Prialto

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am an Executive of CABN

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

CABN is a green technology company advancing an innovative manufacturing process for net-zero, cost-efficient, component modular housing.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Prialto to accomplish?

• Support executives with project management and scheduling
• Offer exceptional customer service
• Create compelling resources internally and externally

SOLUTION

How did you find Prialto?

Referral

Why did you select Prialto over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from Prialto were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Prialto has been an integral component of our business offerings. We rely on the service, as well as our dedicated support team, to operate our business consistently with high value. Key elements include: 

• Executive support and scheduling 
• Customer service relations 
• Internal resource and content development 
• External research and development on specific projects 
• Digital content creatioin

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Prialto supports in ways that are beyond quantifiable metrics. There is seamless integration with our corporate culture as they respond to 100s of customer inquiries a week. Our Prialto team member has transitioned our CRM with over 3500 contacts effectively and efficiently, with a keen eye towards improving on existing processes. Other qualitative support includes: 

• Overall proactive support and value delivery 
• Strong managed service with professional and capable 
• Engagement Managers who are our thought-partner, enhancing productivity 
• Quick and thorough responsiveness to concerns when they come up 
• Backup support that ensures strong continuity 
• Attention to enterprise-level security 
• Strong/high personal touch 
• Continuous training to ensure our assistants are schooled in any new processes we want to offload

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Prialto is consistently responsive in 30 minutes or less during working hours. Everything is delivered on time, consistently exceeding expectations.

What was your primary form of communication with Prialto?

• In-Person Meeting
• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The company is so invested in our success. They became part of our corporate team immediately, rather than acting as an external consultant. As a large focus of their role with us is customer service, this is incredibly important to us and our brand.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Prialto could have done differently?

We are exceedingly happy with our Prialto experience.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Managing Partner of PGP Advisory

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We help people sell and buy businesses.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Prialto to accomplish?

• Provide administrative support to expand my personal capacity
• Build processes to improve organizational capability
• Automate and improve processes to allow business to scale

SOLUTION

How did you find Prialto?

Referral

Why did you select Prialto over others?

• Referred to me
• Had a chance to try the service before committing

How many teammates from Prialto were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

My Prialto assistant offers day-to-day support on all administrative tasks including follow-up on action items, CRM updates, creating documents for review, facilitating administrative activities on deals including: 

1. Prospect follow-up 
2. Financial data entry 
3. Organization of deal files 
4. Interfacing with Tech Support for Deal Management Platform 
5. Client communication 
6. To-do tracking 
7. Process documentation

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Since partnering with the Prialto team, my personal capacity has increased as a result of their support. In addition to getting work done, all members of the team seek for ways to create value through process improvement and addressing issues as they come up. They are a good partner because they have a support infrastructure to support by PA making onboarding, training, and support less of a burden on me. 

My processes continue to evolve and my PA does an excellent job keeping her backup in the loop, documenting current state processes, and offering/executing on process improvements. My PA provides language support when dealing with Spanish-speaking clients and has gone above and beyond in helping me to learn some Spanish along the way. The role of my PA continues to grow alongside the organization.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

We've had very active and productive discussions on project scope and landed on the appropriate prioritization of activities based on value-add to the business. The learning curve on activities took some time (as was expected), but the entire Prialto team was consistently available to navigate the complexity of our business processes.

What was your primary form of communication with Prialto?

Virtual Meeting

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

I've interacted with employees from the CEO to front line PA and they all embody the values of the company and are committed to building a collaborative win-win oriented culture for all stakeholders.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Prialto could have done differently?

We continue to work on ways to facilitate access to sites and software necessary for business activities.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of (a/an) Financial services

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Commercial auto insurance.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Prialto to accomplish?

• Executive assistant to CEO

SOLUTION

How did you find Prialto?

Online Search

Why did you select Prialto over others?

High ratings

What was the size of Prialto’s team?

2-5 Employees

What was your primary form of communication with Prialto?

Virtual Meeting, Email or Messaging App

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Scheduling meetings, email inbox management, expense report preparation, travel scheduling and booking, appointment management, weekly investment report preparation and distribution

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

• Timely completion of tasks
• Improved efficiency of CEO
• Email inbox processed

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Proactive support and a sense that Prialto works to deliver value. Strong managed service with professional and capable Engagement Managers who act as your thought-partner to enhance productivity and help you get the most value from their service.

