Author: Anne

Knowing the available resources is one thing; understanding how you can make the most out of them is another. Virtual assistants might be your answer.

It is pivotal to maximise the potentials of having highly skilled personnel when it comes to delivering quality service and accuracy in execution. It includes choosing the right people to work with you. 

People you can trust. The People who can deliver. And People who have a high-People you can trust. People who can deliver. And people who have a high level of understanding of tasks and why they need those done efficiently and accurately. But where would you find such people? When you find one, what is next for you? To fully utilise the human resource available at your disposal, what else can you do?

Wouldn’t it be a great thing to have a group of highly skilled people understanding your business needs, struggles and challenges? Whether it be getting personnel to work on the nitty-gritty tasks of loan processing; or someone who could take on the challenge and meticulously execute accounting and bookkeeping tasks.

Since 2010, Virtual Office Angels Pty. Ltd. has been at the forefront of providing answers to the questions above. The very reason why they are one of the best in the industry, if not the best, is their capacity not only to deliver favourable outcomes but also to accomplish what is currently needed whilst foreseeing opportunities and, ultimately, creating a connection that leaves a lasting impression.

We Do it Because We Can

Regardless of your needs, Virtual Office Angels can find you the right fit of virtual assistants to manage, handle and execute tasks on your behalf. No frills, no overpromises, just plain excellence at work. 

Virtual Office Angels have been making marks in the lives of Australian financial advisors, mortgage brokers and business owners by helping them realise the potentials of their businesses and aiding them to create a work environment that fosters trust, respect and loyalty. 

Mortgage and Loans Processing Support 

Our mortgage and loan processing virtual assistants and support have proven to be efficient in getting the job done – the right process and procedures and within the margins.

Our mortgage and loan processing virtual assistants and support have proven to be efficient in getting the job done – the proper process and procedures and within the margins. Our virtual assistants manage the entire process from application, general critical data collection and data entry to settlement, including data entry to CRM, loan structure preparation, client/borrower communication and update, serviceability calculator preparation, valuation ordering and follow-up, discharge form preparation, preparation of other documents and forms (e.g. FHOG), file lodgement, regular mortgage broker updates and regular borrower updates. They use the most up-to-date CRM in the market, such as Connective, Mercury, Podium, Salestrekker, Symmetry, Flex, AdviserLogic and COIN.

Our virtual assistants manage the entire process from application, general critical data collection and data entry to settlement, including data entry to CRM, loan structure preparation, client/borrower communication and update, serviceability calculator preparation, valuation ordering and follow-up, discharge form preparation, preparation of other documents and forms (e.g. FHOG), file lodgement, regular mortgage broker updates and regular borrower updates. They use the most up-to-date CRM in the market, such as Connective, Mercury, Podium, Salestrekker, Symmetry, Flex, AdviserLogic and COIN.

We bank on our virtual assistants’ vast experience and high-level skillsets to ensure that when you give them something to work on, they don’t just simply accomplish it. They also create opportunities to ensure that every bit of time they spend working for you is worth it for you.

Financial Planning Support

Our top-of-the-class Virtual Assistants also assist and support Financial Our top-of-the-class virtual assistants also support financial planners and advisors from appointment setting, collating handouts, preparing templates for presentations done in PowerPoint, drafting SOAs and/or data entry into different CRMs and software, such as XPlan (e.g. Risk Researcher, WealthSolver and CALM) Midwinter and AdviserLogic.

Accounting & Bookkeeping Support

Our Virtual Assistants are always the best in their areas of expertise. Our virtual assistants are always the best in their areas of expertise. Experienced in your preferred accounting software (e.g. Xero, Saasu and MYOB), our highly skilled virtual accountants can assist you with daily, weekly or monthly invoicing and payroll, accounts receivable and payable, bank reconciliation, balance sheets, etc., ensuring that you have an accurate reporting system in place.

Hear it From the Professionals

Our current clients believe that with the help of Virtual Office Angels’ highly reliable virtual assistants, they were able to focus more on the core operations of their businesses and realise opportunities to expand the business further. Using the time freed up doing the initial steps of processing empowers them to engage more with current and potential clients, ensuring growth for more future business expansion. 

What strengthens the bond and connection between our virtual assistants, our team and our clients is the initiative to drive the business towards not just meeting the business goals but also expanding the business at a sustainable pace.

