How do you determine if a virtual assistant is the ideal assistant for you and your business? Resumes don’t tell the whole story.
Here are the five signs that you have found your right-fit assistant:
1. They have the practical skills to do the job
Do they have the skills to do the job? Do they know how to organize your schedule, complete administrative tasks, write briefs, and organize your inbox?
When selecting your assistant, consider what experience and training the assistant has received. Do you feel confident in their skill set?
Try this step-by-step approach:
- Identify why you are hiring an assistant. What are your big-picture goals?
- Identify what tasks and duties your assistant will need to fulfill in order to reach your goals.
- Consider what skillsets and knowledge your assistant needs to have in order to complete those tasks
- Request information on the assistant’s training and skills. Are you confident they can do the job?
Know what you need. Can you be confident your hire has the skillset you need?
2. Their communication style syncs with yours
Like any relationship, everything works better if you “get each other.” Having communication styles that work well together is a time-saver for productivity. Effective communication facilitates growth.
How do you determine the likelihood of compatibility? How do you know if you will work well together?
There are a number of reputable assessments that can streamline the discovery process and help you avoid a long cycle of trial and error. We recommend choosing a timed personality test that identifies communication and work-related personality traits.
We use the Predictive Index Behavorial Assessment. This specific test assesses the working and communication traits of test-takers and provides information about their compatibility with others. This powerful tool helps us pair our clients with their ideal assistants. It allows us to predict compatibility with improved ease and accuracy.
3. Their attitude aligns with your vision
You want an assistant with a committed, resilient and positive attitude towards you and your business. They get behind your vision and are ready for anything that might come their way. Such a virtual assistant is a likely good fit for you.
Design your interview process to determine how well your potential assistant fulfills this standard. At Superpowers, we conduct rigorous interviews with potential assistants in order to assess these qualities.
We ask precise questions that identify different qualities and provide us with a thorough and accurate profile of the interviewee. Consider questions that identify adaptability, temperament, collaboration, initiative, and growth potential.
Here are just a few helpful questions we have found useful:
- Tell me about a time when you were asked to do something you had never done before?
- What’s the most interesting thing about you that’s not on your resume?
- What was the last collaborative project you completed? What was easy and challenging about this project?
4. They lead the relationship
We at Superpowers often say, “You’re the boss, but your assistant is the leader in the relationship.” It’s critical to set expectations early so that your assistant anticipates your needs and proactively meets them.
A standard virtual assistant can complete a task for you and follow directives, but the growth these assistants provide your company is limited.
A virtual Executive Assistant is the solution for entrepreneurs who are interested in exponential growth and freedom. Executive Assistants fully commit to your vision and company. They are trained to organize and execute their tasks without relying on a to-do list provided by you.
You are busy, so your time is better spent on high-value tasks than on providing step-by-step instructions to your assistant. Is your assistant able to anticipate your needs and take leadership when you are focused on your own tasks?
We train our Superpowers Executive Assistants with the skills and the mentality to come alongside their entrepreneur as a partner, actively moving towards goals and perceiving each next step. We want our assistants to see and resolve problems for you, even before you notice them.
A virtual Executive Assistant proactively pursues your goals without you needing to provide them step-by-step directions.
5. They have a complete resource network
You now have a well-trained, compatible virtual Executive Assistant who proactively pursues your goals. Even so, your assistant is limited by their own time and skillsets.
Suppose you need to launch a website. Your assistant can manage the project, but it is unlikely they will have the skills to be exceptional in SEO, web design, graphic design, and sales funnels.
Your assistant can attempt to do these tasks alone or work to source specialists to take on each aspect; however, they are at a disadvantage. Assistants who already have a readily-available resource network of specialists and information can more effectively and efficiently clear your to-do and wish lists.
When hiring your assistant, consider what resource network is available to them. Are they connected to a network of other assistants? Can they easily connect with a conglomerate of vetted and reliable industry specialists?
Assistants who have a supportive resource network have a competitive advantage over those who do not. A pre-established network saves you and the assistant precious time by removing the need to search for specialists. They are just a call away or email away.
We’ve Designed the Perfect Process for Finding the Right Assistant
Is it time for you to find your assistant? There are numerous sites that offer standard virtual assistants, task-completers for hire. But as entrepreneurs ourselves, we struggled to find virtual assistants who took initiative, anticipated our needs, and carried our vision with the same passion as we did.
We set out to create an idealized process that kept the ease of hiring a virtual assistant but also provided the exceptional service and commitment of a traditional, high-end Executive Assistant. Tack on a powerful network of resources and industry professionals, and you have Superpowers.
At Superpowers, we handle the screening, training, and compatibility testing – you simply tell us what you need, and we find you the perfect-fit virtual Executive Assistant to take on your vision with you.
There are a lot of questions to consider when hiring your assistant – these questions are our specialty. If you’d like to discuss finding your right-fit assistant, book a Discovery Call. We’ll sort out the process with you – let’s determine what kind of virtual assistant is a good fit for you.
