About XPotential
Mike Harley is the Managing Director of XPotential, an international consulting firm that specialises in strategy and implementation for businesses. With over a decade of experience leading operations in Australia and New Zealand, Mike is a true visionary.
But even the most successful leaders need help sometimes! While starting his own venture, Mike quickly found out he couldn’t do everything on his own.
Here’s how we helped Mike delegate some of his workload and keep adding value to his thriving company.
The Challenge
Too busy to oversee VA recruitment
Mike is too busy making executive company decisions, leaving him with little time for the specifics of hiring a VA.
Expectations were set high
Dealing with top executives and business owners meant Mike had to find a VA that guarantees AND delivers results.
Stuck on task delegation
His company is well-established and staff are set in their own ways, so Mike’s team was hesitant on what to delegate to a VA.
No concrete onboarding process
His company didn’t have a system of who/what/when in place for hiring a Virtual Assistant.
Mike came from a corporate background, where he had his own personal assistant to handle all the nitty-gritty details. So when he started his own business, he knew he needed to hire a Virtual Assistant to help lighten his load.
The only problem was that setting up the business took up so much time and energy that he never got around to it 😥 Plus, screening for the right person would have taken up even more of his time, and he was already dealing with managerial duties.
They [Outsourcing Angel] oversee not just an individual, but a series of things that need to be done to support our business going forward.
Our Approach
Supervised onboarding for seamless transition
We equipped Mike’s Virtual Assistant with all the relevant information and set-up they needed to hit the ground running.
Implemented our screening process
Our 6-step recruitment process helped us match Mike with a VA that met his high demands and strict requirements.
Took on the repetitive yet necessary tasks
By outsourcing day-to-day tasks which are crucial for running the business, Mike can concentrate on creating more value for his company.
Dedicated support
We took charge of the entire process of VA recruitment and ensured that Mike’s selected candidate remained motivated with benefits and a dedicated Virtual Office Manager (VOM).
Need to focus on executive decision-making like Mike? Hire a virtual assistant today and see the difference!
Virtual Assistant Recruitment
Our Recruitment Process
1. Strategy map
During your Discovery Call, we’ll discuss everything you want in a VA so that our Specialist can put together a Strategy Map tailored to your needs.
2. Talent Pool Screening
Based on the Strategy Map, our HR Manager will start sourcing the best candidates from our Talent Pool for a pre-screening interview.
3. Panel Interview
Our Recruitment Team will conduct screening Panel Interviews with the shortlisted candidates.
4. Client interview
Once the shortlisted candidates have passed the screening process, you’ll receive their CVs and our HR Manager will organise and facilitate an interview.
5. Orientation
When you’re ready to hire the VA, our General Manager will take them through orientation and set-up all relevant platforms and systems.
6. Support & Benefits
Your VA will be allocated a Team Leader to assist in the initial months and be provided with ongoing benefits such as health cards and rewards
Hiring a Virtual Assistant
Unfortunately, the first virtual assistant we hired for Mike wasn’t the perfect fit, which can happen. As part of our Client Happiness Guarantee, we wanted to make sure that Mike was completely satisfied with his virtual assistant. So, we hired a new virtual assistant and gave Mike 1 week to settle in with his new VA.
Mike has since been working swimmingly with our Virtual Assistant Fatima.
Skills & Qualifications
Work Experience
Work Samples
Outsourcing tasks to a Virtual Assistant
Virtual Assistant Fatima now looks after the following for Mike:
The Result
Find out how Virtual Assistant Fatima has transformed the way Mike operates his business.
The biggest change came, without trying to pump Outsourcing Angel up too much, was when we actually started to work with an organisation who really got how to facilitate this process.
Mike Harley
Managing Director, XPotential
Australia & New Zealand
What’s the major benefit you’ve gained from outsourcing?
Outsourcing, I think, [has] a number of different layers. For me, it certainly not only frees up my physical sort of time but also my thinking time, my emotional time, if you like. I can actually have more time to think and focus on the things I really, really enjoy and where I can add value.
And I can therefore think about how to create more value, rather than focusing on these other areas, which quite frankly are laborious and I don’t really enjoy doing them. But I know that they need to be done to run an effective business. Other people do actually enjoy doing that sort of work. So if they can get something out of that, then that’s really great.
By the same token, I’m not necessarily the most detailed oriented person.
So bringing people in who have more [of those skills that] compliments my capability makes the overall job that we’re doing more effective.
What made you hire a Virtual Assistant through Outsourcing Angel?
What really triggered me was actually listening to Paul Higgins [from Paul Higgins Mentoring, talk about] how he has managed [the group he runs]. And also reading a book called The E-Myth Revisited which talks about how franchise businesses set up and how they look at evolving the role of the person who sets up the business over time.
I haven’t done all the things that they said—I’ve tried to adapt my own [mindset change] around some of those things which [have] been more, more difficult.
What was the biggest change that Outsourcing Angel contributed to your business?
The biggest change came, without trying to pump Outsourcing Angel up too much, was when we actually started to work with an organisation who really got how to facilitate this process.
So, the first thing was the relationship with an organisation who understood some of the challenges that we faced in trying to adapt and bring this sort of resource onboard.
We got an initial virtual assistant who was sort of okay, but we started having a lot of challenges and problems with that. Now, if we had to try and manage that all ourselves, we probably would have given up. But we essentially got coaching through that process about how to manage it.
And then, we also got help to replace [our first VA] and I think with Fatima, who we’re using at the moment, it’s working really, really well. We understand how she works.
The good thing is that we actually have someone we can talk to, to actually help facilitate processes which I think has been really, really good for us.
What were your concerns about outsourcing?
My main concern, and still would be, is [proceeding] with clients. Most of the clients and the decision makers that I work with are quite senior executives or business owners.
So the relationship is often quite a personal one with them, and I have an ethos that basically the only people that really work with the businesses are people [who] have significant experience.
So, trying to find out the role of someone [who would] come in and provide their administrative support, and where that best fitted in, took me some time to work through. And to be honest, we’re still working through it. We’re still optimising it, and I’m sure that we can get a lot better.
What advice would you give to someone who’s thinking about getting a Virtual Assistant?
My suggestion is to sit down beforehand and really understand what type of support you need, what you want to do yourself within the business and ultimately longer term, where you need support that requires much more direct engagement from you, and where you [may actually] need support in certain areas.
But actually, if you can not only outsource the individual support you need, but the management of that support, then it’s worthwhile considering that as well.
It might cost you a little bit more to do that, but that also means that you’re up and running faster, and you can help them manage the overall process, not just the individual person. In the end, that’s what we did.
Hire a Virtual Assistant without the risk
For over 10 years, Outsourcing Angel has been training, recruiting, and managing Virtual Assistants. Our recruitment process guarantees that only the most qualified Virtual Assistants are recommended for employment.
If your business is ready to grow wings, book a Discovery Call with us today so we can find you an Angel.
