Some 20 years ago when I launched Susan Carol Associates, a public relations firm, just outside of Washington, D.C., I felt that I had to hide, or at least down play, the fact that my company was virtual—without the bricks and mortar. My concern was that clients may perceive the business as being less serious or unable to provide full-service capabilities.
Within five years we were heavily promoting the fact that we are virtual because it is cost-effective, responsive and successful in meeting many clients’ needs in full. Our customers benefit from a wide variety of talent, but only pay for what they need; they value our proven executive counsel at rates the larger brick and mortar firms can’t begin
to offer. Not that we’re cheap!
However, in managing a virtual firm, there are unique challenges. What brings us together? What keeps us together? There is a core group within my firm that has been loyally working collaboratively since the early 1990s!
Here are five criteria important to growing a virtual firm and serving clients well:
1. We are self-motivated, and disciplined to organize priorities.
2. Our various strengths and weaknesses are clear and acknowledged, recognizing that our interdependence and cooperation is what makes us great.
3. Established business hours and work routines separate our work from our family interests; we’re dedicated to meeting business expectations, yet we carve out the needed time for our families and ourselves.
4. All of us harness technology, and adapt to the latest tools that make sense, so we can
connect and respond swiftly, easily share knowledge, and work smarter than our competitors.
5. We have common values, high integrity and the highest professional standards.
Virtual isn’t novel anymore, but it still makes sense!