Category: Hiring

If you’re thinking about hiring a virtual employee (and you should be!), you’re probably wondering how to go about finding one.

It’s possible to try on your own through Craigslist, or another job board that lists worldwide.

We’ve tried posting positions on those sites and occasionally come across a decent candidate or two.

But even when you’re lucky enough to find what looks like a good prospect, that’s just the beginning of the process.

Checking references is a little more challenging for virtual employees.

Making sure they have the appropriate computer, software, internet connection, and workspace is a lot more challenging.

Testing their skills, their communication style, their grammar, and writing – these things are essential and they take quite a bit of time.

This is the exact reason why we started HireSmart.

We realized that by partnering with a Philippine Staffing Agency, we could remove most of the stress and time pressures for our clients wanting to hire virtual employees.

Because it’s not about just finding any old person to join you and your team.

It’s about finding the right person with the right skills, personality, and work ethic to fit seamlessly into your team.

That’s our mission and our goal for every new hire and we’ve proven ourselves to be excellent at doing just that.

Our clients are surprised and delighted when they realize all the benefits of working with us.

Here are some of the value-added benefits of employment agencies, in addition to providing you with a shortlist of candidates.

Employment agencies offer a range of services including screening and vetting candidates, conducting background checks, and verifying employment history.

These services can be particularly valuable when it comes to hiring virtual employees, as it can be difficult to gauge a candidate’s suitability for a role when they’re applying remotely.

One of the key benefits of using an employment agency to hire a virtual employee is the time and resources that it can save.

According to a blog post on the HCMWorks website –

"recruiting is a time-consuming and resource-intensive process that can take weeks or even months to complete."

Working with an employment agency means you can offload most of the work of finding and screening candidates.

This frees up your HR staff (especially if you’re the owner and HR) to focus on other priorities.

Another advantage of using an employment agency to hire a virtual employee is their expertise and experience.

This expertise is especially valuable for hiring virtual employees because the particulars for remote work are a bit different than for in-person roles.

Also, and significantly, employment agencies offer valuable support and guidance throughout the hiring process.

As noted in a blog post on the GoHire website –

"working with an employment agency can make the process of hiring a virtual employee much smoother and more efficient."

Finally, working with an employment agency can help to reduce the risk of a bad hire.

As a business owner, you know that hiring the wrong person can be expensive in terms of time and money.

Using the screening and vetting services of an employment agency increases the chances of finding a candidate who is a good fit for your business.

There’s no need for you to go through the process of hiring a virtual employee by yourself.

HireSmart is here to help.

If you’re ready to unlock the value and resources of our high-quality employment agency, click here for a free consultation.

Finding the right Virtual Employee to fit your business probably seems daunting.

At HireSmart, we walk our clients through the process daily, so we know lots of tips and tricks that work great.

It’s not really that complicated and mostly it’s the same things that make an in-person employee a successful hire.

Here are a few items we think are most essential to hiring the right virtual employee to meet your specific business needs.

Define the role and responsibilities clearly.

The first step in finding the right virtual employee is to define the role and responsibilities clearly.

This helps you identify skills and experience necessary for the job.

As Joel Gascoigne, CEO of Buffer, a social media management tool, explains –

"Before you hire anyone, it's critical to be clear about what you're looking for. This starts with defining the role and responsibilities in detail. Without this, you can't effectively evaluate candidates."

By defining roles and responsibilities clearly, you make sure you’re considering appropriate candidates that understand what’s expected of them.

Look for the right skills and experience.

Once you’ve defined the role and responsibilities, it’s time to look for the right skills and experience.

Shane Pearlman, CEO of Modern Tribe, a digital agency, says –

"When hiring remote employees, you want to make sure you're hiring people who can handle the job. This means looking for people who have the right skills and experience to get the job done."

When reviewing candidates, make sure to focus on their relevant skills and experience.

Once that’s established, HireSmart will help you identify candidates who have the required background to succeed in the role.

Assess communication skills.

One of the most important skills for a virtual employee is communication.

You need to hire people who can effectively communicate, especially when they're not in the same room as you.

When evaluating candidates, make sure to assess their communication skills.

Look for candidates who are responsive, clear, and concise in their communication.

This will help ensure that your Virtual Employee is able to collaborate effectively with your team and your customers. This is something that we have dialed in.

Our clients’ selected virtual employee gets a 1-week mentoring and certification from me. My guarantee is if I would hire that candidate for my business, they aren’t going to waste my clients' time. This is part of the HireSmart difference.

