· Reviewed by Issabela Masters
What does a remote executive assistant do?
An AssistBPO executive assistant works a standing brief of 10 duties, and anything on it can be added or dropped in the weekly review.
- Own the executive inbox: triage, respond in your voice, escalate only what needs you
- Run the calendar with meeting buffers, prep time, travel time and personal blocks protected
- Gatekeep requests for your time against rules you set, and decline politely on your behalf
- Prepare meeting briefs: attendees, context, last actions, the decision needed
- Take minutes in leadership meetings and circulate actions with owners and dates
- Book and manage travel, itineraries, visas and expense reconciliation
- Draft correspondence, board and investor updates from your bullet points
- Track commitments you make in meetings and chase them to completion
- Coordinate with your leadership team's assistants on cross-calendar scheduling
- Manage personal admin that touches the work day: renewals, appointments, gifts
What skills and tools does a remote executive assistant need?
The 8 skills below are the ones AssistBPO screens for, and the executive assistant works them inside 10 platforms you already run.
- Executive-level written English, able to write as you would
- Judgment on what is urgent, what is important and what can wait
- Complex calendar management across multiple time zones
- Discretion with sensitive financial, HR and board material
- Meeting minutes that capture decisions and actions, not transcripts
- Travel logistics and expense platforms
- Composure with senior stakeholders, investors and clients
- Proactive follow-up without being asked
Tools this role works in
A sample day, in your time zone
- 7:30Shift opens 30 minutes before you in your time zone: overnight inbox sorted, today's agenda and briefs in your hands
- 8:30Ten-minute check-in call: priorities confirmed, two conflicts resolved, one meeting declined on your behalf
- 9:30Board update drafted from your voice notes; investor meeting brief sent with last quarter's actions
- 11:00Travel rebooked after a schedule change: flights, car, hotel, calendar updated with new times
- 13:00Leadership meeting minuted, actions assigned in Asana with due dates
- 15:00Inbox back to zero, six replies sent in your voice, three drafts queued for your sign-off
- 17:00Commitments tracker updated; two people chased for items you were promised last week
- 18:00End-of-day report: handled, waiting on you, tomorrow's first three things
Times are illustrative. Your shift is fixed to your opening hours during onboarding.
Hours and models
Models
- Dedicated executive assistant, 160 hours a month in your hours
- Dedicated executive assistant, 80 hours a month for founders with lighter calendars
- Two-EA pairing across time zones for leaders who travel
Coverage
Fixed shifts in US Eastern, Central, Mountain or Pacific, UK and Canadian hours, staffed from the group's two offices. Early starts before your day begins are common. AEST shifts on request.
What are the terms for a remote executive assistant?
The card, the contract terms and this role's own schedule and screening, in one place.
| Specification | What you get |
|---|---|
| Focus, 20 hours a week | $800 a month, 80 hours |
| Dedicated, 40 hours a week | $1,600 a month, 160 hours |
| Standard schedule | Dedicated executive assistant, 160 hours a month in your hours |
| Coverage | Fixed shifts in US Eastern, Central, Mountain or Pacific, UK and Canadian hours, staffed from the group's two offices. |
| Screening | 5 gates, named candidate within 72 hours |
| Setup fee | None |
| Minimum term | Month to month, no lock-in |
| Notice | 30 days, to stop or to change hours |
| If the fit is wrong | Trained backup covers the desk the same day, re-match at no charge |
| Continuity | One named assistant, one named backup, one team lead |
| Who does the work | Employed by SS Support Network LLC, never freelancers or contractors |
These are rate-card starting points. What you pay depends on the hours, the desk and the coverage window, which is what the staffing plan sets. Rates improve as you add assistants. Your staffing plan states the rate for the number of seats you need. The rate card carries the other currencies, the add-ons and the six things that move a plan off it.
How much does it cost to hire a remote executive assistant?
Plans start at $400 a month for 40 hours, at $10 an hour, and rates improve as you add assistants. Get a staffing plan within 1 business day.
What moves the plan
- Hours a week and whether the role is dedicated or shared
- Seniority and the tools involved
- Coverage zone: business hours, after-hours or 24/7
- One person or a pod with a lead
What the market publishes
Other providers' published ranges, by market, so you have something to hold this against. These are not AssistBPO prices.
| Market | Published range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| United States | In-house executive assistant $4,700 to $9,100 a month fully loaded; premium US EA services publish $2,600 for 40 hours to $3,900 for 60 hours a month, and $3,000 to $3,600 a month for a dedicated EA | PayScale and Indeed via Wishup; Boldly and Athena published pricing via Staffify and Nacho roundups, 2026 |
| United Kingdom | Experienced EA salary around £46,000 a year; UK virtual PA agencies publish about £28 an hour or £1,680 for 60 hours with rollover, and £35 to £40 an hour with no retainer | Virtalent and Pink Spaghetti published pricing, PayScale UK, 2026 |
| Canada | Canada-based virtual assistants C$25 to C$60 an hour, with Toronto and Vancouver executive assistants up to C$75; most small businesses buy managed offshore support at US$699 to US$899 a month | Virtual Gurus and VantaStaff published pricing, 2026 |
How are remote executive assistants vetted?
