Guides for US founders hiring a South African VA
Read up first, then let's talk.
Founders tend to ask us the same handful of things before they hire a VA, so we've written the answers up as plain guides. Read whichever fits, then book a call and we'll look at your own week together.
We never take deposits, and there's no charge for the consultation.
At a glance
- 2008 founded
- 250K+ hours delivered
- 98% client retention over 14 months
- 13 reviews on Clutch
Where the numbers come from: retention is measured on our invoices, and the hours are logged client work.
Hiring guides
Start with the question on your mind
No two businesses hire alike, though the first questions tend to repeat. We've picked eight to begin with. Each one opens on our blog.
Your first hire, one step at a time
Begin with an audit of your own week, then work out which kind of VA you need. The guide walks through each stage in order.
Questions to ask before you hire
The questions worth putting to any agency, including who covers for your VA when they go on leave.
Red flags to watch for
Warning signs, like an agency that won't show proof or has nobody managing the relationship.
Virtual assistant or employee
An honest look at where a local employee wins and where a VA makes more sense.
What a VA really costs in 2026
What actually moves the price.
Working across time zones
Why a few hours of difference matter, and how much of your day a South African VA can share.
Your VA's first 30 days
Which tasks to hand over first, and how to turn them into SOPs from day one.
Keeping your data safe
Where the real risks sit, with a practical checklist for protecting your accounts.
There's plenty more on the blog, including guides for specific professions. Browse every guide »
Reading gets you the general answer. Half an hour on the phone gets you the answer for your own business, and nobody bills you for that conversation.
Questions
Questions from US founders, answered
Do I owe anything before choosing someone?
No. The search and your interviews come first, and neither comes with deposits or consultation fees.
How much of my working day will we share?
With cover until midnight in Johannesburg, an Eastern team gets its whole working day, and a Central team gets all or nearly all of it. Pacific teams overlap until early or mid-afternoon, so we schedule their VA later in the day. The time zone guide explains the trade-offs.
Do I get an hours log?
For half a day or less, yes, through the tracking tool your VA works in. On bigger bookings, minute-by-minute tracking would eat more of your time than it saves, so we look at results against your KPIs.
Who owns the customer records?
You do, since the CRM and phone lines are accounts in your name. For personal data, see the privacy policy.
How does a South African VA sound to US callers?
Our VAs speak with a neutral accent, and they do their work in English every day. The interview is your chance to hear each person on a call before choosing.
What happens when a match is wrong?
Tell us, and we'll bring in someone new and handle the switch ourselves. That costs you nothing extra.
How is the monthly price worked out?
Price follows how many monthly hours you take. Our pricing page lists every package, and the cost guide explains what moves the price.
What should I hand over first?
Begin with a handful of routine tasks. The 30-day playbook suggests tasks for week one, and our guide on delegating to a VA shows how to write a clear brief.
Save anything this page skipped for the call. Half an hour is all it takes, and no invoice follows.
US time zones
How a South African workday maps onto yours
South Africa keeps one clock all year, two hours ahead of UTC with no daylight saving. When US clocks change, the gap to your city moves by an hour. A shift that runs to midnight in Johannesburg covers the Eastern working day and nearly all of the Central one.
We have a page for each area we cover: Austin, TX on Central time, Washington DC on Eastern, and the SF Bay Area and Oregon on Pacific. Our time zone guide goes into the detail.
- 6–7 hours aheadof Eastern time, for Washington DC
- 7–8 hours aheadof Central time, for Austin
- 9–10 hours aheadof Pacific time, for the SF Bay Area and Oregon
- Midnight in Johannesburgis when cover ends, and those evening hours cost the same as daytime ones. On the West Coast, we move your VA's hours later in the day to match.
Managed VAs, explained
What a managed VA looks like day to day
Your VA is dedicated to you, and the responsibility for making it work stays with us. If you're new to the idea, how virtual assistants work explains the model from scratch.
One VA, one client
Nobody else gets a share of their week. Over a few weeks they pick up your tools and your customers, like a colleague down the hall.
People management is on us
Hiring and VAVarsity training are ours to run. So are the monthly reviews and finding cover when your VA is away. When a match doesn't work, replacing the VA is our job.
Hours you can see
Book half a day or less and every working hour shows up in a time-tracking tool. With bigger packages, the measure is KPIs and finished work.
Your systems, your records
The CRM and phone system belong to you, opened in your name and on your card. If we stop working together, the customer records simply stay where they are.
Our specialties are executive, sales, marketing, real estate, paralegal and general support. If you're unsure which fits, 50 tasks a VA can take on is a good place to look. Packages are on the pricing page, and the Carol Programme has its own. For the bigger picture, our main site covers the whole service.
One short call tells us both whether your work suits us. We don't bill for it.
How it works
The steps between a call and a start date
Each step has an owner, and you'll always know who it is.
Discovery call
Half an hour on your week and the jobs you'd like to stop doing yourself.
Nikki shortlists
Nikki screens each shortlist personally. You get three to four CVs, each with the candidate's Boiler Room results attached.
The Boiler Room
Candidates on the shortlist do a 45-minute pressure test modeled on your job, and only those who reach 80% go further. How the Boiler Room works »
Interviews
Meet every candidate, then pick whoever you think will slot into your team quickest.
Onboarding
We document the job in an SOP with you. Day one usually comes one to two weeks after you say yes.
Our step-by-step hiring guide covers the same ground from your side of the table.
Client reviews
Three clients, in their own words
VA Connect was very responsive, and they supplied us with CVs until we found that perfect fit.
They respond to requests with professionalism, urgency, and a clear understanding of priorities.
The business growing - new customers coming on board and spending with us.
Karen will tell you straight if your role isn't one we can fill well.
Meet the founder
Karen van Zyl
Karen started out in 2008 under the name Limetree Consulting Solutions, and the VA Connect name followed in 2014.
Book a discovery call
Tell us which balls are dropping
Pick a slot in the calendar. For 30 minutes we'll talk about nothing but your business, and if the work fits us, you'll hear what happens next. Deposits and consultation fees aren't part of how we work. Once you're happy, a quick note is all Nikki needs to begin.