What is a virtual assistant, and why is it important? 

A virtual assistant is someone who supports a company or an executive by performing administrative tasks. One of the key aspects of virtual assistant support is that it is done remotely. Virtual assistants take on a diverse range of responsibilities, specializing in areas such as social media management, routine customer support, advertising campaign management, and basic bookkeeping.

When it comes to the scope of responsibilities of a virtual assistant, one must also talk about executive assistants. 

Executive assistants may work remotely and thus, their responsibilities can be confused with the responsibilities of virtual assistants. This confusion is common since both roles support tasks in administrative and project management. While some responsibilities of the executive assistant and virtual assistant might overlap, their roles are actually quite different.

Table of Contents

• What is a virtual assistant?
• What is an executive assistant?
• Do you need a virtual assistant or an executive assistant?
• Does it make a difference if you hire a VA instead of an EA?
• Examples of tasks performed by a virtual assistant and an executive assistant
• Self-assessment
• Conclusion

What is a virtual assistant?

Virtual assistants (VA) work remotely and support companies as well as individuals. They manage calendars, make travel arrangements, book appointments, and take phone calls. VAs have data-entry tasks, and sometimes more specialized tasks like social media posting or customer service. 

Having a virtual assistant support someone in the office is a great way to minimize on-site headcount and still get the support you need. Because of the fractional support, some VAs don’t have the same benefits as other full-time employees, but they do have access to company information – even if working remotely. Also, VAs tend to be paid an hourly rate, providing fractional support depending on the needs of the company. 

What is an executive assistant?

An executive assistant (EA) is a key business partner for VPs and C-level executives, helping with tasks that evolve based on the executive’s role. For example, if an EA supports the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO), they might assist with recruiting, preparing meeting briefs, and evaluating candidates.

Executive assistants can also be remote workers, delivering impactful results. 

At Viva Executive Assistants, EAs receive benefits, opportunities for skill development, and a clear growth path. This enables executives to delegate tasks to them confidently. 

The digital nature of communications and documentation processes allows for a proper handoff of information to the executive assistant. 

EAs need excellent skills in delegating tasks, managing calendars and emails, and supporting meetings and team activities. A top-tier EA can perform like a junior Chief of Staff, offering advice and managing projects from start to finish using their strong thinking and intuition. They often go beyond performing administrative tasks, acting as effective project managers.

At Viva, our executive assistants are vetted, trained, and overseen by a team of customer success managers. This allows for more trust on the part of the executives in their abilities and responsiveness. Also, Viva has security policies in place to make sure that the remote nature of their work becomes a benefit instead of a liability. 

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“You changed my mind about virtual EAs (executive assistants) and I truly hope that the positive experience continues in the future as well. The Viva team has been great in making this a smooth process and providing support. The match with my EA was spot on.” 

CEO at Sequel.io

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Do you need a virtual assistant or an executive assistant? Here’s how to know

Executives seek to hire virtual assistants whenever they need to optimize their schedules and become more organized and productive. Virtual assistants are great allies for that particular purpose, but they should not be confused with the support provided by executive assistants. 

One of the key differences between the two roles is that an executive assistant will be dedicated to supporting executives from the leadership team while a virtual assistant can support other roles within a company, such as a marketing coordinator, a sales representative, or an office manager. 

Also, executive assistants are expected to be the executive’s trusted partner, making proactive decisions, being trustworthy, and taking the lead on projects to make them move forward on the executive’s behalf. A good example is when a CEO is building a deck for an upcoming board meeting. An executive assistant will make sure that other executives have completed their slides and that all action items are completed before the meeting. They will also ensure that the executive has enough focused time to review the deck prior to the meeting. The EA might even prepare pre-meeting briefings or attend the board meeting to take notes. 

That’s why choosing the right support is essential to the success of both roles: the assistant and the executive. 

Are you looking for someone who can take on administrative tasks or do you also need someone who can take the lead on projects and tasks? If the former, a virtual assistant might be right for you. On the other hand, if you need someone who can strategize, make decisions, and drive projects to completion, an executive assistant would be more suitable.

Does it make a difference if you hire a VA instead of an EA?

At Viva, we’ve had executives looking for a virtual assistant when what they want is someone to fulfill the scope of responsibilities of an executive assistant. 

Executives looking for a VA when they need an EA

For example, when preparing for an offsite retreat, an executive assistant would typically be responsible for coordinating logistics (flights, accommodations, meal reservations or catering, gifts, etc.), scheduling meetings, and ensuring all materials are prepared and distributed to attendees. 