GroGrowth is vital to any business. Here at Virtual Office Angels, we ensure that every person involved in a business process gets the opportunity to learn new things whilst enhancing the current skills, systems and business outlook.  

Knowing What Matters To You

Time has always been one of the most significant factors in every successful business – alongside quality output and employee welfare. Putting a premium on the kind of work and the result being generated efficiently, at a lesser cost, is simply one of the most notable reasons why hiring a virtual assistant is not only a necessity but also a pivotal and undeniable factor in business success.

At Virtual Office Angels, we believe that connecting with people is the best way to ensure that your business does not only thrive in the analytics and technicality of things. We believe that by creating a lasting impression on the people we work with, we also open possibilities that may not have been fully realised before having a virtual assistant, such as more time assessing how your business can evolve and stand the test of time

We believe that for every minute we work with you, we help in driving you to success. Our main goal has always been to make things easier for you. We believe that we do it best when we help create a working environment that highlights trust, efficiency, quality service and, ultimately, respect for the business you work hard to establish. 

Let us start talking about how we can build a plan around your goals and objectives. Start reaping the benefits you can get by working with us. Give us a call at 1300 737 883 to reach out and experience them for yourself.

Do you want to hire virtual assistants (VAs) but are not sure and do not know how to do it and where to start?

If you’re like many small business owners and you have heard of outsourcing your work to VAs, you may like to try it but just don’t seem to know where to begin. You are not sure whether hiring VAs is a viable option because either you can’t afford them or you’re afraid that they will be unable to perform the task as well as you can or just do not know how to hire a VA and it’s too much work just to start.

The challenge for you then is if you don’t start delegating your work, how will your business grow to the next level? Can you do everything alone in a reasonable amount of time? Have you ever known somebody who can do it all by himself and wasn’t stressed out at the end of each day? How much is your time really worth? Do you have time to do it all?

Nowadays, a lot of very savvy entrepreneurs with multimillion-dollar businesses outsource their repetitive, boring and menial tasks to personal VAs from the Philippines. They appear to be a one-man show, but they have a team of VAs working for them so they can smartly do whatever they want to do.

However, if you are still not sure whether to hire a personal VA from the Philippines, let me explain further.

Competence of VAs

VAs are like any other group of employees. Some are lazy, whilst others are hardworking. Some are good at what they do, and some aren’t. Your job is to find the good ones. Fortunately, once you find a good one, you can keep him or her for as long as you wish. If you are worried that a personal VA from the Philippines couldn’t match the quality of work you put out, prepare to be pleasantly surprised. Most VAs from the Philippines are highly educated, equipped with university and college degrees and highly trained in areas depending on where you need them most. Most of them can handle the daily tedious tasks, such as email updates, calendar and appointment scheduling, transcribing, doing research, data entry, scheduling invoices, handling delivery, billing issues and much much more. Whilst you are trying to balance work and managing a business, they are there only to carry out whatever time-consuming work you put in front of them.

Cost of VAs

Compared with hiring local staff, you can afford a personal VA from the Philippines. Hiring someone locally costs a lot. Hiring someone from the Philippines doesn’t. As they work virtually as well, you save on office space, insurance, office equipment, and much much more. In addition, $1 in the Philippines goes much farther than it does here, so wages are also decreased. The monetary costs are more than compensated by the next benefit of hiring a VA.

Time

Quick, which would you rather spend your time doing: growing your business or filling out tedious paperwork? Not only is growing your business a lot more enjoyable, it’s also more profitable. Whilst you might be saving money right now by doing your own work, you are wasting tons of time that could be better spent elsewhere. In essence, you’re sacrificing future profits and a more enjoyable day for a few extra bucks now.

Hiring a VA from the Philippines or a team of VAs is not only affordable; it also costs more and more the more you put it off! Your company can’t grow unless you delegate menial tasks, and hiring a personal VA from the Philippines is a great way to start doing this. This leaves you with more time to do more of what you love and more of what is profitable!

Let’s start 2022 right!

Yes, it’s 2022 already; it’s out with the old and in with the new. Which means change for the better. But often sticking to new and ambitious goals… well… easier said than done.

