"We have specific needs. And for the cost, I can't complain. I'm very pleased."
The Client: Trusted Advisors of Ohio LLC
The Trusted Advisors of Ohio partners with companies, groups, and individuals to grow their wealth through financial responsibility. As the business name implies, they are the trusted accounting, tax, and consulting company to support their clients in building a prosperous financial future.
They provide extensive knowledge and understanding of tax laws, financial services, investments, insurance, and the other strategies required to develop a strong financial framework for their clients.
The Challenge
Trusted Advisors of Ohio, for many years, was a three-women show. CEO Santonya Jones, CPA, a part-time trusted accountant, and an administrative assistant were a team to reckon with. But as with many businesses, COVID happened. A big change happened to the team – from the place of work, to their schedule, which led to a significant impact on delivering results.
“Before working with you all, our turnaround time became very, very long. We would get work in and turn it in sometimes in less than two weeks, when covid hit, it was two months!”
And when the team was accomplishing less, the profit came in too slowly .
“That’s a long time to let money sit around, you’re just looking at folders and work clients have dropped off and we’re like, we need more staff because we didn’t have any other options.”
Santonya needed to restructure her team and started hiring US based staff. However, employees came and left.
“I hired a few U.S. staff members, and for one reason or the other, unfortunately were mainly personal, they weren’t able to remain, you know? Working with us.”
“And so the workload fell back on me and Evelyn, a fellow coworker, and then I had to make a change,” Santonya shares.
“Because if work sits too long, you know, people just go somewhere else. Even though we were all being a lot more patient with each other during that time, after about a year or so, we became more like okay, you know, come on, we need to get this done, you know? So, I had to find another solution to the problem,” Santonya confesses.
The challenge now is to keep up with the backlogs that slowed growth during the time of pandemic.
The Solution
“VALUE VA came through at the right time and I said, “Well I’ll give it a try and experience the process.” VALUE Virtual Assistants email arrived in Santonya’s inbox at the right time.
“Your VAs are professional. The company utilizes time tracking for software/apps used to perform work duties. I love it since we do not share space with VAs, I am still able to determine productivity, efficiency, learning curve and what each VA is working on.”
“I finally found a company that offered educated, experienced, very polite, and respectful professionals. I’ve had a great experience with you all professionally and personally, so it is working.”
Santonya started working with VA Henelyn, whom she thought possessed a lot of potential and still could learn from her.
“I see a lot of potential. She’s a young CPA, she’s still learning, and she’s eager to learn. I’ve learned from her, and I have learned to communicate better.”
“She [VA Henelyn] has been great at handling details and is able to provide higher-level bookkeeping because she is certified. And she's been a great help in teaching me about new technologies that exist to speed up the process while being cost-effective..”
Santonya needed more virtual assistants with different expertise. VALUE Virtual Assistants matched her with 2 more virtual assistants, VA Mai, to help with administrative work and VA Charisse to help in more accounting work to be done.
“The younger VA’s tend to utilize technology. They're not afraid to learn and to figure out a faster, cheaper and more efficient way to get the work done. And, you know, it also was a benefit to me with VA Charrisse.”
The Result
For Trusted Advisors of Ohio, working with virtual assistants has been incredibly advantageous. All accounts and reports are now accurate and submitted on a timely basis.
Additionally, Trusted Advisors leverage their VALUE virtual assistants for admin and marketing, mailchimp management, database management, prospect research, and overall, helping them become more efficient and organized.
At present, Santonya has three part-time VALUE virtual assistants. Each is assigned with specific tasks.
“Working with VAs has been a great help to the firm! They all have great personalities, very positive, cheery and sunshiny. I love them!”
If you are also interested in building your own virtual team with VALUE Virtual assistants, book a quick call with one of our consultants and learn more about how VALUE VA can help you reach success!