Consider cultural fit.

Cultural fit is another important factor to consider when hiring a virtual employee.

As Joel Gascoigne explains –

"Culture fit is crucial when it comes to remote work. You need to make sure that your remote employees share your company's values and work style."

Look for candidates who align with your company culture and can work well with your team.

Each selected candidate that HireSmart presents to our clients is skilled, but there will always be one or two who understand your business, your values, and maybe even your sense of humor.

Those will be the best candidates for your business.

Conduct a trial period.

Finally, it’s important to conduct a trial period before making a long-term commitment to a virtual employee.

Part of the HireSmart process is a 1-week certification. We work with our clients chosen candidates to do 3 things:

Mentor them in their communication
Assess their skills and make sure they can learn new tasks quickly
Apply the knowledge that they learn

This process has allowed us to have a very high standard and a 97.3% success rate for placements.

We want to give you every opportunity to hire a Virtual Employee who stays with you for the long term.

If you’re ready to take advantage of our tried and true process for hiring a virtual employee who is an excellent fit for your business, click here for a free consultation.

I think you already know that virtual employees are here to stay.

One main reason is that virtual employees have highly valuable benefits and skills, with a much lower pay scale than the US labor market.

At HireSmart, we’ve been a part of growing virtual employment for a long time, and we stay amazed by the combination of significant savings and quality employees.

While everyone understands the savings part, we like to point out the additional benefits virtual employees offer.

Increased productivity is a significant advantage that virtual employees bring to your business.

Partly that’s from the flexibility and autonomy of remote work.

As Deanna deBara writes in her article for Zapier –

"Virtual Employees are often able to work more productively and effectively without the distractions and interruptions of the traditional office environment."

This autonomy can lead to more focused and efficient work, as well as a better work-life balance for your employees.

Another advantage of virtual employees is their ability to bring diverse perspectives and skills to the table.

A recent article in Forbes explains that –

"Virtual Employees bring a wealth of cultural and linguistic diversity, which in turn enriches the company culture and contributes to better problem-solving."

Because they are spread out across different locations and time zones, virtual employees bring different perspectives and ways of thinking.

This helps them approach challenges in new and innovative ways, leading to added value for your business.

Virtual Employees also typically have strong communication and collaboration skills.

Because they can’t rely on in-person communication, they need to build skills allowing them to interact virtually.

This means expertise with video conferencing, clear and direct email writing and instant messaging, to stay connected and engaged with their colleagues and your customers.

Finally, Virtual Employees tend to be highly motivated and engaged.

At HireSmart, we specifically look for employees who are self-motivated and self-starting, which makes them productive and effective.

Because they work remotely, virtual employees must be highly disciplined and self-motivated, which translates into greater job satisfaction and engagement.

Virtual Employees bring a range of valuable skills and attributes to your business.

From productivity and autonomy to diverse perspectives and strong communication skills, virtual employees are an asset to your team.

As Kristi DePaul writes in her article for Forbes, "It's time to stop thinking about virtual employees as second-class citizens and instead recognize the unique value they bring to the table."

By embracing the strengths of virtual employees, you can build a stronger, more diverse, and more productive team better equipped for success in the modern workplace.

If you’re ready to dive into the wonderful world of virtual employees for your business, click here for a free consultation.

In the digital age, virtual employees are now an increasingly common and valuable resource for businesses across a wide range of industries.

But where did the concept of virtual employment come from?

Let's take a closer look at the history of virtual employees.

According to a blog post by Hubstaff, the beginning of virtual work started in the early 1970s, when tech first allowed remote communication.

But it took until the 90s, when email and other online communication tools came along, that virtual employment truly began to take off.

As Hubstaff notes,

"The rise of the internet and the ability to easily communicate with others from anywhere in the world paved the way for virtual employment to become more commonplace."

One of the earliest uses of virtual employees was the virtual call center, starting in the early 2000s.

Virtual call centers made it possible for companies to have customer service reps in different parts of the country, or even different parts of the world.

The difference in wages and labor costs for virtual employees saved companies money on overhead costs while still providing quality customer service to their customers.

Today, virtual employment is more popular than ever before.

According to a blog post by FlexJobs –

"Remote work has grown by 159% since 2005, and now represents 3.4% of the total US workforce."

This growth comes from additional advances in tech, like cloud computing and video conferencing.