Here’s what you need to know:

Create a plan of action/goal. Focus on long-term endeavours. Make sure to have a concrete plan to achieve objectives. Clients who see a system in your business usually see results which are enough to motivate them to keep going with you. Any business, small or big, must ensure that they have a plan to be profitable. If the resources invested into the business outweigh the profits, then the company can’t exist.

Market research. Do your homework; know your business, or know your product/service well, your clients and their needs. Befriending them is the key to knowing more about your clients and your business. Gather good data, and constantly measure the results. This dedication improves business intelligence.

Know your customer. Make sure you know what you really want to know with your prospective client. Clear goals matter just as much in setting up a successful resolution as they are in managing a company. Sometimes, entrepreneurs focus on what they believe customers want without seeking feedback. Make sure you are connecting with your core demographics and gathering data.

When you have all the tools needed to achieve your 2022 resolution right… then, it’s time to…

Put your act together. Always remember that all successful businesses need 100% confidence. As they say, positive thinking produces positive result. However, if you see some downfalls and pitfalls, tweaking on some areas will do…

Just remember to always KEEP MOVING FORWARD. Never quit until you see results. Let’s start your 2022 right!

Consumed by your business?  

Tired?

Burnt out?

You can choose to alter and start managing wiser. There are a lot who would say they’re managing wiser, but are they really implementing the strategy or are they just investing lip service to the idea?

Working ‘On’ your Business

It was Michael Gerber who outlined on ‘The E-Myth Revisited’ the efficient strategy of managing ‘on’ your organisation rather than managing ‘in’ it.

One has to exhaust all her time in the day to day operations like accounts and managing staff. Managing your business requires you to Stop. Stop..take a deep brOne has to exhaust all his or her time in the day-to-day operations like accounts and managing staff. Managing your business requires you to stop. Stop, take a deep breath, and look at the entirety of your business objectively. This includes marketing, strategies, systems and procedures. Looking after your business gives you an opportunity to assess, evaluate and identify new improvements, possibilities and ideas. It’s the difference between your business providing you with a job and the success you truly deserve. This is essential to provide you with the knowledge and information you need to be effective.

The most essential aspect of managing on your business is that you take time about once every week to be away from your organisation with the only purpose of looking at it rationally. There are many things which can be considered in this time, which range from vision, strategies and systems. Until you stop and do this, your organisation is likely to keep managing you, leaving you jaded, uninspired and unable to reach your full potential. At this stage, don’t worry about the information on what you need to do in the ‘once’ every week – that will become apparent as you do it. Think about the concepts, improvements and opportunities you may see.

Wouldn’t it be better if it’s an organisation that you run and control effectively rather than an organisation that controls and runs you until you’re burnt out?

YES! Delegation is one of the most imperative management skills. Good delegation saves you time, develops your people, grooms a successor and motivates. Poor delegation will cause you frustration, demotivate and confuse the other person and result in failure in achieving the task or purpose itself.

Here are the simple steps to know when your delegation is a success:

Follow these simple steps and dive right into delegation. As you become more successful in delegating, you will feel more certain in adding to your ‘Stop Doing’ list. Then, use your time on something much more impactful for your business or much more pleasurable for you.

We have prepared the best tips for you to be better in management.

So, you have become a manager, but you are now looking for ways to be better in managing. Well then, you have come to the right place as we have prepared the best tips ever. Read down below, and enjoy the ride.

Strategise

There are many ways to outwit everyone else when it comes to managing a business. Since there are a lot of factors that need to be considered, the key is to maximising everything. Planning ahead is one proven way to a better management. You can do this by customising all the perils of management that was mentioned previously. Doing this can prepare you on future problems that you may face. It is never outdated to always hope for the best yet be prepared for the worst.

Delegate

Accepting that you cannot do everything is vital to be able to lead well. Having so many limitations makes it impossible for anyone to do a ‘one-man’ show and become successful.

Whilst it may give you a lot of peace of mind knowing that you are able to greatly perform tasks on the basis of your own standard of greatness, you can actually accomplish more by delegating other stuff to others. This will be possible if you are able to train them to think and do things the way you will. Proper delegation involves being able to delegate the tasks accurately with set expectations and troubleshooting methods in case the expectations are not met.

