Further details of question: I’m looking to outsource my admin by hiring a virtual assistant via Upwork. What types of software should I use so they can do the following tasks:
- Manage calendar
- Create, submit and follow up on invoices
- Transcribe meeting notes
- Monitor emails for follow up
- Help to source contractors as requires- for instance IT support, etc
Answer: You’re definitely making the right decision in wanting to systemise your systems prior to hiring a VA. I’d recommend that you speak to your Systems Adviser about having appointment scheduling software set up, giving staff access to your invoicing software (with invoice templates), using software to have your transcribed meeting notes turning into action items & posted to the company blog. You’ll also be setting up a system for having your VA do a morning sweep of your inbox to remove unwanted content, do quick replies (using templated responses), tag emails for priority and add to your knowledge base. For sourcing contractors, we’d recommend keeping a central, simple database with contact details, rates, freelancer platform names & skills to compare.
