Do you want to get your work done but you are not sure who to hire? You are second-guessing whether to hire a Virtual Assistant or an In-House staff member to get your business work done. In this article, we will be comparing and listing the pros and cons of virtual assistants vs. in-house staff. This will help you know and choose which is best for your business.
Let’s compare these two options: hiring virtual assistants or employing in-house staff?
What is a Virtual Assistant?
When you hear about Virtual Assistants, what comes to mind? Someone who helps to carry out tasks? You are not wrong. A Virtual Assistant (VA) is someone who carries out representative tasks remotely. Their aim is to help businesses with different tasks. They can do things like manage schedules, set up calls, and organise meetings.
Let’s also define what In-House staff means.
What is In-House Staff?
In-House staff are people who work in a company and who are always in the office carrying out their duties. They carry out various tasks within the office. In-House staff have their managers and customer service representatives. The office is filled with various positions with people occupying those positions.
Challenges of Remote Work and Virtual Assistants
When you think of VAs, it might seem they are free from challenges, but choosing a Virtual Assistant comes with its own challenges. The fact is, businesses who hire Virtual Assistants get their work done, but notwithstanding, they still meet with some challenges. What are these challenges?
Communication: Any remote work without communication is bound to be unproductive. So, this is the first challenge of remote work and Virtual Assistants. For instance, a task was given and the team members misunderstood the whole idea. What do you think will happen to the task? It can slow down the work process. Effective communication can be helpful in solving this kind of situation.
Time management: Just imagine if a job has no time management in place? This is another challenge of remote work and VAs. It is important for VAs to be given some timeline within which to complete a task, because without this, it can make them procrastinate while some can even decide to take a longer break than expected.
Virtual Assistants (VAs) vs. In-House Staff
What are the differences between Virtual Assistants and In-House staff? Let’s compare these two. Without knowing the difference, as a business owner, you won’t be sure which one to choose for your business. This comparison will help you know what best fits your business.
Cost Comparison
To hire a Virtual Assistant or an In-House staff member, you must compare the cost, and this is how to help you: When you hire a Virtual Assistant, you can save cost. A Virtual Assistant’s fee might not be as much as an In-House staff member’s. Hiring In-House staff can cost you a fortune. You will have to consider paying salaries, and also cater for their health insurance as a company. This is the comparison.
Pro Tip: If you want to work better and smarter to save cost, then you can go for a Virtual Assistant (VA).
Flexibility: Just imagine you want to hire an In-House staff member, and you want him/her to work from 5 hours to 12 hours in a long stretch — will that be possible? But with Virtual Assistants, there is flexibility. You can hire them for your project, and it can be for hours; you can also adjust their hours based on what your needs are. There is a high level of flexibility. Flexibility is important in every business, especially if you have lots of workload. Let’s compare In-House staff to Virtual Assistants — In-House staff don’t have that flexibility; you hire them on a salary basis. There’s no flexibility with In-House hiring.
Pro Tip: Flexibility is possible with VAs, so if your business needs flexibility, you can go for VAs.
Skills and Expertise:
When your aim as a business owner is to work with experts who know how to move your business to the next level, getting a Virtual Assistant will be your target. Many Virtual Assistants have a wide range of skills: they can be graphic designers, they can manage social media, they can carry out the tasks you need, and they are very experienced. This means you can find a Virtual Assistant who will have the exact skills you need for your business. What about In-House staff?
In-House staff are also valuable; they may have skills that you need, but the fact is that they may be limited in expertise.
Pro Tip: Training employees for a specific role can help your business, but if you need more skills, and you feel your employees are lacking those skills, you can hire a Virtual Assistant or you can train more staff.
Effective Communication and Collaboration:
Just imagine if there is a break in communication in business. What do you think will happen to that business? Communication is important for any business to succeed. And with Virtual Assistants, communication is key. Most times, there’s always a break in communication with VAs, while In-House staff can collaborate and communicate seamlessly; they can discuss their tasks in the office together, which can strengthen better teamwork.
Delegation of Tasks:
Tasks to delegate to Virtual Assistants are administrative tasks; they are very ideal for this type of role. They can also schedule meetings, manage emails, and all these tasks can be carried out remotely. What about In-House staff? They are better at team collaboration and strategic decision-making. They can quickly respond to in-person needs due to the fact that they understand the company’s culture better.
When delegating tasks, put into consideration your business needs. If you need a skilled time management expert, think of Virtual Assistants, and if you need a strategic decision-maker, you can choose an In-House staff member.
Conclusion
What are the key takeaways here? Virtual Assistants and In-House staff are both useful, and they can help you carry out your tasks. They both have their unique strengths and weaknesses. But when it comes to skills and expertise, Virtual Assistants have lots of skills that can help your business thrive. VAs are effective and efficient in what they do, and because they work remotely, they are more flexible than In-House staff. When it comes to collaborating better, In-House staff can provide better collaboration. They also have the opportunity to understand the company they are working for better. This is not so for remote workers, Virtual Assistants. So when you are to pick from the two, it is best you check your budget and your business needs. This will help you make your decision when you want to hire. Both Virtual Assistants and In-House staff are valuable. Which of the two will you be choosing for your business?
