How to find and hire a badass, offshore Virtual Assistant I've rejected over 3,286 of them (and counting...) What do crap VAs look like? 1. Little or no experience - fine if you have the time to mess around teaching basics. Unlikely if you really need a VA. 2. They lack basic technical skills - you're giving them access to Airtable, can they navigate easily? Is Intercom confusing? 3. Disorganised/no show/late to calls 4. Sloppy work output - contains errors and they lack the skill set you need 5. Ignore challenges and lack basic intuition What do the best VAs look like? 1. Experience working with other clients as a Virtual Assistant, across a range of tasks 2. Stellar communication skills - written and verbal comms indistinguishable from domestic colleagues. Responses are genuine and not robotic. 3. Quality work output - work is polished, free of errors and they ask questions if they're unclear 4. Responsive - the best VAs are quick responders 5. Use initiative - they'll read a support article or watch a YouTube video to learn how to use a new tool, rather than asking questions straight away Where to find Virtual Assistants 1. Job boards/Freelancing platforms You'll find plenty of candidates - quantity won't be your issue, quality will be. You'll need to be thorough in vetting candidates. Picking a few people at random or by a review of their profile/CV isn't enough. Many will be using AI tools to apply for the role/when drafting their CV. 2. Agencies You can use an agency to headhunt for you - you've probably heard of the sheep herding one amongst others 😅... often expensive (roughly $3-4k, ~20-30% of first year salary) or they'll mark up the hourly rate if you're working through them. 3. Self promo 🤮 - QuickHire VA I've bridged the gap between 1 and 2 with QuickHire VA - pre-vetted exceptionally-talented people that I introduce and matchmake you to. Lacking in time and don't want to pay agency fees? Let me find someone exceptional at a fraction of the cost. The secret to distinguishing between poor and exceptional VAs ✨Their work output ✨ It's no secret - when you set a task that's inline with the role's responsibilities, you can easily assess the quality of work. Yes, it takes time to create a suitable task, but I've yet to find a better predictor of success. Many can talk a good game, but what does their work say? Score their work against objective criteria and only progress with the highest scorers What does a good hiring process look like? 1. CV screening (general presentation/abilities) 2. Complete a task as above (quality of work and management of deadlines) 3. Interview highest scorers (turning up on time, communicate and present well) What should you expect to pay? The average range of the folks on my books is $7-12 USD/hr (based in Philippines, Eastern Europe, across Africa and LatAm). You can find cheaper, but typically those are folks that are either doing a more basic role (e.g. pure customer support) or they're less experienced. If you don't have time - I've done the hard work for you. What I've shared above is my process: 👉🏽Check out QuickHireVA.com 📩Drop me a DM