Given the rush of technology and the explosion of small business start-ups, it's amazing it didn't happen sooner.

The advent of the virtual assistant, that is.

Once Girl Friday and gatekeeper at the doors of CEOs, administrative assistants are moving into cyberspace, helping to manage the affairs of a variety of clients through computer, fax, phone and modem.

Kathy Pechenik, a "Certified Professional Virtual Assistant," founded KMP Communications in North Attleboro a year ago.

"I work from a home office with a computer connected to the Internet and a fax machine," she said. "I don't have to be right there with the person in their office."

So far, she has three regular clients, a potential new client and many clients she has partnered with on projects.

The client list ranges from business owners to entrepreneurs to consultants.

"I've done a lot of marketing for people" Pechenik said. "A lot of them have business plans so I carry out their plans for them. I've written direct mail pieces and bought mailing lists, then done the follow-up calls based on the mailings."

The advantage to small businesses is a professional hand, when it's needed.

"The beauty of it is the client doesn't pay benefits; there's no overhead," Pechenik said. "They pay me for exactly the hours I work. It's very efficient."

And unlike a temporary worker, a virtual assistant provides all of his or her equipment and materials, and, over time, becomes well-acquainted with the internal workings of a regular client's business.

Liberating change

Rates start at from $25 to $30 an hour, but can go up for bigger projects like intensive marketing or Web design.

Pechenik who had worked in the corporate world since the late 70s, said the change has been liberating.

"The biggest thing is you get out of the corporate mindset," she said. "You stop referring to people as 'Boss.' They're clients. I don't work for them, I partner with them."

Pechenik's typical day starts about 5:30 in the morning with a quick check of the news, then a shower. She gets her young son off to school, then checks email.

Work usually is from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., but flexibility is a mainstay of the job.

"I can stay up to midnight, finishing a project; or, I can get up at 4 in the morning," Pechenik said.

She started her company after taking an intensive 20-week course online from Assist University (www.assistu.com).

The concept had been out there since the late 1980s, but didn't really begin to take off until late 1996, Assist University President, Stacy Brice, said.

She founded Assist University in February 1997. The program has doubled in size every year since, and might triple in size this year.

In three years, Assist University has certified 200-plus virtual assistants, or VAs, and Brice estimates there may be 750 virtual assistants working world-wide.

So far the greatest appeal of virtual assistants has been to small companies and home-based businesses.

Time will tell

Corporate America has not been too receptive, Brice said, but that is likely to change over time.

"At the moment, corporate America doesn't accept administrative assistants in their own right," she said. "They're still seen as secretaries, flunkies."

Eventually virtual assistants will permeate the business world, maybe even busy households.

"VAs could help keep family schedules togehter, arrange baby sitting, reschedule dental appointments, plan parties," Brice said.

"The question now, is what is a VA?" Brice said. "By 2005, the question will be, 'WHO is your VA?'"

Assist University's 20-week program costs $1795.

Applicants aren't accepted unless they have worked as an administrative assistant for at least two years in the past five years.

There's a lengthy screening process in which potential applicants must demonstrate they are passionate about providing administrative support and are capable of running their own businesses.

Only about half of Assist University applicants are accepted into the program.

One of Pechenik's clients, Linda Macedonio, executive director of the Rhode Island and Bristol County region of Business Network International has found the concept works well.

"I work out of my home, so to bring people in from a cost standpoint, not to mention space, was difficult," she said.

Macedonio sends out faxes to members on a weekly basis.

"I was always rushing around and I found I wasn't communicating effectively," Macedonio said. "It turns out I was bombarding people with paper."

"Now I bombard her (Pechenik), and I've had a lot of feedback about how professional everything looks."

"The business relationship is 'paying off in dividends'," Macedonio said. "She's phenomenal to work with."

Now Pechenik is helping the business network put on workshops.

"It's almost like having an event planner," Macedonio said.