Quick and thorough responsiveness to concerns when they come up - they are always ready to help. Backup support that ensures strong continuity if your assistant leaves or is out on vacation.

Continuous training to ensure your assistants are schooled in any new processes you want to offload. In a nutshell, Prialto really wants you to get as much value as possible out of their service. I would highly recommend.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Prialto supports you to make sure you are getting as much value as possible from their service. Prialto has considerably improved my overall efficiency by allowing me to offload tasks. I have complete confidence that they will get done well and in a timely manner.

Are there any areas for improvement or something {provider_name} could have done differently?

None - Prialto has exceeded my expectations.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Red Currant Collective helps clients increase their strategic impact while improving employee engagement. I am the founder and principal consultant.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Prialto?

As I shift my business model from solopreneur consulting to a blend of services and products, I needed executive assistant help to handle increased complexity of my schedule, communication channels, and an increase in the number of relationships I’d be managing. I’ve been trying for two years to find a VA or EA situation where the person was a true force multiplier. I’ve never worked with an admin before this business, so I am totally new to working with an EA, and had not had success onboarding EAs successfully prior to Prialto.

SOLUTION

How did you select this firm and what were the deciding factors?

I’d read reviews online about Prialto being an especially good choice for a situation like mine. I was really impressed with the ease and responsiveness of the early engagement team, and the model with Prialto handling EA training, a structured onboarding to help me and my EA successfully onboard together, and providing redundancy were compelling.

I had concerns about working conditions for my EA after working with a few other VA providers with labor practices that were incompatible with my values, and my Prialto engagement manager answered my questions factually and helpfully, helping me feel confident that Prialto would be responsive to any questions or concerns that may arise about my EA’s working conditions. The price seemed like a very high value compared to other solutions I considered.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

My package includes 55 hours a month of EA support during my working hours, with redundancy when my assigned EA is unavailable. Prialto also provides a structured onboarding designed to help the executive and the EA get off to a strong start, which was quite helpful.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

I spoke with a sales person then was assigned an Engagement Manager who has been with my account ever since. I have one EA assigned to my account, and her supervisor and occasional coverage VAs support my account when needed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

With Ellie’s help, we’ve increased the average number of people we communicate with weekly by at least 5x. I was able to make an on-time release of the beta of my book on time, thanks to Ellie’s support of my calendar, and her ability to get hands on with transcription at a key moment.

Ellie is trusted to communicate directly with my clients, and it brings me joy to see the warmth my clients and contacts express in their little messages back and forth with Ellie about my scheduling: her professionalism and excellence engenders a delightfully warm response from my contacts. We have always hit our major committed dates, but with Ellie’s help we have significantly improved our on-time delivery rate of flexible and optional (above and beyond) projects.

Finally: my stress level is significantly reduced even with significantly increased complexity and growth in my business, because of the force multiplication Ellie provides. Being a solopreneur can be really lonely: I’m really enjoying Ellie’s teamwork and enthusiasm for our work subject matter.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Fantastic. Ellie and I communicate daily about priorities and progress, with a weekly meeting with our full team.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

1. the structured onboarding to help everyone succeed, and
2. the quality of the match they made between Ellie and I. She is truly a dream match for me and my business: she has quickly become an essential member of my team.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

No. This has been a really smooth engagement experience from start to present.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the COO of a mid-size benefit corporation. We are a certified Benefit Corporation and leading social enterprise helping organizations maximize the impact of their frontline workforces.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Prialto?

We needed qualified executive assistants to assist our management team members to better organize schedules, take on tasks and improve the overall time management of our team.

SOLUTION

How did you select this agency and what were the deciding factors?

We selected the agency based on a few factors:

• quality of services
• cost of services
• availability for more than one executive
• flexibility in time services

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

Prialto provided us with 3 executive assistants for 3 different executives starting in January. The executive assistants started with calendar scheduling and have since taken on tasks such as expense reporting, inbox management, personal task management and other tasks.

Describe the recruitment process in detail.

We interviewed a few different firms and gave our execs an opportunity to talk to some of the EAs and made a decision.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

With their support, our executives were able to gain time back from small task management.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Prialto has been very accommodating. They communicate on email and slack with our team, and whenever there is feedback for the team, we have a direct line with our account manager. They also took personal information security seriously by providing limited access and using secure password tools.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The company has been flexible to the needs of our team, and have seamlessly integrated in the scheduling efforts. They can scale up units of allocation as needed. Whenever an EA is unavailable, there has also been seamless coverage. They have also been flexible in the timezone coverage required by the EAs for individuals in different locations.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

We required someone physically present in the location we were working in, which was not possible, but otherwise things have gone reall well.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the managing director and head of our international desk for a commercial real estate services provider. We have over 100,000 employees across more than 80 countries.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Prialto?