5 gates, in order. A candidate who fails one does not reach the next.
- English and phone assessment
- Typing and tool tests
- Background check
- NDA and security onboarding
- Shadowing and QA scorecard
Candidates who clear all 5 gates are proposed to you by name within 72 hours.
EA candidates rewrite a badly worded executive email in three registers (board, client, internal), then take a recorded call in which an assessor plays a pushy vendor asking for the CEO's time. We score tone, tact and whether the candidate protected the calendar without causing offense.
Typing at 55 words a minute or better, then a two-hour practical: rebuild a broken week across three time zones in Google Calendar or Outlook, produce a one-page meeting brief from a 12-message thread, and minute a recorded 20-minute meeting into decisions and actions.
Executive assistants handle board material and personal information, so identity, employment history, education and credit-related disclosures are verified through a third-party screening provider, and two former managers are interviewed by phone.
A group NDA plus your confidentiality terms, then security onboarding covering MFA on every account, managed devices, no forwarding of client mail to personal accounts, secure handling of travel documents and how to respond to a spoofed request from someone claiming to be you.
New EAs shadow a senior EA for five working days, then run your desk with the senior reviewing every outbound message for the first two weeks. From month one, the team lead scores a monthly sample of emails, briefs and minutes for accuracy, voice match and follow-through.
The full pipeline is on the how we hire and manage assistants page. Assistants are employees of the group, never freelancers, and you never co-employ them.
Services this role delivers
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to hire a remote executive assistant?
Plans depend on hours, desks and coverage. Get a staffing plan within 1 business day. For context, an in-house executive assistant in the US costs $4,700 to $9,100 a month fully loaded, and premium US remote EA services publish $2,600 for 40 hours up to $3,900 for 60 hours a month (Wishup and Staffify roundups, 2026). A dedicated AssistBPO EA is priced per person for a monthly block of hours, with the backup and team lead included rather than billed separately.
Is it the same person every day?
Yes, and for an executive assistant that matters more than for any other role. You get one named EA who learns your voice, your priorities and the people around you. A backup EA from the same desk reads your playbook and covers planned leave and sick days, and a team lead runs a 20-minute weekly review with you. Nobody else touches your inbox.
What hours will my executive assistant work?
The hours that make your day easier, which for most executives means a shift that starts 30 to 60 minutes before theirs and ends after the last meeting. Fixed shifts in US Eastern, Central, Mountain or Pacific, UK or Canadian time are standard on a 160-hour plan. Leaders who travel often pair two EAs across time zones so someone is always awake when they are. AEST shifts are available on request.
How are executive assistants vetted?
More strictly than general assistants. Candidates pass a three-register writing test and a recorded gatekeeping call, a typing and tools practical that includes rebuilding a multi-time-zone week and minuting a recorded meeting, a third-party background check with phone references, an NDA with security onboarding, and five days of shadowing with every outbound message reviewed for the first two weeks. The team lead scores a monthly sample after that.
Is the executive assistant an employee or a contractor?
An employee of the group. Your EA is hired, paid, trained, insured and managed by us, with a team lead and HR above them. You direct the work; you do not co-employ, run payroll or sign contractor agreements. This is deliberate: an executive assistant who knows your board, your family calendar and your deal pipeline should be someone with a stable job, a backup and a manager, not a freelancer between clients.
Can the EA handle confidential board, HR and financial material?
Yes, within controls. EAs sign a group NDA and your confidentiality terms, work on managed devices with MFA and no local file storage, and are background checked before they see anything. Access is granted through your own accounts with the permissions you choose, so you can restrict folders or mailboxes and revoke access instantly. For public companies we follow your insider and blackout policies as written.
Will the EA write in my voice?
That is the aim from week one. During onboarding we collect 20 to 30 of your recent emails, your preferred sign-offs and the phrases you never use, and build a short style sheet. The EA drafts in that voice, you edit for the first two weeks, and the style sheet gets updated after each correction. Most executives are approving rather than rewriting by week three.
Can the EA support more than one executive?
On a 160-hour plan, one EA can comfortably run two executives with moderate calendars, or one executive plus light support for a leadership team. Beyond that we recommend a second EA or a pod, because inbox and calendar work spikes at the same time for everyone. We will tell you honestly during the discovery call what one person can carry.
Related roles
Virtual assistant
Dedicated assistant- Clear written English with a calm, professional tone
- Fast, accurate typing and attention to detail on data and dates
- Calendar and time-zone management across US, UK, Canadian and Australian hours
Personal assistant
Dedicated personal assistant- Warm, discreet written and phone manner
- Reliable follow-through on small tasks that are easy to drop
- Travel planning across airlines, loyalty programs and time zones
Administrative assistant
Dedicated administrative assistant- Accurate data entry with a habit of double-checking
- Strong document formatting in Word, Google Docs and PDF tools
- Spreadsheet skills: lookups, filters, pivot tables, basic formulas
Ask an AI assistant to summarize this page
Opens the assistant with a prefilled prompt so you can check our claims against the page yourself.