Pro Tip: Using Virtual Assistants for Teams

There’s a common misconception that virtual assistants are solely personal assistants, and while they do work well in one-to-one working relationships, virtual assistants are equally as effective at helping teams reach efficiency. Here’s a few reasons why:

No more missed connections

When a virtual assistant works with agroup, he or she has an overarching view of what is going on within the organization and can keep everyone connected. That means you never have to worry about which of your teammates is owning which tasks and how that impacts your own deadlines. With your virtual assistant organizing your team around the work, they will be able to see points of connection and communicate them clearly to the entire group.

Simplified scheduling

Have you ever tried to schedule a meeting for a group and all but one person was free at the same time? Do you try to book over that other meeting? Do you ask them to move it? What if it’s important? When working with a virtual assistant, he or she will have a personal relationship with each team member (and access to their calendars) and can see the best availability to schedule meetings for the group, plus take over any rescheduling to find times for important contacts outside your group.

Improved work quality

A virtual assistant hired for a group can get immersed in the company culture, and will have a common theme around all the tasks he or she is assigned. This leads to a deeper understanding of the tasks and better targeted work than if the assistant had diverse clientele. For the organization, this translates into high quality output.

Now that you’re ready to get started, here’s a few tips and suggestions to make the most out of your shared virtual assistant:

• Have the virtual assistant own all team meetings and correspondence. Since he or she has ultimate visibility into the whole team, he or she is best suited to schedule, create agendas, take notes in the meetings, and follow up with people on their defined tasks from the meeting.
  
  
• Give your virtual assistant insight into all any ongoing projects so they’re well versed on what’s happening in the organization. This helps create deeper learning and allows him or her to make educated decisions as they complete their tasks.
  
  
• Set up — or have your virtual assistant set up — some platforms for streamlined collaboration and project management. This will help increase the communication between team members on shared work. Check out some of these tools for suggestions!

A virtual assistant can be a powerful resource for teams to become more efficient and improve the quality of work. Virtual assistants come trained in a variety of skillsets so they can be helpful additions administratively and for more targeted projects, like research, social media management, or even design. To learn more about using a virtual assistant for your group, request a consultation!