Ready Set Coach Podcast

Virtual Assistant vs. Digital Business Manager: Which One Does Your Business Need?

• Emily Merrell and Lexie Smith

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Coaches, are your backend operations a hot mess express? You’re not alone. Erica Farrell, a certified Online Business Manager (OBM), joins Ready Set Coach Podcast to expose the common operational struggles coaches face—and more importantly, how to fix them.

Erica walks us through the fundamental difference between OBMs and VAs and why hiring a VA without proper systems in place often leads to frustration and burnout. She explains why OBMs serve as the operational heartbeat of a growing business, handling everything from project management to team coordination, so entrepreneurs can focus on their zone of genius—coaching.

We also dive into the importance of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and why skipping documentation can sabotage your business. Plus, Erica introduces her Operational Style quiz, a must-take assessment to help you understand how you naturally function in business and whether you’re truly ready to hire operational support.

🔍 In this episode, we discuss:

  • OBM vs VA: Which one does your business actually need?
  • Why hiring a VA without a system in place leads to disaster
  • How SOPs can save you from micromanaging (and burnout!)
  • Are you ready to hire operational help? Take the Operational Style quiz

Join the FREE Exclusive Network of Coaches  

Take the Operational Style quiz: https://airtable.com/appwasXTLW26rHed0/shrTlk6kxazN5L6uJ 

Erika Ferrell is a Strategic Operations Coach & Certified OBM, I help ambitious entrepreneurs transform chaos into clockwork. She helps transform your business systems into streamlined operations & guides your team into sustainable success. 

Website: https://www.erikaferrellandco.com/

Instagram: @erikaferrell_andco 

https://www.instagram.com/erikaferrell_andco/ 


Erika Farrell:

You said, something's not working in the back end. I don't like this. I need more freedom, whatever that might be. And you sought help. So you did lean into your zone of genius when you kind of went that route to bring on your obm. So I always think kind of leading with that mentality is a good place for. For coaches, for service providers to really kind of start from, because I think it really sets the stage for them to say, you know what? Yeah, my operations were probably the hot mess express, but that's okay.

Emily Merrell:

Welcome to the Ready Set Coach podcast, the podcast for coaches by coaches. Just like our community, we're here for.

Lexie Smith :

Real talk on what it takes to thrive in the coaching world. Plus an exclusive behind the scenes look at coaches making it happen.

Emily Merrell:

Are you ready, Lex?

Lexie Smith :

I'm set.

Emily Merrell:

M. Let's coach. Hi, Erica. Welcome to the Ready Set Coach podcast.

Erika Farrell:

Well, hello. Thank you for having me.

Emily Merrell:

Thanks for joining as my co host today. I always. It's always kind of weird to start a podcast that you have a co host, and I kind of feel like I'm cheating on her a little bit when I bring in a new co host.

Erika Farrell:

Well, hopefully Lexi will still be your co host after my episode.

Emily Merrell:

I. Who knows? Maybe this is an audition. You don't even know. Maybe.

Erika Farrell:

Maybe I'm here to replace Lexi.

Emily Merrell:

Oh, my God, she listens to these. Lexi, we're not replacing you. We love you so much.

Erika Farrell:

This is very true.

Emily Merrell:

This is very true of the dynamic. Well, Erica, I'm so excited to tell your story and to dig into who you are and get into some tactical weeds today. But first and foremost, Erica Farrell, can you tell us a little bit about who you are and, you know, what inspired you to leave the corporate project management world to then become a business operations coach?

Erika Farrell:

Yes. Quite the journey. I thought you'd ever ask. So. Yeah, what, the introduction.

Emily Merrell:

Right.

