Setting up a remote assistant, step by step

The first steps, in order

Every stage is agreed with the partner before the next one starts.

1. Request: tell us what you need and the partner picks it up.
2. Scoping: the partner learns your tasks, coverage needs and software.
3. Setup: logins, shared folders and written instructions are prepared.
4. First week: a limited set of tasks, daily notes back to you, and quick corrections.

Things to have in place

Gaps here are the usual cause of a slow start.

• Priorities, written down
• A task list grouped by daily, weekly and monthly work
• Procedures for anything with more than a couple of steps
• The software list, including any browser extensions or plug-ins
• An access plan using delegation or individual accounts
• Two-factor authentication arranged so the assistant can sign in without your phone
• Approval rules for money, contracts and unusual requests
• A contact for questions and a backup if that person is away

How access is usually handled

Well-run remote arrangements share a few habits. The assistant has their own login wherever the software allows one, and mailbox or calendar delegation where it does not. Shared credentials live in a password manager with access you can revoke. Two-factor authentication stays on for every account.

Permissions follow the work. If the job is drafting invoices in QuickBooks or Xero, the role should allow drafting and not approving payments. Approval of anything financial stays with you or your accountant.

When work stops, offboarding is a checklist: remove user accounts, revoke delegation, take the assistant out of the password manager and change any passwords they could see.

What the ongoing work looks like

Day to day, the assistant works through the agreed tasks and keeps a record of them. You get a summary on whatever rhythm suits you, daily at first and often weekly later, plus a way to reach them with urgent items.

Every so often it is worth stepping back. Are the hours right? Are there tasks that could move over now that the basics run well? Is anything being done that no longer needs doing? Raise those points with the service partner and agree changes in writing.

If you decide to stop, give notice as your terms require, then remove access and change any shared passwords.