We were struggling to get the responsiveness that we needed from our existing staff, so we engaged with Prialto to provide us with an executive administrator who would be able to support us during different time zones and holidays.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Prialto provides us with administrative support. Their tasks include handling data entry, creating expense reports, and responding promptly to customer inquiries on a regular basis. All of the work is done remotely.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with three executive administrators from their side.

How did you come to work with Prialto?

It was through a recommendation.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in July 2019, and our engagement is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

On a weekly basis, we grade the performance of their administrators. They’ve integrated themselves seamlessly into our operational workflow and are doing an exceptional job of handling their responsibilities.

How did Prialto perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management style is solid. We manage tasks using Microsoft Office. For communication, we use Microsoft Teams, WhatsApp, email, and phone.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team’s biggest strength is their ability to be ready for any situation. For example, whenever one of their administrators gets sick, they already have someone else to cover for them. Also, if there’s an upcoming holiday, they always send an advance notice about it. 

In terms of cost, their services are reasonably priced.

Are there any areas they could improve on?

The integration of their platform is a little bumpy, so there are times when I’m not sure if I’m actually communicating with them in real time. This is not a major issue for me; it’s just something they can improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure to put the time and effort into getting the work done — don’t just assume that they’ll do everything for you.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am SVP of Sales and Market Strategies for a software firm that sells a platform to manage contingent labor.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Prialto?

We needed administrative support to maintain our CRM and assist with sales operations tasks.

SOLUTION

How did you select this agency and what were the deciding factors?

I had worked with Prialto with a prior company and they provide exactly the support I need.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

It is not a single project, but an on-going stream of projects to help cleanse and maintain our CRM and sales contacts.

Describe the recruitment process in detail.

It was quite simple. I reconnected with the CEO of Prialto at a conference and we discussed starting the program with my new company. We signed an agreement and they appointed a virtual assistant from their team. They also appointed my prior VA as the supervisor of the engagement. We've bonded quickly, and she's more than competent for our needs.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

Our VA has done immense work in updating records in our CRM, creating mailing lists and managing pipeline reporting. It has cut a few hours of administrative time out of my calendar, leaving me available for more customer contacts.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very easy. We correspond real time using Teams, and meet in person once a week on a prescheduled call.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The company workers are virtual and off-shore. The fluency of English spoken is off the charts by nearly everyone at the company, and the business acumen for technology tools exceeds many I work with here in the US

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

I can't think of any right now.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of talent and people for Zus Health. We build tools for other digital health companies to help them accelerate their time to market through data and data sharing. In my role, I deal with responsibilities related to recruiting, onboarding, offboarding, and other HR tasks.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Prialto?

I needed a virtual executive assistant for my department.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Prialto provides me with Ximena (Productivity Assistant), who helps me with scheduling management. For example, we do a lot of interviews, so she schedules the interviews, coordinates calendars with internal teammates and external candidates, sends interview confirmations, and coordinates the debriefs or meetings required after the interviews. She is also in charge of my own calendar management, helping me avoid overlapping my meetings.

Additionally, Ximena helps me with my email management, keeping my inbox up to date. She has created a set of email management rules, including a flagging system to ensure that I know the most important items in my inbox.

What is the team composition?

We only work with Ximena. Initially, Prialto provided us with two assistants, but Ximena had superior organization skills and was a better fit for us, so we decided to work solely with her.

How did you come to work with Prialto?

I met Prialto through a reference; someone I had been talking to in the venture capital community reached out to me and recommended them. Our chief product officer and I had a meeting with Prialto and decided to move forward with them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spend around $4,000 per month, so we’ve spent around $28,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2021, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

Ximena’s work quality is very high; she’s on top of things, is very proactive, and does what she says she will do.

How did Prialto perform from a project management standpoint?

