where there's no need to physically show up anywhere but work from home. All communication would be through video chat, Skype, etc., and then you'd agree on the terms for this.

During the COVID-19 period, this was how many people worked, and many still do.

 

[Frank in Bangkok]

For English AND Russian speakers, look in Phuket, Thailand.

This is a "far out" suggestion.
Here in Thailand, I see often news about Russian "tourists" arrested for working here in Thailand.
The police enjoy enforcing a law that allows only Thai citizens to work most occupations.

Many Russians visiting here must be eager, perhaps desperate, for work that produces income.
Some are willing to risk meeting the police while trying to find work.
I admire that level of courage.

Who was it who said, "In Russia live Russians."?
Well, In Phuket, also live Russians, many.
If you advertise for a VA in Phuket, you might get a lot of Russian speakers wanting work online.
Some of them will, of course, have good English.
And lots of foreigners here (not Thai citizens), find work online, with no legal problems.

In Phuket there are Internet forums for expats, tourists, digital nomads, etc.
But which of those are popular among Russian speakers, I have no idea.

 

[uplana]

For English AND Russian speakers, look in Phuket, Thailand.

This is a "far out" suggestion.
Here in Thailand, I see often news about Russian "tourists" arrested for working here in Thailand.
The police enjoy enforcing a law that allows only Thai citizens to work most occupations.

Many Russians visiting here must be eager, perhaps desperate, for work that produces income.
Some are willing to risk meeting the police while trying to find work.
I admire that level of courage.

Who was it who said, "In Russia live Russians."
Well, In Phuket, also live Russians, many.
If you advertise for a VA in Phuket, you might get a lot of Russian speakers wanting work online.
Some of them will, of course, have good English.
And lots of foreigners here (not Thai citizens), find work online, with no legal problems.

In Phuket there are Internet forums for expats, tourists, digital nomads, etc.
But which of those are popular among Russian speakers, I have no idea.

Hiring illegal Russians as a VA for permanent work won't last for long. I like the idea to try to find one you meat in person and hire as an VA, but it should be a person who is legally resident in your city or country.

 

[Semper]

I share the same frustration with finding a good VA. I usually go on upwork and hire them for small tasks, but the results have been mediocre at best. This takes more time than actually doing the task yourself because you have to be extremely specific with what you want, but I've found it's the best way of filtering early on.

The issue is that someone loyal, intelligent, and able to execute tasks efficiently is very rare and won't do it for cheap. If this person was born in a third-world country, he has already managed to find a good job in a company there or has left for better opportunities elsewhere.

My current take is to hire a "project manager" instead of a VA and let them figure out how to execute a project, even if they need to hire other freelancers.

 

[ImKing]

his takes more time than actually doing the task yourself because you have to be extremely specific with what you want,

very true, it is an annoying task to go through every time you want someone new to help you. It's difficult to find a good VA long term

 

[Houdini]

has anyone had luck with any good VA service?

 

[jafo]

has anyone had luck with any good VA service?

I wrote about it here:

My job is so easy....

Client orders a product, sends the money (or depending on the client, I ship first), he receives, he pays. Client orders e.g., XYZ product. Suppliers, VAs, etc. will send him XyZ, or XYz, or zYX, or YZX etc., You name it and people can't do simple stuff! Like seriously...how is this so difficult?
I'm being worked to death (almost) to keep up with demand. It's crazy...

No joke.... I went to a shoe factory in Europe (I know, but some still exist). I was willing to buy some samples and test them. I asked for size 46. Over a dozen people brought me sizes ranging from 38 to 45. Every time I tell them it's too small, they try to make up for it by offering me a "discount." Like WTF???!!!
Can't they see that I don't fit in anything 45 or smaller?

Drove me nuts!

Good luck finding a good VA. Please keep us updated!