Erika Farrell:

So I'm Erica. I am a certified OBM as of now, and I'm kind of branching out into taking all of those skill sets that I've learned through that entire journey and starting to give that back to coaches and give that back to entrepreneurs to really set up their business for success in the way that I wish businesses were whenever I started working out in that. In that industry. Yeah. So my journey, it really started in corporate project management. What I found in that journey is that I really loved the strategic problem solving aspect of it. But like most entrepreneurs, I'm sure will resonate with this. I just felt like there was a restriction of a lack of autonomy Right. So I knew that the trajectory that my career was on was not right for me, but I knew that the skill sets I had absolutely loved and I loved sharing them. So I sort of left that corporate burnout phase. What I was finding in that role, honestly, is really what led to some of my core beliefs as an OBM and as an operations consultant as well is that were viewed as butts and seats, not the subject matter experts in our role. And that really changed the framework for what does autonomy mean to me and how can we let our operational systems support our roles versus like constraining us into a box. So I took a leap of faith. I quit my corporate project management career and literally had absolutely no idea what I was doing. Would I recommend that to anybody else? Probably not. It was something that I am most proud of and really set the stage for me to build a foundation of philosophies and methods that I think are proven and work. So when I left, I took this progression. Since I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I landed into the world of virtual assistants. It was honestly a natural progression, I think going from a project manager into a freelance career who wanted something new but had that skill set to bring to it. So after I became a va, I kind of slowly progressed rest as a freelancer, kind of took that VA role into becoming an ea. So I was an executive assistant doing a lot more hands on work with CEOs. Then I started becoming their chief of staffs. I was leading their team of VAs while still supporting the CEO in that vision. And then I recently decided to take that one step further and said it's not just about team management, but let's actually advocate for the business. And I became a certified online business manager. And honestly the reason behind all of that was so I could share all of my learnings and my methods with the entrepreneur community.

Emily Merrell:

And I feel like online business managers, we all know what project managers are or VAs and EAs, but OBM is still kind of a newer term. And I remember I had a client who on our first session she's like, I'm an obm. And I was like googling. At the same time I'm like, yay, what that is. So for those that might not be privy to understanding obm, can you dive into like what is an OBM and what. What's the work that they typically do?

Erika Farrell:

Yeah, absolutely. And you're not wrong, it is definitely a newer term. And honestly I even had a hard time kind of learning what it was. And once I kind of learned what it was, I said, aha. That's it, that's the trajectory, you know, the direction that I want to head into. So your obm, it stands for Online Business Manager. We're the operational heartbeat of that growing business. Right? We're part project manager or part chief of staff or part business consultant, data analyst, process guru, really jack of all trades, if you will. But our main primary focus is to be that missing piece that helps your CEOs, your entrepreneurs, transition from doing everything themselves to confidently stepping into their CEO role. So I really like to compare an OBM to a va, honestly. And unlike a va is going to be someone who just kind of handles those specific tasks. So you're still really in that strategy seat. Operationally speaking, as a CEO, you're still really guiding every single operational decision. Which projects are we doing? I'm doing all the project management, I'm doing all the goal planning. Your VA is just really there to be your executor, right? Your OBM takes ownership of your entire operational ecosystem. So they're lifting that mental capacity off of your shoulders, not just the physical time capacity that a VA does.

Lexie Smith :

If you're listening to this show and not in the Ready Set Coach community, what are you doing?

Erika Farrell:

Seriously?

Emily Merrell:

Our members have found clients, collaborators, accountability buddies and best friends inside our community. It's super simple to apply, hit pause and visit ready set coach community.com today.

Lexie Smith :

See you inside.

Emily Merrell:

Cheers. I feel like they're definitely the backbone of your business in terms of making sure the Nike mom, like making sure all the things get done and steps get taken care of, like from running payroll to, I don't know, even overseeing like a virtual assistant.

Erika Farrell:

Yes, yes. That's going to be that chief of staff that started to come in.

Emily Merrell:

Yes, yes. I mean it makes sense like your trajectory and where you went with it. So you know, that same vein, I love this transition that you're going on in terms of being then a business operations coach. So and so many coaches and so many business owners. But in this vein of coaching world that we're talking about, so many coaches feel so overwhelmed about their back end operations and I'm sure in your experience looking at people's backend operations, you're like, oh Jesus, this is a hot mess Express. Or like they could be working so much smarter or they could be working a lot more intentionally than they actually are. So why do you think it is that coaches in particular really struggle to delegate or higher Help?