Of course, virtual employment isn't without its challenges.

As a blog post by Forbes notes,

"Virtual employees can struggle with isolation, lack of structure, and difficulty separating work from home life."

However, as this same post points out, "There are ways to mitigate these challenges, such as implementing regular check-ins and providing opportunities for virtual employees to connect with their colleagues."

The history of virtual employees is obviously still being written.

We expect even greater innovation and growth for this way of hiring and working.

As Hubstaff notes –

"The future of virtual employment is bright, with a growing number of companies recognizing the benefits of a distributed workforce."

At HireSmart, we're committed to staying at the forefront of this exciting and rapidly evolving field.

By providing our clients access to a wide range of talented virtual employees, we're helping them stay competitive in a fast-paced and ever-changing global marketplace.

Whether you're looking for someone to help answer phones, do administrative tasks, help with sales, marketing or accounting support, we can help.

As demand grows for remote employees, it's important for businesses to partner with the right employment agency.

Finding the best available virtual employee takes time, energy, and resources that you’d probably rather spend on other things.

Using the right employment agency can really make all the difference.

Working with a reputable employment agency like HireSmart means letting go of the stress and pressure that a new hire can cause.

We streamline the process, so you get the strongest candidates for your business.

Here are three ways employment agencies add value to your business.

Expertise and Resources

Working with an employment agency means access to dependable, well-trained, skilled candidates.

It also means you have specialists with expertise in evaluating and matching candidates with your specific needs.

According to an article by Forbes –

"Employment agencies have a wealth of experience when it comes to finding the right people for the right job. They know where to look for the best candidates and how to evaluate their skills and experience to ensure a good fit."

That absolutely describes our own process here at HireSmart.

Flexibility

Have you ever been looking for a new employee and only one reasonable candidate shows up?

That’s the opposite of flexibility – trust me, I’ve been there, done that, and don’t want to do it ever again.

Using an employment agency means having options instead of being stuck with whatever resumes Lady Luck blows into your email inbox.

At HireSmart, we always have multiple high-quality, prescreened candidates, so you can make the right choice for your business.

Another part of flexibility is being able to increase your staff quickly.

As Business News Daily says –

"Working with an employment agency can provide you with access to a pool of candidates who are already screened and qualified. This can help you to scale up or down quickly as needed."

Increased Retention Rates

Working with the right employment agency increases retention rates by matching candidates with your business needs and culture.

This is related to having multiple candidates to choose from.

While there are often many virtual employees who have the skills and training to meet your job description, there are certain personalities and styles that will better complement you and your team.

Don’t just take my word for it (I’m obviously biased).

In a recent blog post, Glassdoor wrote:

“Employment agencies can help to increase retention rates by finding candidates who are a good fit for your company culture and values."

Choosing the right employment agency is essential for businesses looking to hire virtual employees.

You’ll benefit from their expertise, resources, and ability to streamline the hiring process.

As you begin searching for your new virtual employee, keep in mind that not all agencies are created equal.

Be sure to do your research and choose an agency that has a proven track record of success in finding the right candidates for their clients.

At HireSmart, we’ve been helping businesses find qualified, dependable, highly skilled virtual employees for over 8 years now.

If you’re ready to access all the benefits of working with a top-shelf employment agency, click here for a free consultation.

Let’s start off with some quotes about the benefits of taking advantage of opportunities (and the dangers of missing them).

“Necessity is the mother of invention” – Plato

“Never let a good crisis go to waste” – Churchill

"Bad companies are destroyed by crisis. Good companies survive them. Great companies are improved by them." –Andy Grove, former Intel CEO

Like it or not, we’re in a labor market shortage, if not a downright crisis.

Wages are rising significantly and finding quality employees is increasingly more difficult.

So, let’s explore how to turn this crisis into an opportunity that improves your company through necessary innovation.

Entrepreneur Magazine proposes five strategies for managing obstacles and crises successfully.

