Started as a freelancer with her two sisters, initially offering services like logo creation, website designing, social media content creation, and other simple services, they eventually shaped their dreams to build one of the most competitive BPO staffing solutions in Clark, Philippines.

To give you some background, just like other businesses, they also experienced challenges in their first few months of operation. Initially focused on offering only marketing-related services, they realized over time that they could do much more. This inspired them to study and serve other industries. As Vanessa said, “You may as well try doing it and fail rather than not doing it at all and still fail.”

Through this forum, Vanessa Janssen shared inspiring advice to help people like her who have ambitious dreams to build their own staffing agency. She motivated them not to give up their dream even if it may seem like there’s no progress or future in it at the moment. “Give it a try, be open to change, try new things and take the risk,” she said.

She also highlighted in her panel speech the importance of giving value to every service you offer. She advised virtual assistants who have been in the industry for a long period and are now planning to embark on a freelance career or build their own agency to be strict with their compensation. “Determine what you can offer, add value to your services, be strict with it and get the payments in.” Vanessa emphasized the concept of ‘Finding the right client,’ as she greatly believes that the “right clients will pay the right money for the right staff.”

Take Guerilla Staffing Solutions as an example. The culture Vanessa and her sisters created is ‘People Focus.’ The management always puts their staff first—their well-being, their development, and their salary compensation. They build a safe and supportive environment where employees feel empowered to contribute their best work, take risks, and learn from their mistakes. They communicate openly and honestly, sharing information and feedback in a timely and constructive manner.

Vanessa believes that dreams will soon turn into reality when you take the courage to make your first step today. She and her sisters believe that anyone who has dreams can also be a successful entrepreneur and leader in the future. She leaves a very important pointer that she always has in mind as a great leader and president of Guerilla Staffing Solutions: “The first seat really matters. If you get it right the first time, you can grow from there.”