Hire Virtual Assistants

If you have budget constraints and will have difficulty hiring traditionally, getting help from virtual assistants is your best option. In fact, there are lot of cases wherein it was proven that hiring someone to work virtually is much more effective than hiring conventionally. Not only that virtual workers cost less, other matters, such as benefits, taxes, office resources, and supplies, will not be a problem. Setting up a virtual office is surely more cost-effective than having to set up an actual office. The key is to look for quality virtual assistants that can really help your business. Virtual assistants are abundantly available on the internet; they offer different skill sets and levels of expertise.

Gather Financial Resources

Whilst keeping your outflow fluid, it is also essential that you have solid backup resources when it comes to your finances. In the event that you are unable to sustain your cash outflow vis-à-vis your cash inflow, having alternative ways to gather up finances is very important. One best way is to strengthen up your credit rating. To be assured that in the event that you will need additional capital, having the ability to secure loans is very important. When a calamity happens or an economic bump is underway, being amongst the first on the list of qualified businesses that can avail of assistance, whether from a private or government agency, is great for your business. Keeping close ties with other business owners is also one great mode of securing your financial fluidity.

Innovate

There is no sense arguing about all industries being saturated already. The business world is, no doubt, highly populated already; both with big and small players. There is no way that your venture will be successful unless you are able to provide new and fresh offers and contributions to your industry. If you cannot offer any innovation, then you will be amongst the thousand hopefuls whose dreams were turned into nightmares. It is important that you will be able to offer new and exciting stuff to your target market. Whether it is a new marketing strategy or a unique brand, the key is to be perceived different. If you will just follow the leaders in your industry or plan to duplicate one company’s success, the likelihood of getting your own success will be very remote. And if for some luck you did get successful by reproducing other’s triumph, it is expected that unless you innovate, your success will not last for so long.

Leaders, business owners, directors, entrepreneurs, whatever you call them, make decisions everyday – decisions that will be significant to the success of the company. It requires years of training and experience, years of ups and downs and years of trials and tests. These are the people who refuse to give up, persevere and kept on moving forward when all else fail.

These are the kind of people who identify the problem, focusing on the solutions instead of the situation. Once you have identified the problem, this will determine your steps as to where to start. Think through the key details about the problem, and collect any significant information.

Often, the act of gathering information is the first step towards resolving the issue. Sometimes, it’s worth talking to your next in line because most of the time the underlying cause of a problem is not conspicuous.

Once you have identified the problem, then you can generate possible solutions. Try to think on multiple solutions, and treat each worthy of consideration. Brainstorming is most of the time worth trying by gaining fresh viewpoints. Get the facts and figures, think on the pros and cons of each idea and compare.

At this stage, you have already spent a fair amount of time on the problem at hand, and of course, you want to see it taken care of. Make the decision, but before you go any further, it’s important to look critically at the problem and review your decision.

By applying experience or divergent thinking, a leader can distinguish similar situations and can be confident with the decision. You have to accept responsibility for the decision. As Tony Robbins said,

It is in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped.

Tony Robbins

Many companies and businesses stop growing because they refuse to delegate. It is a result of thinking that tasks can be handled by one person only.

If big companies, such as Yahoo and Google, delegate tasks – even allow home-based jobs – then why can’t you?

Psychologically, entrepreneurs are scared of delegating what they have created. They are afraid of taking the BIG leap of delegating tasks and letting others oversee them; afraid of making mistakes along the way; afraid that someone brighter than them would handle the tasks with flying colours and end up being their competitor instead of being their worker. But hey, if big companies see that they are growing through the delegation of tasks to tons of people, then probably it’s worth the try. Don’t you think so?!

Regardless of what the argument is, the result of delegating tasks has been proven and tested already, and all you have to do is follow what the BIG guys are doing. Who knows? You might see yourself one day enjoying with your family at your favourite beach, with your favourite cocktail drink in your hand. You might be enjoying the clear blue skies and loving life whilst you’re confident enough that your business is running smoothly because of the BIG leap that you took that you thought was scary.

Businesses these days must be smart. Entrepreneurs look for ways to stay in the business lane. Some look for alternatives to survive because of their inability to thrive within large businesses.

Realising this truth, businesses should be able to evolve in the rapidly changing market. Indeed, businesses these days have to be smarter to survive.

What are Leadership and Delegation?

Delegation is the act of assigning tasks and responsibilities, together with the necessary authority (leadership) to carry them out, to your employees. Effective delegation can save you time and motivate your team by demonstrating that you trust them and value their abilities.

