Many small businesses do not have the space or budget for support staff, or you may just need short term assistance or only a few hours a week.
You will receive competent, professional support without paying for:
- Tax, National Insurance, Holiday and Sickness pay, Pension contributions and other employee benefits
- Recruitment Agency Fees
- Computer equipment and training
- Office space – I work from home
A full time PA employed by your business would cost around £30k per year (in the Thames Valley), plus of course the related costs as above.
A recent article in The Times business section quoted that it takes 25 minutes for a worker to regain focus on a task interrupted by a phone call, an email or a conversation.
The regular office worker is distracted up to 20 times a day.
Other studies have found that only 3 of the 5 days that British staff work in an office environment are productive and that the average executive manages to complete only 3 hours 50 mins of constructive work a day!
The extent of the problem is highlighted by all the innovative ways that companies have come up with to try to increase productivity – one of the ideas that I found amusing was giving employees a ‘Busy Belt’ – a retractable barrier, like police tape at a crime scene, that works as a ‘Do not disturb’ sign!
Hiring a virtual assistant means you only pay for the time taken to complete your work! You do not pay for time at work spent on non work related conversations, emails or other distractions.