Episode breakdown
Barbara is an investor, entrepreneur, and Founder & CEO of The Virtual Hub, a business she started by accident that exploded with growth to become one of the leading companies that recruits, trains and manages support assistants. The Virtual Hub has a strong focus on customized training and ongoing career development, Barbara ensures that her team is trained and cutting edge programs like HubSpot, Ontraport, etc. to meet their client’s unique needs and digital marketing, social media, personal assistant services and administrative support.
- How Barbara Turley started The Virtual Hub
- Why delegation is very important in your business
- Challenges in working with assistants
- What are the best apps/tools to use in a team
- The reasons why people fail with assistants and how to fix it
People forget to plan the resourcing and what they try to do is hire people when they're already flooded. And people think that that's the most cost effective way to do it, well, it's not
In this episode
00:01 Introduction to the podcast
Jim Palmer introduces the Dream Business Radio podcast, shares his location, and introduces guest Barbara Turley, founder and CEO of The Virtual Hub, noting her business journey and its connection to assistants.
01:50 Barbara Turley’s entrepreneurial journey
Barbara discusses her background in finance, her gradual realization that corporate life wasn’t for her, and the series of events—including the 2008 financial crisis—that nudged her toward entrepreneurship. She recounts how an accidental opportunity in a management buyout and subsequent ventures led her to the startup world.
08:27 Discovering assistants and the birth of The Virtual Hub
Barbara shares how reading The 4-Hour Workweek sparked her interest in assistants. Initially working as a consultant, she discovered her clients also struggled with staffing. As demand for assistants grew through word-of-mouth, she realized the potential and formally launched The Virtual Hub without a business plan, responding to clear market need.
10:48 Early challenges and evolving the business model
Barbara explains the operational messiness in the first year, identifying two major issues: clients’ lack of delegation skills and inadequately trained assistants. This led to The Virtual Hub’s model of hiring and rigorously training their own staff before placing them with clients, moving away from a traditional recruitment approach.
14:20 Impact of CoViD-19 on remote work and business growth
The pandemic accelerated digital transformation and normalized remote work. Barbara details how The Virtual Hub quickly transitioned 140 employees in the Philippines to home-based work in two days, overcoming infrastructure challenges. The situation boosted demand and solidified remote work as a sustainable business model.
18:17 Employment structures and contractor vs. Employee model
Barbara clarifies the employment model at The Virtual Hub, emphasizing their team members are full-time employees of their Philippines-based company, allowing them to set work hours and conditions, unlike the independent contractor model often used elsewhere.
20:33 When to hire an assistant
Barbara advises against waiting until overwhelmed to hire an assistant, advocating for proactive resourcing aligned with business growth plans. She illustrates the importance of org chart planning to anticipate future team needs rather than reactive hiring.
23:16 The Philippines as an assistant hub
Barbara explains why the Philippines became the operational base for The Virtual Hub, citing cultural compatibility, strong English skills, and solid education levels, making it ideal for cost-effective, high-quality assistant services.
25:11 Recommended tools for managing remote teams
Barbara suggests tools like Asana or Trello for project management, Google Workspace for collaboration, and LastPass for password management, warning against relying on email for team coordination.
26:52 Myths and realities of assistant integration
She emphasizes that hiring an assistant is not a magic fix for business growth. Success depends on effective delegation, clear systems, and setting realistic expectations about the assistant’s role—not expecting them to act as strategists or managers.
28:01 Top reasons assistant relationships fail and how to prevent it
Barbara highlights mindset and lack of processes as the top reasons assistant relationships fail. Business owners must commit to learning delegation and building efficient systems to create a scalable business “machine.”
29:36 Closing and resource offer
Barbara shares a special page for Dream Business Radio listeners with resources on avoiding assistant pitfalls and scaling business effectively. Jim Palmer wraps up, inviting listeners to connect through his sites and communities.
