Use the below-given Virtual Assistant interview questions to find candidates who can accurately perform administrative tasks.  You can also modify these questions to suit your particular requirements.

Virtual Assistant Interview Questions

Virtual Assistants undertake various administrative duties while working remotely. Their duties mainly include responding to emails and scheduling appointments.

The responsibilities of this position are similar to those of an Executive Assistant or an Administrator. Virtual Assistants may work from their homes or from offices based in different locations. During interviews and screening calls, make sure to set schedules and working hours with the candidates. Also, discuss whether you will provide them with access to the Internet and the necessary equipment/software or they will pay for it themselves.

Virtual Assistants need to work with minimum to no supervision, so find candidates who are highly organized and responsible. A Skype interview could greatly help you evaluate their communication skills since you will be frequently interacting with them online. If necessary, you can also include tests in MS Word, MS Excel or email writing. Use the interview questions given below for evaluating how the candidates will perform their regular administrative duties.

Behavioral questions

• How do you prioritize your work in normal days when you aren’t working within deadlines?
• Have you ever worked remotely or as part of a distributed team? What were the biggest challenges you faced?
• How do you keep yourself motivated during repetitive tasks?
• When you are working from home, how do you stop personal matters (e.g. distractions from family members or personal phone calls) from affecting the efficiency of your work?

Role-specific questions

• What would you do to find the best deal while booking travel accommodations?
• What steps will you take for planning a meeting for ten people?
• How familiar are you with online group communication tools? (e.g. Hangouts, Skype, Slack)
• What is your experience with calendar management tools?
• How do you ensure accuracy in your routine tasks such as preparing reports and processing expenses?

Operational and Situational questions

• How would you organize the contact information of employees (e.g. in a spreadsheet) to ensure you have easy access to all necessary information?
• Suppose you need an important information from a co-worker living in a different time zone who won’t be available for the next four hours. When and how will you choose to communicate your request? Why?
• Suppose you are working on a tight deadline and your computer crashes. What would you do?
• Suppose you have an urgent question, but no one of your team members are online. What would you do?