Ximena constantly reaches out to inform us about emails and scheduling changes to get our approval.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Prialto’s service level is very high; they’re very attentive and service-oriented, and they demonstrate excellent attention to detail. I’ve been very impressed with Ximena’s and Prialto’s work overall.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. Although we went through an adaptation period initially, the onboarding process was still very fast, and we had Ximena organizing things and scheduling interviews almost immediately. Still, it might not be as quick for others, so the onboarding process could be streamlined.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder of Andela. We focus on top international tech talent. We started in Africa in 2014 and are now in 32 countries around the world.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Prialto?

They give all kinds of project management, administrative, and executive assistance to our senior team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

My co-founder and I have been in touch with Prialto for five years. Before the company grew, we used them for all kinds of admin support. They were like an executive assistant, and so far, we’ve worked with four different people in that matter.

Prialto removes the administrative burden from us. They’re an extra support for our complex projects. For example, if we have a full-time project manager in our office, they’re the assistant to that person. They manage spreadsheets, schedule meetings, and track the process toward our goals.

What is the team composition?

We have three people working full-time for us and an account manager that oversees the work. We can get in touch with them at any time. Also, we’ve been personally contacted by the CEO. He just checks in to see how it’s going, so we’ve been in touch a handful of times.

How did you come to work with Prialto?

My co-founder found them first. I’m not sure how, but we were searching for executive assistants. We liked their company values and the way they operated. They were just excellent, so once I met them, I was hooked.

How much have you invested with them?

It’s about $15,000 a year, so we’ve probably spent $75,000, maybe more.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2014, and our relationship is ongoing. Byron (Productivity Assistant) is our current full-time assistant.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The most significant one is that we’ve retained their services for quite a long time. Other service providers have come and gone, but we’ve stuck with Prialto, and they’ve been able to scale with our company.

How did Prialto perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve done really well. Their response time is excellent. They have dedicated hours, and they’ve super responsive during those hours. Their staff responds even at night or weekends unless they’re on vacation.

Most of their team is based in the Philippines, but we have no problem communicating with them. I mostly speak with Byron on WhatsApp. Also, we email back and forth and do Zoom calls once a week to check in as needed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of the talent is excellent. Everybody that we’ve worked with has been hyper-competent and effective. They’ve onboarded quickly, and they’re wonderful people. My former assistant moved on six months ago, and she still sent my one-year-old child a birthday present. She didn’t need to do all that, but whenever our company reaches a milestone, we get gifts from them in the mail. I’ve gotten coffee from the Philippines because they know that I’m always drinking a cup of coffee when I talk to them.

In summary, they go above and beyond their duty. Prialto’s team feels connected to the work we do, and they’re super supportive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t have any significant feedback for them. I’ve given individual feedback to each person that I’ve worked with, but it wasn’t any different than what you’d give someone else. It can be challenging to switch from one team member to another, but they work hard in the background to exchange all information and get them prepared for the account. They’re pretty solid.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Pay attention and dedicate time to your assistant upfront to really communicate with them. It may seem like micromanaging for the first month, but they’re great at taking feedback. That way, they’ll be able to maintain the same quality level throughout the engagement.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the founder of an organization that is working with media and media associations to help promote trust online.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Prialto?

We are growing quickly, and we needed help to continue to grow, and to make sure that our existing members are taken care of.

SOLUTION

How did you select this firm and what were the deciding factors?

I looked at a few, and Prialto seemed to have the most focus on really treating the employees as people, and not as some resource to be used up and discarded. Also, they have such great backup so that whenever we need something that is out of the range of experience of my assistant, they have a great backup team ready to go.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

I just needed someone to make sure that my inbox doesn't get totally out of control, that I'm following up with people when I said I would, and to help me set appointments. I also need some internet research done. The package is just exactly the right amount of hours for me, and it's good to know that as we grow, they can grow with us.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

I talk to my assistant every day. At the beginning we talked to a few other members of the team to get things going, but now it's just as needed, maybe every three weeks or so.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

It's kind of like having a multiplier on my productivity. Prospects have actually thanked me for being persistent with them because we solve a real problem for them, but we just need to pierce their bubble of not talking to anyone new. Using Prialto has helped me to pierce that bubble because all of my following up runs through my assistant.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow is exactly right. I have a daily call, usually about 15 minutes early in the day. We both know what we need to get done that day. Then I get this great email every night with what we got done, and what's on tap for tomorrow. It's perfect for me.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The care and genuine admiration for the people. You can tell when it's just lip service, that's not the case here. They have a fantastic team all the way through.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

I can't think of anything. It really is the one part of my workday that I'm just constantly delighted with.