Stacy Brice doesn't make coffee, but she's able to perform all the other professional functions of an executive secretary or administrative assistant without ever leaving her home office or physically entering anyone else's. Brice, who has her own home office in Maryland, is a "virtual assistant" -- an office-work professional who handles administrative duties for home office operators who don't have the space for an on-the-scene aide, but have outstripped their ability to do it all themselves.

Effective Opportunity

Virtual assistants are a fast-growing reality in the world of home-based businesses -- and no wonder. Since they work off-premises, there's no need for a cost-conscious home business owner to set aside payroll taxes, offer workers' compensation, or pay fees to temporary or full-time employment agencies.

There's another advantage to both the employer and the virtual assistant: both get the opportunity to work from home, building an office schedule around the needs of the kids and other family members, and enjoying the freedom for working in comfortable clothes at convenient hours, rather than playing dress-up and keeping corporate hours. And since the virtual assistant typically charges by the hour, the service is more effective than hiring a full-time-on-site assistant and paying for a nine-to-five day whether there's work to be done or not.

There When You Need Her

Stacy Brice charges $50 an hour but discounts that rate in return for a $525 monthly retainer. She works for several clients, using fax an on-line computer skills as well as the ever-present telephone to handle a number of administrative chores without ever setting foot in a client's home office.

One client is a professional writer who wakes in the late morning and does his best work, as he tells it, between midnight and four a.m., when there are no disturbances. Brice, a "morning person," is able to cover his backup work while he is catching forty winks.

"I fax my VA before I go to bed, and when I get up, she's taken care of everything I need done. It's a great feeling, having a partner who understands me and my work so well and who can work independently so I can keep the kind of schedule I need to and still run my business."

A customer service specialist located in Florida retains Maryland-based Brice to handle such tasks as rounding up Japanese business -- she doesn't speak Japanese, but she has access to people who do -- booking speaking engagements for him, and identifying Web site designers.

"I just giver her a list of things I need done, they get done, and at the end of the month I get a very reasonable bill," he says. Brice also handles billing for clients.

An Extension Of You

"A virtual assistant is not a faceless person," says Stacy. "You get someone who comes into your life and learns about you and your business, almost like a clone. Your virtual assistant can represent you as you would represent yourself.

"A virtual assistant is a good option for anyone who needs support, but doesn't have the resources or equipment, and who may not want another person in their home," she adds. "When you give things away to your assistant, you will find new space to grow your own business."

Brice says that she thought about the concept of being a virtual assistant for a number of years but was dissuaded by advice from people who found the concept too revolutionary.

"I was talking to the wrong people," she says. "When I started talking to the right people, it all fell into place immediately -- faster than I would have believed possible. I only regret I didn't start out sooner."

It's An Art

She defines being a virtual assistant as the art of working closely with a successful person without needing to be physically present. "It works because the immediacy of communications media -- fax, phone, Internet -- allows people to be in touch as easily as if they were sitting 20 feet from one another," she says. "It's especially powerful for the person being assisted, because in giving work away that doesn't genuinely need his or her attention, the home office operator gains space in his/her life for an abundance of other things."

She says those things might include growing a home business, spending more time with the family, seeking new opportunities or a balance of work time and leisure time.

Your Right Hand

A virtual assistant, she says, is different than a home-based secretary. The virtual assistant works in a relationship, and thus can only work with a relatively small number of clients. The virtual assistant becomes the right hand of the person assisted.

"She gets to know the client, the business, the customers, the life. She becomes, literally, a partner in his/her success." The virtual assistnat does secretarial work, but as a partner, she often does more than that. The job often crosses over into supporting the client in personal matters as well as professional affairs.

A home-based secretary, she says, tends to do "piece work," and can have hundreds of clients because a client might need assistance only once or twice each year. "There is no partnership" says Stacy. "The home-based secretary doesn't get to know the client's business as well because there's no need. Only task-oriented work is given to them, so the level of trust doesn't need to be as high."

Advantages

Brice, speaking from a dozen years of corporate experience before she launched her career as a virtual assistant a few years ago, lists some of the reasons why a corporate executive secretary or administrative assistant might prefer to work from home as a virtual assistant.

Independence is one key reason. Others include changing the paradigm from working "for" someone to owning one's own company and choosing one's own employers or partners. The ability to stay home with children is a big factor for those with growing youngsters. Doing only the work one loves -- the right of refusal for anything unpleasant or unsavory -- is also important. And the ability to delete a long commute from a day's busy schedule is also desireable.

There's plenty of virtual assistant opportunity out there once the new home-based professional gets started and builds a reputation, Brice adds.

"As corporate downsizing continues, more and more people are starting their own small or home-based businesses. In order for them to maximize their own potential, they really need support of all kinds. Working with someone virtually is a delightful way to get that support." All sorts of home-based professionals will hire a home-based virtual assistant, Brice says.

"Consultants in marketing, sales, management and corporate concerns, coaches, CPAs, attorneys, writers, photographers, therapists, financial planners, stock brokers, executive recruiters, entrepreneurs -- what professions can YOU think of where a small business owner would need support?" Brice asks. "The list is limitless!"

Home-To-Home

And a suprising number of these home-based professionals actually want to find a virtual assistant who's also home-based.

"If they don't have the physical space or don't want someone in their office," she says, "usually they also don't have and don't want to purchase the additional equipment needed for an in-house executive secretary or administrative assistant. They also don't have and really don't want to hire someone to administer the payroll and benefits which would need to be offered to an employee. Lastly, they don't want the hassles of adhering to federal requirements like OSHA."

Many temporary agencies, she explains, are reluctant to send temps to a home-based business, because of their preoccupation with image or fears that the business may fail.

That Certain "Something"

People who want to work virtual, she says, need certain qualifications, some of them professional and some personal.

"Working virtual is not for everyone," Brice says. "It sounds great, but the reality is that to do this work successfully and happily a person needs to have a certain something... something different than one needs when one works in an office surrounded by people."

The ideal candidate, she says, should be, intuitive, and proactive. Confidence is also important, as is commitment.

"This person is one who finds joy and peace in solitude, trusts gut instinct, and doesn't need the input of folks around a water cooler. This is a person who sees a path and follows it, or carves one out alone."

The rewards, she says, are for real.

"Generally speaking, an experienced assistant with a new VA practice, great skills, and great VA training can expect to make $20 plus per hour. A VA with an established practice can make much more -- $35 to $50 an hour."

Training For A VA

For those who want to try it for themselves, Brice has recently organized and launched a training program for virtual assistants. "We offer the only training program for virtual assistants," she says. "Our comprehensive and intensive 16-week program is designed to add to your already existing skills, preparing you to work virtually."

The 16-week course includes twelve weeks of building state-of-the-art skills so that candidates with several years of office experience can expand their ability to deal virtually to the challenges of office work without a central office. The last four weeks include instruction in how to build a successful small business from home.

Students, Brice says, should have at least two years experience as an administrative, executive or personal assistant or related experience, access to the Internet and excellent knowledge of the Web and e-mail, and a top-notch telephone manner and skills. A home office already set up, or easy resources to set one up is also important.

Brice herself offers personal conferences with the students on a routine basis, and the first class has already been over-booked.

"In addition, on the first and third Wednesdays of each month, I host two free telediscussions," Brice says. "One is for people who want to become virtual assistants, and the other is for those who think they might want to work with one. Each telediscussion is an hour long and answers the burning questions people have."

Sooner The Better

For Stacy Brice, a success as a virtual assist and as a trainer of virtual assistants, the only burning question appears to be -- why didn't I start this sooner?