Remote executive assistant: The right way to get fractional support

Most startup executives could benefit from having the support of a virtual executive assistant, even if they don’t realize it. That’s why a lot of them come to us with the same question: do you offer fractional support? Our answer is always no unless they choose to do it as our customers from AKASA do.

Table of contents: 

• The only right way of getting fractional support
• What is AKASA?
• How can a CPO leverage a remote executive assistant?
• How can a CTO leverage a remote personal assistant?
• Who needs support? Start with these 7 executives

The right way to get fractional support

There are many reasons why you might be looking for fractional support. You might want to save money by hiring a part-time contractor rather than a full-time employee, or you may simply think that while you have some tasks to delegate and could use some help, you don’t need full-time support from a remote executive assistant. Whatever your reason might be, as experts in providing executive support to almost a hundred startup executives in the U.S., we can confidently say that you’re looking at support the wrong way. 

When you get fractional support from a remote executive assistant, you get a contractor who is only partially involved in your team and who doesn’t have full visibility into what your day looks like. Those two factors combined mean you’ll be less likely to delegate to that person, simply because you won’t have enough chances to build trust with someone who is not only physically present but also not fully involved. 

The only way to get truly impactful value from an executive assistant is to make them an extension of yourself, to let them know you at such a deep level, that they can start filling in for you in company meetings. 

The results you could expect from a fractional EA may be good, but they’ll never be great. An executive assistant hired to provide fractional support can organize your schedule, but they won’t help you strategize to minimize meetings and use your time effectively. They can buy plane tickets for you, but they won’t be able to know your travel preferences, which means they won’t be able to guide you through every step of your trip. 

One EA, two executives

We know what you might be thinking: “That sounds great, but I just don’t need someone eight hours a day.” We get it, and you shouldn’t hire a full-time executive assistant if you’re not going to utilize them fully. So, what’s the solution? Hire them full-time, and leverage them fractionally. How? By sharing your full-time EA with another executive who is in need of support. That is the only right way to get fractional support from an executive assistant. 

The 1:2 ratio (one EA, two executives) is actually our most popular package among our customers. The reason for its popularity is that it’s a win-win situation for all parties. Two leaders get full-time support, their executive assistant is able to manage a full plate without diluting their impact, and the company budget is optimized by having one EA for two execs.

One of our favorite use cases for the 1:2 ratio is AKASA’s approach. The two leaders sharing their EA are doing it in two totally different ways, which allows them to get value exactly where they need it. 

What is AKASA?

Supported by investors like Andreessen Horowitz, BOND, Costanoa Ventures, and others, this Series C startup serves as the leading provider of generative AI solutions for revenue cycle management. 

AKASA works with some of the country’s largest health systems to improve revenue outcomes, achieve greater efficiency, elevate their teams, and allocate resources where they matter most. From prior authorization to claims processing, they provide innovative and reliable revenue cycle solutions that give providers peace of mind. 

AKASA’s technology (such as generative AI and LLMs) helps automate revenue cycle tasks that are complex, time-consuming, and previously unsolvable at scale. Their solutions are built on deep revenue cycle expertise, grounded in the highest standards for data security, and provide measurable results with accuracy, speed, and completeness. 

They’ve helped healthcare providers decrease account receivable days by 13%, increase efficiency by 86%, save 300+ hours of staff time per month, and increase gross yield by $30M.

AKASA’s successful approach

When we started our journey with AKASA, our first point of contact was their internal executive assistant Kimberly Shrum. As one of AKASA’s first hires, Kimberly knew all the co-founders’ and executives’ needs, pain points, and personalities and for that reason, is the one in charge of building the EA function in the company. 

To start our partnership, we introduced a couple of our top executive assistants. They met virtually and got to know each other’s working styles and personality traits so Kimberly could make the best decision to set up AKASA’s executives for success. 

That’s when it became evident that Melissa, a Viva executive assistant based in Latin America, was going to be the perfect fit for two executives in need of support. Kimberly quickly saw that Cory Costley (CPO), and Varun Ganapathi (Co-founder and CTO) would benefit from having a business partner like Melissa by their side. What none of us knew at the time was how different and effective their approaches would be in utilizing their shared EA. 

Melissa has been working alongside AKASA’s executives for 1.5 years now, establishing herself as a long-term business partner. Her dedication and hard work have really made a difference in her executives’ lives. She’s become a trusted part of the team, helping Cory and Varun with their day-to-day tasks and building a strong bond with them. Her commitment is a reminder of how valuable it is to have someone you can rely on for the long haul.

How can a CPO leverage a remote executive assistant?

Cory started working at AKASA around the same time as Melissa, which means he got executive support from day one. Thanks to that, Melissa got to see Cory’s pain points from the very beginning and focused on bringing solutions to his work life. 

One of his main priorities was everything around travel management. Thanks to their close relationship, Melissa knows all his traveling preferences: from favorite airlines to desired seats. She makes hotel and dinner reservations, and, as Melissa puts it herself, “I make sure he gets home by the time he wants.”

Cory’s second priority, which was starting to become a big pain point, was dealing with meeting volume. As one of the company’s core executives, Cory’s presence in meetings is almost never optional, which causes jam-packed schedules with almost no breathing room. That’s where Melissa comes in. When she notices he has too many back-to-back meetings, she ensures there’s at least a five-minute break between them, so Cory has time to decompress, breathe, and go to the next meeting with a fresh mind.

An EA who cares and has the skills to help you alleviate your pain points means that you get some structure in your day and you get to maintain your sanity, too. 

How can a CTO leverage a remote personal assistant?

Varun’s needs were totally different from Cory’s. His biggest pain points were not related to email or calendar management, nor travel arrangements, or team engagement. His top priorities were all related to his personal life. 

Melissa helped Varun establish more balance between his work and personal life, so much so that she communicates with Varun’s wife on a regular basis to ensure his work schedule doesn’t interfere with important family commitments.

Her dedication shows the value of a trusted partnership in managing both professional and personal aspects of an executive’s life with precision and care.

How to decide which executives need support and how to pair them with the same EA?

If you’re in charge of building the executive function in your company, how do you choose who gets support now and who has to wait? There are many approaches to making that decision, but our advice is to prioritize the function based on your executives’ needs. These are the top 7 executives who most likely need executive support right now:

1. Executives in GTM roles: key players for fundraising, board meetings, and decision-making
2. The ones who need to involve multiple stakeholders in their projects
3. Leaders who are struggling to get home on time or have 14+ hour workdays
4. Execs who have more than 1K unread emails
5. Executives with global teams who travel constantly
6. Those who want to have an EA
7. Leaders in internal operations roles who have high operations needs

Now, how to pair them up? We’ve seen it all: CFO + VP of strategy, CEO + President, Head of global recruiting + Head of customer experience, the combinations are endless. Just remember: if you prioritize the seven executives above, chances are you’ll get the leadership team moving the needle faster than ever.

Getting fractional support means contractors will never fully ingrain themselves into your company, and the support you’ll receive won’t be as impactful as it could be. That’s why we recommend sharing your EA with another executive. 

You may not need full-time support, but all your executives could use a hand. If you want to see how other EAs are supporting two executives at the same time, see how Placemakr is doing it. You might get more ideas on the best ways to divide executive support.