How to integrate a Support Assistant into your business successfully
Virtual Success Show
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Episode breakdown
In this episode, we take a look at how to integrate a support assistant into your business successfully and the importance of having a sound on-boarding process. This episode is full of insights from Matt and Barbara into answering the common question of “What do I do to get my support assistant started?”
- The importance of a strong onboarding process
- Clearly communicating your expectations, in order to set your support assistant up to win
- Building a strong ‘human connection’ with your support assistant from the outset
- Being clear on your preferred communication style
- Learning your support assistant's strengths so as to encourage them to work in their genius
On-boarding is pivotal — focus first on vision, values, and expectations before tasks.
In this episode
00:00 - Introduction
Matt and Barbara open the episode of the Virtual Success Show with a friendly chat. Barbara shares her excitement about the day’s case study topic and mentions a personal update — her baby Ruby has just started walking.
01:02 – Integrating a support assistant into your team
Matt shares a story about a client who was unsure how to onboard their first support assistant, despite already managing a successful in-office team. This sparked a discussion with Barbara about how many clients view support assistants as separate from their business, leading to uncertainty about where to start and how to integrate them effectively from day one.
03:07 – A strong onboarding process
Matt points out that many business owners lack a strong onboarding process, which is crucial for building a solid working relationship. He advises treating support assistants the same as in-office hires—introducing them to company values, vision, and systems. Barbara adds that most clients overlook onboarding entirely, stressing that The Virtual Hub has a comprehensive process to help support assistants integrate smoothly into a client’s business.
05:14 – Communicating your expectations
Matt and Barbara emphasize the importance of setting clear expectations without overwhelming new hires. They suggest starting day one with vision and values, then gradually outlining expectations and communication plans over the first week, so onboarding feels like a two-way process with a clear roadmap.
07:50 – Being properly prepared to welcome your new team member
Matt highlights the importance of being prepared with basics like logins and emails so new hires feel part of the team from day one. Barbara adds that instead of immediately assigning tasks, the first few days should focus on proper onboarding, as it’s pivotal to building a strong working relationship.
09:15 – Building a human connection with your support assistant
Matt stresses that one of the biggest mistakes with virtual team members is failing to build human connection. He recommends using video calls to foster rapport, set expectations, and ensure support assistants have a productive workspace.
10:16 – Be clear on your communication style
Barbara and Matt stress the importance of clarifying communication styles early in the onboarding process. Misaligned expectations—whether about frequency or style of communication—can strain relationships, so both sides need to agree on what works while remaining flexible to different work styles.
12:18 – Learning your support assistants strengths
Matt highlights the need to identify a support assistant’s strengths early, giving them tasks that build confidence while keeping communication open. He warns against two extremes—giving too little work, which leads to boredom, or overwhelming them too quickly, which can cause frustration and disappointment.
13:46 – Process for onboarding your support assistant
Barbara outlines a step-by-step onboarding process: first, build rapport and explain how the VA fits into the bigger picture; next, clarify communication styles; then set role expectations; and finally, introduce tasks and training. She emphasizes the importance of clearly showing “what happens next,” so VAs know what to expect over the coming weeks, just as clients appreciate clarity in their own onboarding.
15:55 – In summary…
Matt and Barbara summarize that effective support assistant onboarding is about keeping it simple and treating the support assistant as if they were in the office. The focus should be on making them feel welcomed, supported, and clear on expectations through gestures like introductions, video meetings, and following a structured onboarding process.
16:56 – Wrapping things up
Barbara reflects on how doing the show helps her continuously improve The Virtual Hub’s onboarding process. Matt wraps up by encouraging listeners to share comments, suggest topics, and rate the show, emphasizing their goal of helping the audience succeed with virtual assistants.
