The advent of broadband internet services and the affordability of desktops and laptops have made virtual offices a reality. With escalating gasoline prices, several offices are allowing telecommuting or telepresence for their employees. I must agree that this is a viable and a sensible move, where employees save on commuting costs without compromising on their work, and at the same time make optimum use of technology in order to accomplish their goals. However, some people have opted out of their regular office, to work independently from home, because the office does not allow telepresence, and commuting to work is expensive. They are looking to technology to set up a virtual office, so that work can go on as usual, minus the traffic delays, road rage and, of course, exorbitant fuel prices. However, some preparation would certainly give you a head start in setting up and executing tasks from a virtual office without interfering with your routine tasks. Let’s look into some basics of setting up a virtual office so that being a “one man team,” allow you to work to the best of your advantage.

Let’s discuss some basic hardware requirements before we look into your virtual needs. But before that, I recommend reading “Working the Right Way” on your posture, equipment setup, and other things to consider when you are getting started.

Desktop or Laptop: It is most likely that you already have one with the Operating system of your choice.

UPS: Unlimited Power Supply:

UPS, this acronym does exactly for what it stands for, an “Unlimited Power Supply” until you can safely save your work and shut down the system. UPS that backs up from 10 mins to 6 hrs are available in the market. This is an essential part of the home-office. For those who are of the opinion that investing in UPS is waste of money because one uses it very so rarely, then I have only one thing to say, “Penny wise Pound foolish”.

Speaker and Microphone:

Most laptops have built-in speaker and perhaps microphone also in some cases. If you don’t have one, it is time to invest in a earphone + microphone. Look for the ones that are best known for clarity and cut out background noise. Try not to get carried away by the hi-end features offered. It is most likely that you will not be using them as frequently as the salesman predicts. Unless of course, you are seriously considering Audio visual media as your prime focus of work.

Blank CDs:

This is the most often overlooked item in the list of essentials for a virtual and actual office alike. So get yourself a pack of blank CDs before it is too late. Hard disk failure does not come with a warning. It is wise to develop a discipline for backing up files depending on the nature of your work, once a week, every two weeks etc.

Scanner – Fax – Printer:

Investing in any or all of these depend entirely on your requirement and your financial position.
With the hardware in place, let us have a brief look at some soft wares that might really come in handy as you take on your role and responsibilities in your virtual office.

Emails: You probably already have one or two email accounts for personal and professional correspondences. For optimum utilization of email services, you need to get accustomed in using custom filters that either label the incoming mails (as in Google) or send them to appropriate folders (as in Yahoo). By applying custom filters, your mail box will be well organized every morning when you login for work.

Instant Messengers: These are great tools to have a conversation / conference with your team / client. Text chat creates automatic archive of the conversation, while with Voice Chat you get a more person to person interaction. However, I personally wish IM’s voice chat had some kind of archiving feature as well.

Calendars: A Client is always apprehensive about the progress of a certain project. There is nothing personal about it. This Client-psychology is something every virtual assistant must get used to. As a VA, you can build a rapport with your client by creating a project calendar and sharing it with the client. Most email providers (like Yahoo Calendar, MSN Calendar, etc) offer calendar features along with their email account. In addition to the “Overall Calendar of Events”, you also have the liberty to create “Project Specific Calendars” where you record the progress and activity of a certain project. Sharing this calendar will allow the client to observe the progress without having to ask for it every time. This ensures transparency and adds to your credibility as a virtual assistant.

File Sharing: Loosing mail attachments has been a common woe for those in a virtual office. It is probable that the said mail got deeper and deeper into the inbox and digging it out is a pain in the neck. Although asking or sending them again as a mail attachment might be okay for the time being, later on, locating the same attachment would certainly be an ordeal. So, make effective use of the file sharing facilities given by your email provider, e.g.:- Googledocs, Yahoo briefcase, etc. Uploaded files can be shared with other users, and you never risk the chance of loosing an attachment, and everything using the same login. No need to juggle multiple login information, which happens when you sign up with different providers for calendars, file sharing, etc
PDF Online: There could be certain documents, and spreadsheets which might have sensitive information that you might not want to be edited or deleted. Sharing such files in their original format always stands the risk of accidental editing. It is rather unworkable to password protect every file for edits. By using the services of Pdfonline.com, you can convert your documents to PDF format and share/mail them to other users. This is best for project confirmation, freezing templates, change logs, etc.

The resources listed above are among the basic necessities for hassle free execution in a virtual office. However, there are more specialized applications that are available for free (some trial/ basic versions are as good as the premium ones).
wedding sparklers