Keep a cool head. Yes, absolutely keep your head cool. Getting overly stressed out, losing sleep, barking orders is no solution to the labor shortage. Take a few deep breaths, get some distance from your emotions and put yourself in problem solving mode.
Think Differently. This is where invention and innovation come in. The type of thinking that created the labor shortage – rapid economic growth mixed with Covid and inflation – won’t be the same type of thinking to solve the problem. For instance, you can ask yourself – “Where should I look for employees where I wasn’t looking before?” This is a potentially very productive question.
Ignore The Rules. This is probably my favorite suggestion. There really are no rules, only consequences. In our modern fast paced business world, by the time rules are established they are likely out of date. The rules say that in order to attract high quality, dependable, skilled employees, you need to pay competitive wages, offer significant benefits and use expensive headhunters and placement agencies. Trust me, with HireSmart Virtual Employees, there’s another way.
Anticipate. This is like weighing the odds. What happens if I try a new plan, a new approach and it doesn’t work the way I thought it would? Essentially, what’s the worst-case scenario and is the upside worth the risk? Knowing that you have a plan to address a negative outcome will help you move forward with confidence.
Love Your Fate. Maybe this sounds a little strange to you, especially if things are going in the wrong direction. But this is a reminder to be persistent. Like the above quote says – great companies are improved by crisis. When you hit a wall and don’t know how to move forward, you start to look around for help. When you stay curious, invested, open-minded, you very often find the help you need in places where you would never have looked in calmer times.

At HireSmart we’re always prepared to help you in times of crisis.

We offer diversification for your labor force portfolio.

Just because labor costs are high in the US and great workers are hard to find, that’s not necessarily true in the global labor market.

By using virtual employees as an innovative solution to the current labor crisis, HireSmart will improve your company.

Once we help you manage this crisis successfully, you'll be perfectly positioned to reap the rewards when the labor market stabilizes again.

Because in good times and in tough times, HireSmart Virtual Employees brings profit to your bottom line by substantially reducing your labor costs. Click here for a free consultation.

There was a time, before globalization, before NAFTA, when buying a car made in the US was, let’s say, highly encouraged.

I knew mechanics who literally refused to work on foreign cars because they were seen as supporting a foreign country, instead of our own economy.

It made sense back then, before everything became so interdependent, multinational, with your carburetor made in one country, the engine block in another, upholstery from somewhere else and the whole thing put together in yet a different country.

All the large companies several decades ago realized that with advances in transportation, in shipping, in logistics and communication, that manufacturing can happen in many places around the world.

That same type of revolution is happening in the small business world today.

Especially since the pandemic has normalized remote work, the concept of maintaining a local workforce has become almost quaint.

I was meeting with a potential client, and my Executive Sales Assistant was there to support me. The potential client was amazed at her poise, her knowledge, and her ability to add value to the conversation.

The large corporations have led the way towards a globalized workforce.

It’s time for your business to capitalize on this development using virtual employees to increase profitability by reducing labor costs.

The challenge is finding high quality employees in foreign labor markets is even more challenging than using employment boards here in the US. You have to wade through so many rejects just to find the diamond. Add to that, the logistics on paying them, doing business properly in that country, and getting them paid properly without overpaying.

HireSmart exists for that specific purpose.

We’ve been in business going on 8 years matching companies with highly skilled, trained and dedicated virtual employees.

We’ve done the groundwork, made the international connections, built a great reputation to attract top talent, established training programs, developed assessments and language testing programs to make virtual employees a reality for you.

Technology has done the rest.

We’re ready to help you modernize your approach to building your workforce. Click here for a free consultation.

Whether you’re a fan or not, sports are a huge part of life around the world.

With the World Cup happening a little over a month ago & the Super Bowl coming soon, it’s impossible to miss the spectacle, the outrageous costumes, the national pride from sport lovers everywhere.

My favorite sport is business, so that’s what takes up most of my time and attention.

But, I like the cultural aspects of athletic sports, the scandals, the back stories, the intersection of sports, marketing and money, athletes as role models, and all that kind of stuff.

I came across an interesting radio broadcast the other day about how many international players are now in the NBA.

It used to be one or two in the whole league and now there are players from almost every continent.

Basically, it started when a couple scouts realized that the US isn’t the only country that plays basketball.

I mean, we all watch the Olympics and know there are other countries that play, but no one took the other international basketball leagues seriously.

Until these scouts decided they were going to look for talent in places where other scouts weren’t looking.

And that’s the connection to HireSmart Virtual Employees and the way we give our clients a competitive advantage.

Sure, you’ll find great employees in your local area who can work with you in person, if you’re willing to pay competitive wages, offer great benefits, maybe pay an expensive placement agency to find them, or have the patience and time to conduct the search yourself.

That’s the “business-as-usual” approach for small companies.

But, before going that route, let’s consider a couple things.

Are the only available assistants, bookkeepers, customer service reps, data entry, graphic designers – in the US?