EAs might also compile a report summarizing the discussions and outcomes of the offsite, with a detailed list of expenses, providing strategic insights and recommendations. An EA might even create standardized processes for future offsites. 

This level of organizational skills and strategic reporting is a task that an executive assistant is well-equipped to manage, given their in-depth understanding of the executive’s objectives and the company’s strategic direction.

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“My EA is one or two steps ahead of me, makes my job easier, calling attention to things to ensure that no ball is dropped. Involves folks from the team to ensure deliverables are on time. She is resourceful, proactive, and patient.”

Sales Leader at Notion

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Executives looking for an EA when they need a VA

We’ve also encountered the opposite scenario: an executive seeking help with data entry or calendar scheduling may hire an executive assistant instead of a virtual assistant. These tasks often don’t require a detailed approach and can be handled on a part-time basis, which is typically how a virtual assistant operates, unlike a full-time executive assistant.

The EA would be overqualified for a data entry role, while the VA would be underqualified to perform in an offsite planning and reporting function. 

Examples of tasks performed by  a virtual assistant and an executive assistant

1. Scope of responsibilities: 

Virtual Assistants: Manage routine tasks such as organizing a company’s email inbox, scheduling meetings across different departments, handling social media posts, and providing basic customer service or IT support to team members.

Executive Assistants: EAs handle administrative tasks, but with a more in-depth and strategic approach. Common EA responsibilities include helping executives reach inbox zero, drafting emails for their approval, and creating TL;DR summaries of newsletters, cold emails, and offers. 

EAs keep the calendar organized weeks in advance, handle pre-meeting planning, facilitate meetings, follow up on action items, manage complex travel logistics, plan offsites, and ensure no birthday or work anniversary goes ignored. 

They also conduct market research and create Standard Operating Procedures for quality control, employee training, compliance, regulation, and risk management.

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“My EA  has done a great job both being proactive about helping manage my calendar and email, but also taking on other responsibilities with IT management.”

SVP of Software and Data Engineering at EarthOptics

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2. Level of involvement:

Virtual Assistants: Perform tasks based on specific instructions, like setting up a meeting for a department head or updating content on the company’s website as needed. 

Executive Assistants: Work closely with executives to anticipate needs. In this example of an executive assistant’s proactiveness, when the executive was promoted, the EA independently prepared a presentation for an upcoming meeting with the CEO, demonstrating her initiative and helping the executive save time.

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“If there’s anything else my EA can help with, she will find it herself.”

Head of Developer Education at Hasura

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3. Fractional vs full-time support:

Virtual Assistants: Generally offer fractional support (although many work full-time as well), working part-time for several clients or as needed for specific projects, like providing 10 hours of support per week to manage social media.

Executive Assistants: Often provide full-time support, dedicating their efforts entirely to a single executive or a small team of executives, handling everything from daily administrative tasks to long-term strategic projects.

Full-time support is absolutely needed for an executive assistant to gather enough context to be able to make decisions and be proactive. Full-time support also ensures that the EA is fully dedicated to your company. From the security and trust standpoint, full-time support is also key.

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“My EA has consistently been able to take on more ownership and more responsibility with core logistics and especially recruiting. It’s been a huge help to the team.”

Head of People Operations, Luminai

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Do you need a VA or an EA? 3-question self-assessment

• How important is it for your assistant to have a deep understanding of your business and personal preferences?

1. A) It’s sufficient if they manage tasks efficiently and follow guidelines from time to time.
2. B) It’s critical that they develop a deep understanding of my business, personal preferences, and strategic goals to provide tailored support.

• How do you prefer your assistant to communicate and collaborate with you?

1. A) Primarily through digital channels like email and messaging apps, with occasional video calls.
2. B) Through frequent, seamless and direct communication including leading team meetings, priorities from team members and stakeholders and even being the point of contact for all my communications. 

• How involved do you want your assistant to be in your business operations?

1. A) Task-oriented support with clear instructions.
2. B) Proactive support anticipating needs and contributing to strategic decisions.

Answers: 

• Mostly As: Hire a virtual assistant
• Mostly Bs: Hire an executive assistant

Conclusion

Choosing between a virtual assistant and an executive assistant can significantly impact your business operations and growth. While VAs offer versatile and fractional support for various administrative, technical, and creative tasks, EAs provide in-depth administrative support and strategic assistance tailored to executives’ needs.

Finding the best fit for your company is not something you need to do alone. Book a call with us to find out how our team of executive assistants can help you and your business reach its goals faster. 

“My EA has been serious leverage. She picks things up pretty quickly and has made my life easier. It would be a major challenge for my team to lose her.”

Sr. Director, Strategy, Real Estate Partnerships, at Placemakr