Outsourcing is a proven means of helping businesses cut resource costs while getting the same level of work output quality from an outsourced virtual assistant. Some companies even hire groups of hardworking people in offshore locations to maximize benefits.
Some have failed in their ventures of outsourcing relevant tasks internationally. This is almost always due to their ineffective hiring strategies and managerial processes.
These businesses have either hastefully hired people in other countries, or incorporated incorrect management policies. Easy come, easy go, and incorrectly written hiring policies will most likely cost you a lot higher than you initially planned.
Inaccurate or outdated pieces of information will harm almost any venture. This means you always need to keep your head up for relevant updates and changes. Keep in mind to get such information from widely known sources of useful advice. These sources can be widely known experts in the industry with relevant experience, or registered firms and licensed government agencies operating in the countries you arre trying to outsource your work to.
Listed below are a few of the benefits you can acquire from outsourcing necessary tasks to a proficient outsourced virtual assistant. Make it a point to consult credible local tax lawyers and business consultants specializing in this industry. These people can give you updated and accurate information relevant to your business.
1) Save time and money among other valuable resources. Hiring offshore assistants through offshore companies means you do not need to set up an office site. This can greatly reduce your costs. A good advice is to invest in virtual office software to automate some tasks necessary for running a business with offshore staff.
2) Wages for the same level of skills and expertise are lower in developing countries. This means you can hire more assistants for the price of a local professional in your country. This can quickly grow your manpower resources and help you develop more products, launch marketing campaigns or offer various services. You can even blast your competitors away by reducing the prices of your products and services.
3) Even micro entrepreneurs can do this. They can start doing business by hiring a couple of assistants. They can assign repetitive yet necessary tasks which need a lot of time. This can allow them to concentrate more on vital sections necessary for rapidly growing their companies.
4) Acquire wider market reach. Assigning important tasks to a proficient outsourced virtual assistant also means that you hire an individual experienced and knowledgeable in the habits and culture of locals. This can work to your advantage in case you're planning to expand to a bigger target market.
5) Pay lower taxes as well as employee benefits and insurance. Most assistants working under offshore companies as well as independent contractors need to pay lower benefit shares and insurance contributions as well as personal income taxes.
At this point, these few outsourcing pointers can help you find highly skilled and reliable assistants. Incorporate these into your hiring policies and managerial strategies, and you will most likely maximize your efforts.
1) Carefully study areas of the world with highly skilled people in specialized industries. Each country has locals with varying skills and expertise across various fields, mostly because advocated developmental plans of the society as a whole, the private sector and their government concentrate on particular fields. There are also big differences in standard wage pricing structures. Always remember to thoughtfully weigh your options before hiring.
2) Learn about the culture of each country where you plan to hire offshore staff. This can provide you with substantial information helpful for your managerial processes.
3) Establish a friendly relationship with someone local who has access to manpower sourcing resources and networks. This individual can be your "go to guy", making him or her your 1st virtual assistant.
4) Assign tests to applicants with qualified credentials, achievements and experience. Those exams should be relevant to the tasks you need done on a daily basis.
5) Properly communicate with your assistants. Lack of communication or miscommunication can often lead to issues. A useful advice is to hire a manager to monitor a team of assistants in case you need to hire a handful of people. The manager can be one of your first few assistants, particularly the person who has proved his or her reliability, proficiency and professionalism.
6) Give constructive feedback, incentives, rewards and pomotions. This will inspire your assistants and can even give them the initiative to study new tasks unfamiliar to them, making them very valuable assets of your company.
7) Since they will be telecommuting, require them to be online and available via IM tools such as Yahoo! Messenger and Skype, email, mobile and phone during their shift. Also ask them to send daily email notifications at the start of their shift. A detailed daily work progress or status report along with their completed output should be emailed by your assistants at the end of their shift. Notifications through email a couple of hours before the start of their shift, in case they cannot go to work due to valid reasons like health concerns, family emergencies, typhoons and blackouts among others.
The outsourcing tips above can greatly help you search for the best outsourced virtual assistants. These can also educate you about certain effective managerial strategies when managing an assistant or even groups of people in other countries. Remember to read more specific and updated information from experts in this industry. This will arm you with updated information and helpful advice before making an informed decision.