Local Virtual Assistant Celebrates Inaugural
International Virtual Assistants Day
PARIS, May 19, 2006 - Ten years ago
if anyone had told Courbevoie resident, Carolyn
Moncel, that the nascent industry that she has
been working so hard to promote would finally
receive its own day or recognition, she probably
would not have believed it. Moncel is a virtual
assistant, and she along with more than 5,000
other virtual professionals working worldwide
will celebrate the first International Virtual
Assistants Day (IVAD) on May 19, 2006.
Proposed by the online advocacy group, Alliance
for Virtual Businesses (A4VB), IVAD is now officially
registered with Chases Calendar of Events, the
recognized authority of special days, weeks
and months. IVAD will appear in the 2007 edition
and will be held annually on the third Friday
of May. The inaugural celebration of International
Virtual Assistants Day coincides with a three-day
assembly sponsored by the Online International
Virtual Assistants Convention (OIVAC) running
from May 18 – 20, 2006. Virtual Assistants
worldwide will display the free IVAD logo and
creed on their websites.
“This day of observance not only allows
us to celebrate individual accomplishments,
but also affords us the chance to pat the backs
of our colleagues as well,” says Moncel,
whose company specializes in working with English-speaking
training, coaching and communications professionals
to create, edit and enhance training materials
and presentations.
Moncel, a 37-year-old African American, is
a former marketing manager. She conceived the
idea for her business in July 2001 while living
in her hometown, Chicago, IL. Like so many others
throughout the industry, she started a new career
in order to spend more time with her pre-school-aged
daughter. When her French husband, accepted
a job offer in October 2002 and moved the family
to Paris, Moncel decided to expand her company
rather than close shop.
Virtual Assistants or VAs are independent entrepreneurs
who work remotely and use the latest technology
to deliver professional administrative, creative,
managerial, technical, business back-office
and/or personal support services to busy professionals.
Clients only pay for the time actually spent
working on projects and often retain a fixed
amount of hours per month for service.
Typical services could include everything from
general secretarial and word processing services
to desktop publishing, website creation and
marketing. Projects are often handled over the
phone, by fax, e-mail and even instant messaging.
Most attractive is the fact that VAs are also
responsible for their own taxes, training, healthcare,
insurance - overhead costs that make hiring
an employee expensive.
Since 1996 more than 5,000 professionals around
the world have become VAs. More than 90 percent
of them are highly-skilled working mothers who
choose to start their own businesses in order
to achieve a better work/life balance. According
to a study conducted by Brenner Books in conjunction
with A4VB in 2004, the United States accounts
for the largest number of VAs followed by Canada,
Australia and Great Britain.
"I'm confident that the need for virtual
assistant services will increase not only France
but throughout the European Union as governments
begin lax rules making it easier for professionals
to start small businesses or go solo,"
says Moncel. "In the meantime, it gives
me great pleasure knowing that by the time my
American clients awaken and have their first
sips of coffee at their computers, my completed
projects already await them in their e-mail
inboxes."
About MotionTemps, LLC
Launched in 2001, MotionTemps, LLC is a virtual
assistance firm with offices in Chicago and
Paris. The company specializes in providing
complete project coordination, administrative
assistance and marketing communications support
to home-based professionals and small-to-midsize
consulting firms. The company has further expanded
its presence into the European marketplace by
providing an emergency service to English-speaking
business travelers in need of administrative
support during their stay in Paris. Visit the
website at www.motiontemps.com.
About Alliance for Virtual Businesses
Established in June 2003 the Alliance for Virtual
Businesses™ is volunteer-directed organization,
whose primary mission is to promote the growth
of free enterprise between virtual assistants,
entrepreneurs, small businesses, corporations,
associations and other business entities. At
the web site client-related case studies, industry-related
demographics, and a wealth of other types of
information are available to facilitate learning
about our industry. Visit the website at www.allianceforvirtualbiz.com.
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