Erika Farrell:

Yeah, for sure. And I definitely think, kind of leading off with the notion, number one, every single person I meet, the first thing they say is, please don't judge my operational backend. And the first thing is, why would I. It's not your zone of genius, right? It's your OBM zone of genius. It's not yours. But you made the right decision to seek out that help. You said, something's not working in the back end. I don't like this. I need more freedom, whatever that might be. And you sought help. So you did lean into your zone of genius when you kind of went that route to bring on your obm. So I always think kind of leading with that mentality is a good place for. For coaches, for service providers to really kind of start from, because I think it really sets the stage for them to say, you know what, yeah, my operations were probably the hot mess express, but that's okay. That wasn't what I was meant to do in the business. And so I think really what happens, there's sort of this phenomenon, I think, that happens with coaches. They a. You become a coach and then all of a sudden your business grows, right? You're. You're thriving, you're bringing on clients. Well, now you're a finance manager, now you're a marketing manager. Now you need to bring on a va, and you're a people manager, you're hr, you're it, you're all of these things. And in reality, you just wanted to be the coach of your own world.

Emily Merrell:

Right.

Erika Farrell:

You wanted to kind of just be that coach.

Emily Merrell:

I was going to say, I think that's like the big thing right there is the coaches are like, I'm really good at coaching and that's what I want to focus on. I don't want to, as you mention exactly all of these other things.

Erika Farrell:

Yeah. So I think when they start looking at which the virtual assistant industry is also something that I super advocate for, and I should definitely note that's also another big reason why I want to lean into coaching coaches through their operations, is to advocate for VAs, because they're such a powerful asset to your business. And so I think that coaches specifically see, ooh, I can bring on a VA to help. Right. So they just kind of look at that as like that extra pair of hands. If I can hand off payroll, if I can hand off client invoicing, if I can hand off data tracking, client onboarding, what have you, then the problem will be solved. Right. But that's quite the opposite. So Usually what ends up happening when you're just like, I need a band aid fix. I need to take this process and give it to somebody else to own. What I find is that you've got that lack of, like, no foundational systems. So here's your common scenario. Your VA is onboarding. You're kicking off day one and they're going to say, how do you do this? Crickets, right? It's you. You don't even know. You do it different every time.

Emily Merrell:

Your.

Erika Farrell:

How is your VA going to know? And I always kind of tell folks a really good VA is going to figure it out. Trust and believe that. So will they figure all those things out? They sure will. Your VA will eventually get there. But what does that mean costing you to get them there? Right. You're spending money, paying them to dig around, you know, to pop the hood of your business and to dig around to find all those files, to find the processes, to send something to you to review 15 different times, only for you to kind of say, no and just say, screw it, I'll do it myself.

Emily Merrell:

You know, there's speaking to my soul.

Erika Farrell:

Exactly right. And again, it's. It's because that really wasn't your zone of genius. Right? You. Your zone of genius is still kind of focused on that vision and that goal of you want to take your business. It isn't focused on being the people manager. It isn't focused on being the operational manager. So that's usually typically what I find is that there's just no foundation to build on. A lot of people might have a couple of SOPs. Maybe it's all in their head as well. It's not documented. And so really, working with coaches, that's the first kind of key step is let's. Let's set the foundation right. And it's the same thing with your house. You're not going to decorate it or hire a designer until the foundation's built.

Emily Merrell:

And. And for those that are like, wait, I've heard of SOPs before. So those are systems of procedures, Standard operating procedures. I always call them systems of procedures. My bad. Standard operating procedures. So that means taking the way that you post your post on Instagram and documenting step by step, like, what filter you use and how you crop it and what pictures would be appropriate versus wouldn't be appropr. Appropriate. Exactly. Making it, like, so user friendly that there leaves very little room for questions or error.

