Step 1: Create a job brief.

• What tasks are you willing to delegate?
   
• What tasks do you need help with in your business?
   
• What skillset are you looking for?
  • Soft skills (reliable, hard-working)
     
  • Technical skills (experience with certain platforms)
     
  • What are the must-haves and what are the “preferred” skills?
     
  • Think of the main skills, as long-term you can always up-skill your Virtual Assistant.
    • What time do they need to work? Ad-hoc or at certain hours of the day?

Step 2: Post the job on different platforms.

• Create a pool of applicants from the usual channels for VA online profile posts (OnlineJobs, Upwork), as well as social media platforms such as:
  • Virtual Assistant Network Philippine
     
  • Philippine Virtual Assistants Group-Filipino Virtual Assistants Community
     
  • Online Filipino Worker
     
  • M2M Jobs
     
  • Call Center Job Hiring (BPO Jobs and More)
     
  • Philippine Virtual Assistant Network
     
  • HR Group Philippines
     
  • IT Recruitment Hub PH
     
  • FreeLancers In the Philippines(FLIP)-by Jason Dulay
     
  • Virtual Assistant PhilippinesDirectories
     
  • Philippines Job Hiring ®
     
  • Urgent Job Hiring Agency/Company

Step 3: Review the applications.

• Based on the different platforms, review applicants’ profiles and reviews from previous hirings.
   
• Create a web form with the specific questions that are important for you and you want VA to answer.
  • You can use Wufoo, alternatives are SurveyMonkey and Google Forms.
     
  • This will help you review the answers in the same format, instead of reviewing the different styles of applications that are submitted.
    • Export all applicants’ answers into a spreadsheet, and filter them based on your top 5 to 6 criteria.
       
• Make an initial screening interview with the shortlisted candidates, to ensure experience, skills and home setup test.

Step 4: Panel Interview.  

• Head Recruiter (or head of your HR) and a member of Management conduct a video interview with shortlisted candidates who passed the initial screening.
  • Ask questions to understand personality and work style, cultural fit, job expectations.
    • Example questions:
      • Why do you want to work for my company?
         
      • What have you enjoyed most in your previous jobs?
         
    • Look out for how they are answering the questions to understand their personality.
       
  • Provide feedback on the application so far.
     
  • If applicable, assign a test task and provide feedback on the execution.

Step 5: Hire and Day 0 Orientation.

• Sign an agreement form with the Virtual Assistant you decided to hire.
  • An agreement form is a work contract, it must outline details about the job as well as confidentiality.
     
• Orientation Day to set up all the onboarding before the official first day of work.
  • Share what’s the company’s background.
     
  • How does this job fit into the whole organisation?
     
  • What is the cultural life in the company?
     
  • What are the core values that you live by?
     
  • What are the company’s future goals that you want to share to inspire and motivate the VA?
     
  • What are your expectations?
    • Example: How much communication you want in the beginning? Do you want a daily report?
       
  • What are your communication channels?
     
  • Setup their expectations.
    • Example: How and when are they going to be paid.
       
• Provide initial training on how you want the VA to do her job.
  • Even if the VA has the skillset that you want, it is important to outline how you want the job performed, in order to receive the results that you want.