A side hustle blossomed into a full-time operation when Phyli’s Virtual Office was officially started five years ago.

The business founded and operated by Phylicia Taylor-Grant evolved out of a need to spend more time with her newborn and to escape the taxing demands of her previous employment.

“I did some research and found that there is a huge market that I needed to use my skills to tap into as I had been doing it as a side hustle for the last few years even while working in another job. With running a virtual business, I was allowed to set my own schedule and become more available for my daughter who was six months old at the time while earning a lot more than I did previously,” she told the Jamaica Observer.

From her virtual home office, Taylor-Grant said that companies and entrepreneurs are provided a wide range of online and technical assistance. She also offers coaching services which seeks to attract others to the trade.

In helping her clients to work less and earn more, the operation, which primarily targets business owners wanting to focus more on core duties than administrative matters, allows them to outsource these tasks, affording greater productivity and at reduced overheads. Because a virtual assistant is an independent contractor, a business does not have to provide the same benefits or pay the same taxes that it would for a full-time employee.

“As a general virtual assistant (VA) I help businesses and entrepreneurs to free their time by completing day-to-day tasks related to administrative support, customer service, e-mail management, calendar management and more. While as a technical VA, I build websites, build online courses and offer social media management,” she further told the Sunday Finance.

Capitalising on some emerging opportunities from the pandemic, Taylor-Grant said her company since that time has also benefited from increase patronage.

“Since the pandemic I have seen an increase in the demand for my services as businesses shifted to remote/hybrid models. The business has also received a revenue boost since I signed on as a consultant under the Development Bank of Jamaica’s (DBJ) voucher for technical services through the Young Entrepreneurs Association (YEA),” she stated.

According to financial magazine Investopedia, the virtual assistant market which has grown significantly since the novel coronavirus pandemic is further expected to see a rise in the demand for these services as new opportunities open up in the digital space, more so for these persons who are often skilled in social media, content management, blog post writing, graphic design, and Internet marketing. With the work being done remotely, these professionals also have the opportunity to work locally and across borders and with some of the best and largest companies globally.

Already planning for the next phase of growth, the digital entrepreneur, who currently has three members of staff and an intern, said her ambition is to further strengthen her operations, bring new services to market while aiming to become the leading VA company in the Caribbean.

“I envision myself doing training sessions across the island with companies through which we can address issues including proper customer service and work ethics,” Grant-Taylor said.