Lily Shippen Recruitment to Expand and Launch Virtual Offering

Recruitment entrepreneur Lily Shippen is setting the pace for 2020 with a new virtual division to the company she set up in 2016.

Lily, 26, who specialises in recruiting Pas, EAs and secretaries from all over the UK as well as internationally, has recognised a need for employers requiring strategic personal assistant support without having to employ permanent members of staff.

There was a time when the terms “work-at-home” and “freelancer” had negative connotations. But, these days, 1.91 million UK workers are freelancers – up 25% since 2009. Coupled with advancing technology, there are so many ways that teams can collaborate without having to be sat next to one another.

LS Virtual will be launched this month and will run alongside two further new developments – LS Private and LS International.

LS Virtual’s team of experienced Executive Assistants will undertake tasks that would usually have been associated with traditional onsite PAs completing, including project management, organising events, diary management and booking travel. LS Virtual will provide around the clock support, catering to busy professionals, private individuals and businesses who require support in the evenings and at weekends.

Lily says:

“There is a growing need from businesses for virtual support. Reduced labour costs and increased productivity are huge bonuses for an employer. The benefits of increased flexibility and fitting work around other commitments, helps our team of Executive Virtual Assistants achieve that essential work/life balance. 

“This will be a significant time and cost saving advantage to businesses, yet the business will still be able to forge a strong relationship with their Executive Virtual Assistant, using our cutting-edge technology systems.

“Unlike any other independent contractors, our teams adopt a process which ensures that a seamless handover is completed. This allows any holiday and unexpected absences to be covered.”

LS Virtual will be launched this month (February) and will run alongside two further new developments – LS Private and LS International.

LS Private will continue to focus on recruiting household staff with private individuals and family offices. Lily added:

“We’ve noticed an increase in demand for this kind of work, particularly in Cheshire and London where CEOs or celebrities are dependent on a personal assistant who they can trust implicitly and who can manage the household as well as their lives. Usually the staff member is required to sign a non-disclosure agreement and there’s often travel involved. It’s fantastic work for the right kind of people. We recently placed a PA with a pair of famous authors.”

LS International is dedicated to finding staff from overseas either for international businesses based in the UK, or for companies wanting to recruit staff from the UK.

“This is quite specialised work and we’ve built up experience in this growing market”, says Lily.

“It’s going to be a very exciting and busy 2020” she says.