Virtual assistants also ‘do’ legal!
"For most professionals, Friday, May 19, 2006 will be an ordinary workday — but not for Lynn Carroll, a virtual legal assistant who lives and works from her home in Colorado Springs. She, along with colleagues in the area and around the world will be celebrating the first annual International Virtual Assistants Day (IVAD). The inaugural celebration of International Virtual Assistants Day coincides with a three-day assembly sponsored by the Online International Virtual Assistants Convention (OIVAC) running from May 18-20, 2006.
"Virtual Assistants (VAs) are independent entrepreneurs who work remotely and use the latest technology to deliver professional administrative, creative, managerial, technical, business back-office and/or personal support services to busy professionals. Clients only pay for the amount of time actually spent working on projects and often retain a fixed number of hours per month for service.
"Typical services include everything from general secretarial and word processing services to desktop publishing, website creation and marketing, as well as support for a specialized field, such as the legal industry. Projects are often handled over the phone, by fax, e-mail and even instant messaging. Most attractive is the fact that VAs are also responsible for their own space, equipment, taxes, training, healthcare, insurance—overhead costs that make hiring an employee expensive."