Collaboration Over Competition: Building a VA Agency with Emma Boatman

In this episode of Rad-Ventures, I’m joined by Emma Boatman, founder of Boatman Admin Services, to talk about life as a virtual assistant and what it really looks like to run a VA agency.Emma shares her journey from corporate work into virtual assistance, how her business evolved into an agency model over the last 10 years, and why she believes collaboration matters more than competition in the VA world. We talk about trusting associates, managing client relationships, and the realities of growing a service-based business without a rigid master plan.We also get into tools, productivity, and communication — including Emma’s honest take on project management systems, using your inbox as a to-do list, and adapting to new platforms as the industry changes. The episode wraps up with Emma’s future aspirations, including a growing interest in travel and blogging.A relaxed conversation about business growth, agency life, and what actually works behind the scenes.Follow Emma:https://www.linkedin.com/in/emma-boatman/https://www.instagram.com/boatmanservices/00:00 – Introduction to Emma Boatman02:55 – The evolution of virtual assistance05:53 – Collaboration over competition08:57 – What a VA role really looks like11:49 – Building Boatman Admin Services14:49 – Challenges and business growth17:48 – Agency model vs freelancing20:43 – Finding and trusting associates23:38 – Personal insights & fun questions30:40 – Productivity tools (or not 😅)37:27 – Managing email & communication48:10 – Travel dreams & future plansIf you’re enjoying Rad-Ventures, you can support the podcast here:☕ https://ko-fi.com/radmin_assist🎙️ Patreon: /radminassist