Egyptian Outsourcing Specialists for the Digital World
The OA podcast features Tyler Lay, Chief Marketing Officer and Director of Branding and Partnerships at Virtual Worker Now.
Virtual Worker Now
Derek Gallimore talks with Tyler Lay, Chief Marketing Officer and Director for Branding and Partnerships at Virtual Worker Now. Based in Egypt, Virtual Worker Now provides creatives and customer service teams to global businesses of all sizes.
Egypt is now seen as one of the ideal locations for outsourcing services mostly focused on creatives and digital services. In this episode, Derek and Tyler will discuss outsourcing services in Egypt and how companies like Virtual Worker Now bridge the country’s talented workers with top companies around the world.
A quick background on Virtual Worker Now
Virtual Worker Now started as The Misfits, a small team of video editors led by CEO Youssef Sabry. Tyler began his involvement with the firm as a client representing MentorBox. He and co-founder Jonathon Kendall then moved to Virtual Worker Now after two years, helping it grow to about 350 employees.
Being a creative himself, Youssef is familiar with the creatives in the country. Having access to “highly-educated, smart, independent, and enthusiastic young creatives” gives the company “a headstart” in providing quality services.
Egypt as a rising outsourcing destination
Tyler agrees that Egypt is a “rapidly developing place.” Upon his visit last October, he observed an “unbelievable amount” of high-level construction for large enterprises and residential spaces. Overall, he noticed strong development in the country in different fields.
Entry-level employees in the country could earn up to 8,000 Egyptian pounds (around US$500) per month. Aside from creative services, Egypt has “a lot of customer service [and] telesales” positions for large enterprises worldwide.
However, Tyler noticed that the country’s workforce lacks better opportunities, especially in the creative field. Virtual Worker Now helps fill this gap by implementing strong recruitment systems and competitive salaries for the employees.
They recruit from areas with “strong universities and colleges” that produce graduates looking for entry-level work. What’s more, the company aims to allow their employees to do “a similar job, but with more hope of advancement.”
With this, they can either work on their roles and improve their careers or do their creative passion in the company.
How the creative economy benefits from outsourcing
Per Tyler, the COVID-19 pandemic “increased [everyone’s] desire” to build their businesses. He recognizes the difficulty of starting a company with limited funding and knowledge in customer service and building a brand.
So much has changed even with the crucial functions nowadays. According to Tyler, “everything is critical” in a digital business, knowing those that don’t have strong branding and online presence could struggle more.
With this, he emphasized that businesses must focus on their “zone of genius.” Having strong branding and customer engagement will help them to be competitive in their industries. They can achieve this with the help of a globalized workforce.
How the globalized workforce is accepted nowadays
Tyler agrees that more people now know about a globalized workforce beyond their home countries. According to him, websites such as Fiverr and Upwork “opened people’s eyes” to this possibility.
Despite this, most of them are still reluctant to hire an outsourced workforce due to the negative perceptions surrounding it. Tyler implies that this is partly a “generational thing” and more on risk willingness.
Especially during the pandemic, businesses started to “adopt a global workforce more” with everything becoming more “decentralized.” Only, the question lies on whether companies are willing to take the risk of outsourcing.
About Virtual Worker Now and its services
The majority of Virtual Worker Now’s employees render full-time work. This is in line with their belief that “getting involved in [a] business completely” by being a full-time employee is a way to guarantee their value to a business.
The company still has options for part-time employees, especially project-based teams. However, they try to explain as much as possible the ROI their clients get with a full-time employee in certain roles.
Virtual Worker Now highlights the two key components in their services:
- Providing one quality assurance (QA) to oversee all of their accounts
- Giving a flexible free trial, where they don’t charge until clients are “happy with [their] work.”
The company works closely with its clients and co-manages their teams consultatively. Aside from their expertise in building a team, Virtual Worker Now prides itself on having an internal training team to train employees “in a decentralized manner.”
Get in touch with Tyler through his email, [email protected], and with Virtual Worker Now through their website at www.virtualworkernow.com.
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