Erika Farrell:

Yeah, you're. That's exactly correct. Right. And so then when we think about, okay, so what's the benefit of having this sop? Besides, they're going to do it the same way that I do it every single time. We're getting back to that autonomy that you sought out in your role. We're getting back to the freedom that you sought out because you're no longer answering all the different emails. Where do you want me to post this? What time is it scheduled? Well, hang on. I saw two different brand guides in the Google Drive. Am I supposed to use Canva or do you want me to use Adobe? Right, like you're no longer fielding all of those questions. You're taking that SOP and you're saying, here's a turnkey training guide and your VA is going to be able to kind of walk right on through that entire SOP and hand off a deliverable for you to, you know, review or just kind of roll with on their own time as well. So you're not only giving yourself the freedom and the autonomy to be in your position, but you're doing the same thing for them. And now we're building upon that foundation of creating a lasting relationship between yourself.

Emily Merrell:

And your VA genius. And I think that's why it's so helpful rather than you just cold hire a va, hire someone like an Erica or Erica in particular to help you understand, help you maximize both that bridge between the hiring and also managing. Because, you know, a lot of individuals, especially coaches, maybe they haven't been managers before or they don't, they're not really good at communicating their needs and desires. So, Erica, I know that you know, you work with clients and you also have this really cool quiz called Operational Style. So what should we do? Like, what are the next steps in terms of where should our listeners find you? Should they take the quiz? Where should they go?

Erika Farrell:

The quiz, that is the number one thing. And correct me if I'm wrong, Emily, we will put a link to that maybe in the show notes we will skip for everybody, starting with the quiz. So yes, it's kind of a, it's a quiz to uncover your operational style. So, hey, Erica, why am I starting with a quiz to work with you? That's the first thing that we're going to do whenever we work together, regardless, and there's a reason for that. So I really believe in people first systems. Again, we're coming back to my personal North Star, which is guiding my philosophy and methods for everything that I do right. My philosophy or my North Star was to have freedom. I did not want to be changed to emails. I did want to be changed to my desk. We're all visionaries and let's be real. Our visions come to us in the shower. They come to us when we're driving. They come to us at all moments of the day. And they are unplanned. We just get them right. So leading with that or leading with that Operational Style quiz is going to show you who you are naturally in operations. How do you naturally digest information? How do you naturally communicate? How do you naturally want to operate within your business, within your team first? Right. Are you a super structured person? Are you somebody who kind of goes back and forth? Right. You like a little bit of structure, but you want to have some flexibility in that or, you know, more power to you. If you're one of those people who lives by deadlines.

Emily Merrell:

Right.

Erika Farrell:

You're like, I'll do it the day before. That's not me. But more power to you thrive in that area. But knowing that is going to help you with any operational problem that you have. And, and really the reason to lead with that is because you don't want to take somebody else's systems or even their SOPs and copy and paste it as a template into your business. It was meant for them. It's not meant for you.

Emily Merrell:

Yeah. Oh, my gosh, Erica. Well, this podcast could be like a four hour podcast, but we unfortunately have to wrap up, Erica. So what's the best way? We'll drop your Instagram. We'll drop the. The quiz in the chat.

Erika Farrell:

Yeah.

Emily Merrell:

You know, when we wrap up on the Ready Set Coach podcast, we always give homework. So my homework to y'all is to do this quiz. I think this is the best next starting point. And I'll let you know if you're ready to also hire a VA obm. You know, you're take your next step. But Lex and I like to do a little singing when we wrap up.

Erika Farrell:

Oh, goodness. Well, then, Lex, you might still have a job.

Emily Merrell:

She's back in. Okay, so we're gonna wrap up and so thank you all for coming and we'll see you the next time on the Ready Set Coach podcast. Erica's a hard no on the singing.

Erika Farrell:

Guys, I told you guys, Lexi still needs a role. This is me giving her job security.

Emily Merrell:

In that job security is had. Thank you so much for all your wisdom, Erica. And we'll see you next time.

Erika Farrell:

Thank you. Yes. Bye.

Emily Merrell:

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