Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce goes virtual to collaborate, streamline operations

Founder also uses Online Business Collaboration provider HyperOffice to better articulate value to potential clients

TACOMA, WA, 25 July 2007 - The Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce (VACOC) is now using virtual office technology to collaborate online and streamline operations, and to help members grow smarter, more successful businesses.

The VACOC, http://www.virtualassistantnetworking.com, is connecting its 450 members in 12 countries with HyperOffice, http://www.hyperoffice.com, the award-winning webware that makes it easier for owners, employees, clients, partners and suppliers of growing businesses to collaborate, communicate, plan projects, edit and share documents, schedule meetings, and manage information anytime and from any Internet connection.

'This tool is just fantastic,' said Danielle Keister, founder of VACOC, an association dedicated to promoting the shared business interests, opportunities and advancement of Virtual Assistants, the professionals and business owners who work from their own offices and use technology to provide administrative support services to client companies.

Virtual Assistants come from a variety of business backgrounds, but the single-most important qualification to become a Virtual Assistant is at least five years of administrative experience earned in upper-level capacities such as administrative assistant, executive assistant, secretary, legal assistant, paralegal, legal secretary, real estate assistant, office manager, and other real-world business expertise.

'HyperOffice is revolutionizing how the VACOC board interacts,' said Keister. 'We are sharing documents, not passing them around. That was clumsy. It wasted time. Now we open a document, edit it, close it, online -- and the web collaboration suite of HyperOffice provides version control. We set up teams and groups - Membership, for example, and the RFP Center (Request for Partnership). Each has its own operating procedures, manuals, templated messages, tasks, schedules, and deadlines.'

Keister also adopted HyperOffice Business Collaboration Solutions for her own firm, The Relief Virtual Assistance, http://www.therelief.com, which provides administrative support and creative services, helping independent professionals run their own businesses more profitably and efficiently, with more billable hours.

'I work with attorneys, solo practitioners,' said Keister. 'Legal case management software is often very cost prohibitive for the solos I work with. The software can also be hugely complex, requiring hours and months of training, and even then, still doesn't provide solutions for many aspects of working virtually and collaboratively. With HyperOffice Team Collaboration Solutions, I set up each client of The Relief as its own group. Then I set up subgroups for each client matter - the online version of a case file. The subgroup includes the case schedule, shared documents, and contact information for clients, witnesses, experts, opposing counsel and professional services related to that case. I haven't had to train the lawyers in how to use HyperOffice. It's easy. I do the setup, give them their login. They see their groups, tasks, links - and go right to work.'

'HyperOffice also allows me to extend added value to my clients. My retainer packages are even more attractive when I sweeten the deal with a complimentary HyperOffice shared workspace,' said Keister.

'With HyperOffice's competitive rates, I'm able to absorb the cost as an operating expense while giving superior service to my valued clients.'

As webware, sometimes called software as a service, HyperOffice delivers to growing organizations today the power and productivity of collaboration software that only the largest company with a mammoth IT budget could otherwise afford -- business email without spam and viruses; document management with online storage, versioning, user rights and workflow; online contact management, scheduling, task management, discussion groups, security, backup, portal customization, customer portals, extranets and intranets, time and expense tracking, and more.

'If you run a business, before you know it, you're managing all sorts of products, and multiple operating systems at the desktop and the server,' said Farzin Arsanjani, president of HyperOffice. 'There are weekly security updates, service packs, upgrades. You waste your time wrestling technology. Instead, HyperOffice puts you back to work, managing and growing the business.'

About Online Business Collaboration Solutions provider HyperOffice

HyperOffice Inc., (http://www.hyperoffice.com), is a leading provider of Enterprise Collaboration Software and tools for growing organizations. The company offers a simple and affordable suite of Intranet and Extranet software that provide new and growing businesses essential tools to collaborate, communicate, and manage information from any browser running on any platform. First launched in 1998, Online Business Collaboration Solutions provider HyperOffice is used around the world by a growing number of innovative businesses.

VACOC contact:

Danielle Keister
Founder
Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce
http://www.virtualassistantnetworking.com
word@virtualassistantnetworking.com
253.238.1368

HyperOffice contacts:

Farzin Arsanjani
President
HyperOffice Inc.
http://www.hyperoffice.com
farzin@hyperoffice.com
1.240.428.1700 X107

Agency contact:

Steve Leon
Technopolis Communications Inc.
http://www.technopolis.com
sl@technopolis.com
512-288-0950