The New Year is here, the decision to hire a virtual assistant can be a great way to make this a successful year for your business. Outsourcing work to a virtual assistant can help your business run smoothly and help you cut down on time so you can focus on the tasks most important to you. But the question of what you should be looking for in a virtual assistant can be confusing, especially if this is your first time hiring one. We’re here to help make the selection process easier, with a list of three key qualities you should look for when deciding on who to hire.
Look for adaptability
When you’re looking to hire a virtual assistant, adaptability should be one of the main things you look for in your candidates. Adaptability shows that a virtual assistant can handle whatever you throw at them. You may have a variety of different tasks you need assistance with, so you want to look for someone who has different skill sets and is able to jump in wherever is needed with little guidance.
Your business moves quickly, and you may have tasks pop-up unexpectedly. A virtual assistant who is ready and willing to change tasks when needed can help your business succeed. Ask them about how they work best. Are they someone who needs to know about projects weeks ahead of time, or are they someone who is able to receive tasks on a weekly or even daily basis? Look for people who have experience working in fast-paced environments and who have a variety of interests and skills.
Look for good communication
As your virtual assistant will be stepping in to help you with a variety of tasks and will be working remotely, it’s important that they’re able to communicate and communicate well. The last thing you want is an assistant that you can’t get in contact with or an assistant who isn’t able to communicate in a clear, efficient manner.
You can tell a lot about their communication skills in the hiring process itself. If it takes you days to set up an interview with a lot of back and forth communication, they may not be the best fit. But if you’re able to set up an interview with them with ease, this is a good sign that they’ll communicate well in the position. The interview is also a good time to assess their communication skills. Ask them about their preferred methods of communication, how they handle feedback, and their own evaluation of their communication skills to get a sense of how they’d fit into your business. If you’re hiring someone who will be writing a lot in your business, try to see some samples of their work too. This will help you feel confident that you’re hiring someone who can deliver strong work.
Look for discipline and self-motivation
Hiring a virtual assistant is different from hiring someone to work with you in an office. You won’t have as much one-on-one time, so it’s important that they are disciplined and self-motivated. The purpose of hiring a virtual assistant is to relieve stress, not add more. When you’re interviewing potential candidates, look for the ones who are able to get work done properly and on time. That way, you can rest easy knowing the tasks you assign to them will be done well and that you won’t have to spend time tracking them down for overdue work.
A good way to ensure your potential assistant is disciplined and motivated is to check their references or online reviews. If their past clients complain about their ability to meet deadlines or the need to re-do the work they hired them for, you may need to look elsewhere. But if they rave about the quality of work and their ability to get tasks done on-time, they could be a great addition to your team.
Hiring a virtual assistant can be a confusing process, but looking out for these three qualities in potential candidates will help you ensure that you’re hiring the very best.
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