Three Skills Every Top Assistant Should Have

The best assistants are those that get the job done so well that you almost don’t know they are there because they keep everything moving with seamless organization. For many companies, this has become a virtual position because it is more cost effective and allows them to choose from a wider range of talent that they did not have access to before.

The virtual executive assistant should be able to communicate their thoughts and expressions clearly during the interview. One of the primary duties of this position is to communicate with employees, employer and customers in a variety of ways so it is important to ask about their oral and written skills since both are needed. As a virtual hire, they will do much of their communication through email and over the phone so they need to be able to represent the company in a positive way using these tools only.

Organization is another critical skill that every virtual personal assistant should have due to the range of their duties within the industry. This includes keeping track of schedules, documents, project deadlines and important details that the manager needs to know. Since the majority of business will be done via computer, the interview should include examples of how they track these various areas in a simple and efficient manner that everyone can have access to. A third quality that is at the top of every manager’s list is familiarity with the industry the business operates in so that there is a short learning curve and understanding from the first day as to what needs to be done, how to answer questions and other related tasks. A legal assistant needs to have a slightly different skillset than a real estate office assistant or a marketing assistant which is why the contract firm will ask what the client’s requirements are. This way they can identify those individuals who are most qualified from their ‘pool’ of employees to create a list of interviews that will best serve the client. The benefit is top quality talent for a lower cost because the business does not have to pay any overhead or miscellaneous costs outside of a contracted amount based on the individual’s number of working hours. Once you have found the right person for the job, be sure to set clear expectations they can be measured against to ensure productivity and successful results. 

Virtual employment opportunities are becoming more popular due to the financial, space and talent benefits but it is necessary to work with a reliable company that has top applicants to offer and is easy to work with. Make a checklist of the qualities you need for someone to work well in your business and consult these during the interview or include these requirements as part of the initial request to the firm. The above characteristics are just three of the most common ones that employers look for but there are others like computer skills and industry-specific talents that need to be considered as well.

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