The Secret to Keeping Your Filipino VAs Happy and Productive
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Happy employees are more productive. That’s not really a secret. Employees who feel valued at work are more likely to be engaged, and they are more driven to perform at a higher level.
In a six-month study of 1,800 call center workers at British telecom firm BT, researchers from the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School found that happy employees are 13% more productive than the unhappier ones. This finding is consistent with another study from the University of Warwick that suggests happy employees are 12% more productive.
When employees are happy, a lot of good can come to your company. But what if you have a team of remote workers from the Philippines? How do you keep them happy and engaged? Well, that’s what we’re here for.
In this article, we will discuss how you can make your Filipino virtual assistants (VAs) feel appreciated, so they’re more likely to stay and feel motivated.
So let’s get started!
Filipino VAs love working remotely. Not only do they get control over how and where they spend their day, they also get to avoid the horrible traffic jams and earn more than their locally-employed peers. Getting from one part of the city to another can take someone up to two hours. And that’s just for a one-way trip. Imagine wasting four hours a day to get to and from your workplace. That’s four hours could have been spent playing with the kids, working on a freelancing gig, or studying a second degree.
Most middle-class Filipinos also don’t have cars, so they rely on public transportation. While commuting options in the Philippines are affordable, a lot of Filipinos end up hailing cabs or booking Grab cars to get to their workplace on time. Subtract the commuting expenses (and taxes) from their $350-a-month paycheck, and Filipinos workers often end up feeling frustrated. They’re tired, they’re underpaid, and they’re not spending enough time with their family and friends.
That most of them don’t hate their jobs is a testament to just how hardworking they can be. Filipinos are a grateful people. At the end of the (tiring) workday, they’re still glad that they have a job.
That’s why your Filipino VAs are going to be the most hardworking employees your business can ever want. The fact that they can work from home makes them love their job. They’ll want to impress you and work for you for a very long time.
Filipinos are awesome workers—but they’re not perfect. If you’ve been outsourcing for a while, you probably know that the Filipino VA’s fatal flaw is that they suddenly disappear on you. You may be wondering, if Filipinos are so grateful to have a remote job, then why do they disappear?
Well, let us talk about the Philippines’ cultural trait of being “mahiyain.”
Mahiyain is an adjective. It has no direct English translation, but its closest relatives are the words ‘shy’, ‘sensitive’, and ‘easily embarrassed.’ If you’ve ever been abandoned by a Filipino VA, we can guarantee it’s because they were too mahiyain.
Being mahiyain is not a bad thing—it’s rooted in a culture of respect, particularly respect for authority and for elders. However, when it comes to working for non-Filipinos, that respect easily morphs into intimidation.
To put it simply, while your Filipino VAs respect you, they’re also intimidated by your language skills, your social status, and even your accent. That makes them reluctant to tell you when they are having trouble with a task, if they’re feeling too overwhelmed, or if they feel like they’re not up to the job after all.
Jason Dulay, a Filipino freelancer, phrased it accurately:
“As Filipinos, we get scared of difficult emails—and end up not responding at all. We don’t want to deliver bad news. We don’t want to admit when we don’t know something. Instead of saying “no” to something, we prefer not to say anything.”
This is a serious problem for employers. They end up spending time, money, and energy on training someone who suddenly stops communicating with them completely. The process of outsourcing becomes counterproductive to its true purpose: to help the business run more efficiently.
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Now that we’ve identified the problem of why Filipino VAs disappear, we can come up with solutions.
The issue is a simple communication problem. So, let’s take a look at the most basic of communication models:
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Most one-way conversations are represented by this model. In this communication model, the sender (you) simply gives a message to the receiver (your Filipino VA). This is called the sender-message-receiver (SMR) model of communication.
Now, let’s take a look at this model:
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This is the sender-message-channel-receiver (SMCR) model. Note the addition of a ‘channel.’ Channel refers to the medium used to deliver the message. In this model, your message is tailored fit to the receiver.
For instance, if you want to post on social media about your new business, you wouldn’t phrase a Facebook post the same way you’d phrase a tweet. For starters, Twitter has a character limit, so you need to fit your message in 280 characters or less. The same goes for communicating with your Filipino VAs.
You can’t talk to them the same way you would talk to an American employee. Given that the receiver is a sensitive receiver, you need to phrase or present your message in a way that is not offensive, intimidating, or scary.
That doesn’t mean you need to hold back what you want to say. Just maintain a calm and professional tone, and reassure them that you believe they can do the job even if they mess it up.
