It is probable that the majority of companies around the world were not prepared to face the pandemic that started in 2020. Maybe, some companies with a lot of years on the market were, but young companies not so much. This situation brought meaningful changes for one of our customers, a Puerto Rican company, Business Atelier. Hiring a virtual assistant might sound a bit risky at the beginning, even for a place who hired someone like this before, but this is one of the changes that caused them an impact on the pandemic. Their initial need was having a customer service virtual assistant that would help them in multitasking to begin with, because as a new company they never had a role like this one in their company.
The first ‘Customer Success Specialist’ hired, as they called her, started in December 2020. They did not require a specific profile, it was enough to have conversational English and some experience in customer service. They were in charge of all the training due to the quantity of tasks in different areas at the moment, which are less than the current ones. Around 4 months later, they realized how helpful this choice had been for their progress at the Company. They saw the need to hire more virtual assistants due to the increasing tasks and demanding projects on their business. Currently, 4 people recruited from our human talent are working, sharing a characteristic in common: being fast learners. Three of them are performing a role of “Customer Success Specialist” which is an administrative role that saves a lot of time in tasks such as: being the main point of contact between the person in charge of each department and the customer, constantly checking and replying the email, managing and organizing documentation so it is always handy when needed. The fourth one is a front-end developer and marketing designer who supports the Marketing department both internally and externally.
Business Atelier is a specialized firm founded by a couple of entrepreneurs who started a whole new process of developing a business. It is thanks to the experience acquired during this time that now they are able to help out other businesses to start from zero or improve their management in different aspects. Taking into account the experience from our virtual assistants in Sharkhelpers working from them, they are a team who puts on their client’s shoes, helping new and current businesses to reach their highest potential and provide support in things which they are not well prepared for, such as maintaining a cash-flow analysis, work on legal advisory, even with government grants. All this offers a space for the client to focus more on the essence of their business, and not to waste their time on things that can be better managed by virtual assistants, and more productive in professional hands.
We are constantly supporting each team’s process, following up on them weekly or bi weekly, and assisting them whenever they need to. This involves making sure they are fulfilling their tasks, and knowing if they have any difficulties in complying with them so we can help them find a solution, and keep looking for new ways to continue improving. All this makes the process of each role more pleasant due to the supportive activity they get from our specialized project manager. As well as active pauses or virtual recreational activities where all teams get together on a monthly basis, we also like to reward them on special occasions such as their birthdays, meaningful national festivities, and celebrations that have to do with their professions.
Business Atelier is a potential example of how challenges bring out empowering situations for both the client and the VA. Due to the advantages they bring to their team in terms of facilitating their time and helping out as necessary in pro of their growth as a company, at the same time providing growth to their VAs as they are acquiring experience in new fields.
