What Is An Online Business Manager?
Embarking on the entrepreneur journey is a rewarding and exciting experience. But, you may find yourself in an unwelcome situation of needing to be at your laptop all weekend instead of taking advantage of the freedom that business ownership can bring. It's understandable why this could turn into an overwhelming cycle as your venture grows bigger - but don't worry! There are solutions for small biz owners who want to reclaim more flexibility while still achieving their professional goals.
Since the 2020 pandemic, remote work has been on the rise, and with that has come the creation and popularisation of several job roles. One of which is the role of Online Business Manager.
An Online Business Manager (OBM) works alongside the business owner to run the company on a day-to-day basis. This allows the company owner to focus on long-development instead of daily scheduling and business meetings.
In this article, you will learn about what an Online Business Manager does, the skills they need, and the differences between an OBM and a virtual assistant along with what we at Chapter offer in the way of Online Business Management.
What Does An Online Business Manager Do?
Online Business Managers often support the business owner in the daily happenings of the company. Some of the roles that an online business manager may fill are project management, operational audit, tracking performance, and time tracking.
Project Management
One of the most significant roles an online business manager can have is project management.
In this role, they will manage new and existing virtual projects. This could include monitoring and approving the launch of a new website as well as planning and executing marketing campaigns.
This is a role that requires a detail-oriented employee who is able to organise themselves and others to achieve a common goal.
Operational audit
Another common role for an online business manager to fill is to audit your operations. This task is pretty self-explanatory. The OBM will audit everything that goes on in the company to ensure it’s going smoothly. They will also be responsible for overseeing client interactions to ensure that communication is clear. Following on from the audit they will then suggest more efficient processes to implement.
Tracking Performance
Tracking performance is another role that an online business manager can fill.
In this role, the OBM would be responsible for establishing goals in the form of KPIs, Key Performance Indicators, and monitoring whether or not every segment of the company was meeting those goals.
An example of this would be if they were tracking the performance of the marketing department in a company. For example, the KPI may be that the department needs to improve on new leads by 2% every month. The OBM will observe whether or not they are meeting that goal.
If the department is not meeting that goal, the online business manager will meet with the company owner to discuss what can be done moving forward.
Time Tracking
The last role that an online business manager may fill is that of time tracking.
For time tracking, the OBM is responsible for knowing all of the deliverables within the company and setting deadlines for them. Once the deadlines are known, they will also be responsible for following up with the individuals assigned to those deliverables to ensure that everything is completed on time.
What Skills Does An OBM Need To Have?
Before you go through the process of hiring an online business manager, it is essential to know what your expectations for the role will be. Once you have those expectations figured out, you will be better able to find the right candidate for your company.
Although it is best to know the specifics before beginning your search, some skills are important for an OBM to have, no matter their eventual role.
✓ ORGANISATION
✓ TIME MANAGEMENT
✓ COMMUNICATION
✓ TECHNOLOGY
Organisation Skills
Organisation skills are quite possibly the most important skill that an online business manager can have. After all, they are responsible for organising your company in your absence.
They need to be able to effectively organise information as well as teams of individuals to complete tasks within the company.
Time Management
One of the best parts of having an OBM is having someone to organise your company's schedule for you. They are able to organise the deadlines of projects as well as keep your team on schedule.
Since this will likely be one of their primary responsibilities, your online business manager must have solid time management skills.
Communication
Since your OBM will be running your company when you are not present, it is crucial that they have excellent communication skills.
They will need to communicate with you daily so that you remain updated on all that is happening within your company. They may also be involved in client interactions, so it is essential that they are able to conduct themselves well.
Technology Skills
Now this one may seem obvious, but it is a vital skill for your online business manager to have.
Since the role of an OBM is conducted virtually, they must be up to date with their technical skills and be able to navigate technology effectively. Automation technology is fast evolving so having someone to do the research who understands your business will ensure it is fit for purpose and save both time and money.
Online Business Manager vs. Virtual Assistant
Since the rise in remote working, the roles of an online business manager and a virtual assistant have risen in popularity.
Both roles are meant to support a company virtually, which has led to some general confusion about the difference between the two.
Despite both being virtual support roles, the roles of an online business manager and a virtual assistant are completely different in several ways.
An online business manager often takes the business owner's place in their absence or will have more of a strategic presence in the company. They are responsible for implementing new processes, organising teams of employees, delegating tasks, and managing projects. Overall, the scope of their responsibilities is far greater than that of a virtual assistant. They are less likely to need direction but be the ones suggesting changes to develop the business.
A virtual assistant, on the other hand, will typically focus on actually performing tasks, not delegating them. They will complete administrative tasks such as email management, bookkeeping, and customer support.
A virtual assistant works at an administrative level ie supporting the business owner with a variety of admin tasks. They are not responsible for managing anyone else on the team. They are primarily responsible for completing their assigned tasks and ensuring that the company runs smoothly from an administrative standpoint.
What can Chapter do?
Having built a successful business, you know that the next step towards growth demands more than relying on your own skills and resources. To take things to the next level, streamlining systems and structures is essential for optimal operational excellence without compromising peace of mind. If any of these points resonates with you: feeling overwhelmed by messiness; hindered scalability due to insufficient processes; difficulty delegating amidst absent structure - incorporating better backend practices equips businesses like yours with sustainable success.
What we offer:
Operational audit - a review of your current processes and systems, review of your customer journey and operational pain points. Full recommendations report provided.
Operational implementation - After the audit, you can decide if you want to implement the recommendations yourself or whether you want us to do the work for you. We will set up the automation programmes and create processes that enable efficiency and scalability. Full training on the systems and hand-over support provided.
On-going operational support - now that the systems are implemented, you can decide whether to maintain them yourselves or set up a retainer of monthly hours for us to do it for you, the amount of hours will be individual to your business needs.
The results of the above? Your business is humming like a finely tuned machine! Systems and structures are in place ensuring consistently excellent operations, while freeing you up from being tied down 24/7 so that you can focus on the overall vision of your business.
Book a discovery call so we can discuss what areas of the business I can help with.