Aren’t there other pools of talent – great, motivated, highly skilled and trained employees in other countries looking for work?

Doesn’t it make sense to consider all your options before following the business-as-usual path?

Those scouts who had that vision, who had the ability to think creatively about finding talent, they gave their teams a serious competitive advantage.

Guess what? Now every team has international scouts.

Another consideration: International players have lower salary expectations than US players.

HireSmart Virtual Employees are just as qualified, dedicated, skilled and trained as their US counterparts.

They deliver the same work product at a highly significant discounted labor cost.

If you believe in creative solutions to business challenges, we’ll make sure you get a competitive advantage. Click here for a free consultation.

Virtual employees add diversity of experience and perspective to your team.

Many business owners hire consultants, coaches, advisors to help them see things in a different way, to get a different perspective from a trusted source.

It’s especially common in real estate and commission sales-type businesses where outreach and messaging are critical to success.

There is value in bringing in not only an extra pair of eyes but an objective outsider point of view that isn’t bogged down by too many details.

The outsider holds a valuable perspective simply by being an outsider.

When you’re so caught up in your business, knowing all the problems, all the details – you might be missing the forest for the trees.

Consultants and coaches and advisors are usually pretty expensive – especially the ones with good reputations.

So, you might not be ready to pay for that kind of outside analysis and support.

There’s another way to get a fresh take on your business from people who are already on your payroll and care about your success.

Yes, I’m talking about your employees and in this case specifically HireSmart Virtual Employees.

Virtual employees have an outsider perspective that can be valuable if they’re encouraged to express their ideas and insights.

They’re an excellent way to diversify your team.

Diversity is a term that gets thrown around a lot.

Where I’m coming from, it’s not about showing that you have a diverse staff, so people think you have enlightened business ethics.

Diversity is valuable in business because fresh ideas, new ways of understanding, and creative approaches are born from being able to see things in different ways.

When your staff is diverse, you can benefit from a diversity of experience, cultural values, styles of education – even different ways of thinking.

HireSmart Virtual Employees are known for their high quality and low labor cost value.

They also have value because they bring their own unique cultural approach to business, work and life.

If you’re interested in taking advantage of highly skilled, dependable and motivated virtual employees who can also see your business from a fresh perspective, click here for a free consultation.

Why being understaffed is bad for your health.

Health is related to stress, that’s what the research and science tells us.

It’s not all stress that’s bad, it’s excessive stress that can tax your body and mind and lead to illness.

Managing a business comes with a certain amount of necessary stress because at the end of the day you’re responsible for delivering a quality product or service.

Add in employees and competition, taxes, and inflation and it’s easy to see how the pressures and challenges can build up.

That’s just the baseline level of stress for a business owner or manager, that’s the amount that comes with the territory.

As a successful business owner, over time, you learn how to delegate, become more efficient and adopt strategies to create a healthy relationship with your work-related pressures.

That’s what I think of as the “sweet spot”, when stress is manageable, there’s support from staff, and you have enough time to devote to family life.

It’s like you’re floating down a river on a fully blown-up raft, enjoying the scenery, paddling just enough to guide the boat and steer clear of major obstacles.

And then, inevitably, something changes.

Let’s say your assistant needs to move somewhere else to take care of his aging mother.

He can’t give you any more than two weeks' notice and that’s nowhere near enough time to find, onboard, train, and get a new assistant up to speed.

That raft you’ve been floating on starts to lose some buoyancy and you have to paddle harder to avoid the obstacles.

Let’s say this all happens when your business is particularly busy, or you have a deadline to get something done.

This is another level of stress, one that starts to move into unhealthy territory.

I hope you don’t know the feeling of being overwhelmed by the demands on your time, losing sleep from knowing just one more crisis or bad break would be devastating to your business.

But you probably do know the feeling – it’s part of the game.

At HireSmart, we want you to know that you’re not alone in those types of dangerous situations when your stress levels are maxed out and you feel like you’re spiraling out of control.

We’re here to help you.

Not only can we find you highly capable, dependable, affordable virtual employees ready to join your team, but we also provide onboarding strategies and ongoing HR support.

Our business is designed to make your life less stressful and your company more successful.

There’s a lot more value to a relationship with HireSmart than simply quality virtual employees.

If you’re feeling stressed out trying to replace staff or build your team, let us be your employment partner and we’ll take care of you.

Click here for a free consultation.