Common Mistakes Managers Make When Delegating

• Don’t give enough freedom
• Don’t communicate clearly
• Aren’t open to new ideas

How to Delegate

Firstly, concentrate on the most important matters yourself. You should be doing activities that only you can do (that involve a high level of skill and, ideally, that you enjoy doing). When delegating, set broad controls and allow your team to make mistakes.

Communicate Clearly

Take the time to make your requirements known to your team member. Give a clear picture of the results you expect, the time limits involved and the authority being transferred to that team member. Also, make sure other people in the organisation know about the delegation so they can support it.

Encourage Participation

Employees are least satisfied and least motivated when they can’t inject their own ideas into the project. They need to be able to display their own talents.

Examine Results Not Methods

An effective delegator needs to accept varying approaches to achieving results. Since no two people approach a solution in exactly the same way, you need to concentrate on whether the desired results are being achieved or not or whether they are being achieved your way. A poor delegator says, ‘This is what we want to achieve, and this is how we will proceed.’ An effective delegator says, ‘Here is the result we have agreed we want to accomplish; give me your best recommendations as to how we can get that result.’

Show Trust

Allow your team members to get the job done without micromanaging. Excessive checking will convince the employees that they are not really responsible for the job.

Delegate Credit Only

You cannot delegate blame. Remember that you bear the final responsibility for the actions of your team

Know Your Team

You need to know what and how much you can delegate to a person. You should gradually increase the level of responsibility and importance of the tasks as results are successfully achieved.

Things to Avoid

Don’t let the chain of command get too long. If there are too many levels of responsibility, some information will never trickle all the way to the bottom.
Don’t ask one subordinate to report to two people. It will be impossible for the subordinate to decide whose work comes first.
Don’t make fuzzy job assignments. Grey areas between positions simply invite overlap, conflict and duplication of effort.
Don’t be too rigid. Try to maintain flexibility to provide for situations that inevitably crop up and need nonstandard solutions.

Exercise

Make a list of three things you are doing today that you should be delegating. Identify who you will delegate them to, and write down how you will go about doing so. Then, delegate.

We have prepared six ways to your successful delegation, so chill out; have others do your work.

To realise everything you are capable of achieving and to be able to concentrate on those few tasks that can make the greatest contribution to your life and work, you must become excellent at delegation. Whether you are a boss or an employee, it is a universal key to success. You must be continually seeking ways to outsource, delegate and get other people to do things that pay you a lower hourly rate than you desire to earn.

There are several ways in which you can become more effective at delegating and outsourcing or hiring other people to do parts of your work so that you can do the parts of your job that pay the most.

When to Delegate?

1. Instead of You?

Ask the question, ‘Who can do this job instead of you?’ Remember, you have to delegate everything possible in order to have enough time to do those few things that are most important.

2. Better than You?

You should ask, ‘Who can do this job better than me?’ One of the characteristics of effective managers and successful leaders is that they have the ability to find people who are superior to them in specific tasks. You should continually be looking for people who can do certain parts of your work better than you.

3. At a Lower Cost?

Evaluate the job and ask, ‘Who can do this job at a lower cost than I require?’ Many companies and individuals are finding that they can outsource major parts of their operations to companies who specialise in such areas. Companies that specialise in a particular function can usually do the job cheaper and faster than a company that does that work as part of its other activities.

4. Can It Be Eliminated?

Ask yourself and others, ‘Can this activity be eliminated altogether?’ What would happen if the job was not done at all? Many of the routinised tasks and activities in a company or business could be quite easily eliminated with no loss of productivity and a massive increase in ineffectiveness.

It is amazing how many activities go on in a business and private life that could be quite easily discontinued completely, with no loss or inconvenience to anyone. Rooting out these opportunities for increased efficiency can dramatically escalate profitability for an organisation or department.

To achieve everything you are capable of achieving, and to be able to concentrate on those few tasks that can make the greatest contribution to your life and work, you must become excellent at delegation. Whether you are a boss or an employee, it is a universal key to success. You must be continually seeking ways to outsource, delegate and get other people to do things that pay you a lower hourly rate than you desire to earn.

There are several ways that you can become more effective at delegating and outsourcing, or hiring other people to do parts of your work so that you can do the parts of your job that pay the most.