You may be thinking—”But shouldn’t they be adjusting to me instead?” That’s a valid point, and a more direct and open feedback system is certainly something you can work towards. But for now, your priority is communicating properly. And a misunderstood message means a failure in communication.
To keep up employee morale, you have to make them feel like they’re part of the company. Specifically, that involves company culture and empathy.
If you run a completely remote business (without a physical office), it’s going to be difficult to develop or cultivate company culture. You won’t have any casual conversations by the coffee machine or happy hours on Fridays. You can’t just drop by someone’s desk and ask how their weekend went. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t encourage your employees to get along.
Invest time in teambuilding activities. The internet offers loads of possibilities—from online team games to trivia contests. You can hold graphic design competitions and award the worst-looking or funniest designs. You can even hold a meme-of-the-week contest.
Having a fun workplace—even if it’s a virtual workplace—is a surefire way to get someone to stay with you.
Physical distance can result in emotional distance. That’s why you need to work extra hard to show your empathy towards your Filipino VAs.
When they feel overwhelmed, or they’re going through tough times, reach out to them and let them know you’re there for them. It doesn’t replace being physically present, but it’s a good way to help them feel less alone.
Remember, your VAs work remotely. They’re not surrounded by officemates. They’re probably alone in their room every day, working non-stop without any reprieve. That can get lonely. Feeling like they’re friends with their workmates will make them want to stay with the company.
Encouraging employees to improve will make them want to stay. After all, the job not only pays but also teaches them to become better at their craft.
Here’s how to effectively provide feedback to your Filipino VAs:
Filipino VAs are very eager to please. By providing them with constant feedback and encouraging them to improve, you’re going to find yourself with a very excellent VAs.
Finding an employee on LinkedIn or a website like Onlinejobs.ph is only the first step. Here’s how to maintain a great working relationship with your Filipino VAs:
Nothing scares off a Filipino VA more than an overwhelming list of tasks—especially if those tasks weren’t on the job description in the first place.
This is particularly true for part-time workers.
If you constantly add to their list of duties without talking it through with them, they’re likely going to become overwhelmed, given the short amount of time they have to accomplish those tasks.
Like, if you hire a Filipino VA to manage Instagram and Instagram alone, don’t just add Facebook management to their list of tasks. Either stick with the job description or orient them about the addition to their duties—and give them an appropriate raise.
On a related note…
You can’t realistically expect to hire a person who is an SEO expert, a web developer, a content writer, and a social media manager on a $300-a-month salary. In fact, you can’t expect to hire someone like that on a $1,000 salary, either.
Some business owners forget that VAs are humans, not robots. The good ones may be specialists in two or three fields, but it’s unrealistic to hope that they can do everything for your business.
No one can do all that for a business and not get burned out within a week or two. If a job applicant even claims they can perform all those roles for you five days a week, you should consider that a red flag.
Hire only one person per job. If they prove themselves capable of handling that role and if, after some time, you believe they can take on another role in your company, then that’s when you allow them to become a multitasker.
Yes, we just mentioned a raise in the previous item. And the one before that. But if you really want to keep your Filipino VAs motivated, giving them a raise or a cash bonus is the way to go.
What some business owners do is this:
If you’re unwilling to give cash bonuses, there are other ways to have your Filipino VAs enjoy their job. Of course, the more obvious ones are their social security and health benefits:
Otherwise, here are some fun ideas to keep your Filipino VAs motivated:
Alternatively, you can pay for their internet connection. You can also send them free items if you run a store or a dropshipping business. Or maybe give them free access to services your business offers.
The important thing is to give your employees a way of seeing that you value their services.
Everyone needs to take a break once in a while. Most employers honor holidays in the Philippines, especially if their employees work full-time. Of course, you’re not required to honor holidays, but it’s a good way to keep your Filipino VAs happy.
Most companies also give their employees 12 days of sick leave per year.
highways to get to work, their homes are likely going to be affected whenever there’s a storm. Being sympathetic and even allowing them loans or advances will go a long way to getting your employees’ loyalty.
As mentioned before, Filipinos are a very grateful people. They’re never going to forget how you helped them in their time of need.
Everyone loves a good work environment. Productivity rises to an all-time high when employees love what they do. And you know what, if your employees are productive, it’s going to make you happy as well!
Enjoyed this article? Stay tuned for more outsourcing tips and tricks here on Awesome Outsourcing.
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