Desk & VA

Desk & VA is an Australia and Philippines-based remote staffing and virtual assistant (VA) provider. It recruits and manages Filipino VAs who work from fully managed offices in Dumaguete City.

The company was founded by serial entrepreneur Sina Bakhshalian on the belief that growth should be both scalable and human.

Its stated vision runs in two directions: high-performing offshore support for global businesses, and meaningful, sustainable employment for talented professionals in the Philippines.

The client base runs from solo founders to established teams, weighted toward Australian, New Zealand, and United States businesses facing rising labour costs and local talent shortages.

More than 190 tasks are delegable across admin, customer service, social media, data, e-commerce, and technical support, and clients report saving 5 to 15 hours a week on admin alone.

Its flagship Dumaguete offices already run 150+ fully operational workstations, with plans to open in multiple cities and add 500+ more.

The company reports a 99% client retention rate across its client base.

Desk & VA runs its delivery from Dumaguete City, Philippines, with a corporate and client-facing presence in New South Wales, Australia.

The default model is office-based rather than remote. Each virtual assistant (VA) works from a serviced office with fibre internet, backup power, on-site IT, and daily supervision.

Clients choose between three engagement shapes:

• Core Plan: Desk & VA supplies the workstation and infrastructure while the client manages the VA directly and pays their salary
• Signature Plan: a fully managed option covering salary, equipment, payroll, HR, compliance, and supervision in one weekly fee
• Work-from-home placements: recruited on a one-off finding fee with the client relationship handed over in full afterwards

Onboarding runs as a three-step sequence:

1. Tell us what you need, where the team helps define the ideal VA role for the business
2. We match you with the right VA, handpicked against required skills and company culture
3. Your VA starts working from a professional office, fully supervised and equipped from day one

Recruitment is structured around a curated shortlist of five qualified applicants, each supplied with a pre-recorded interview.

If none suit, a second shortlist of five follows. If that round also misses, the full recruitment fee is refunded and the engagement closes.

Engagements carry a minimum six-month commitment, about half the twelve-month term most providers ask for, plus a 120-day free replacement guarantee.

Delivery hours are set for Australian, New Zealand, and United States clients, and the company counts 190+ delegable tasks across admin, support, and back-office work.

Desk & VA offers a focused range of business process outsourcing (BPO) services designed for founders and small to mid-sized teams:

• Admin and calendar management: VAs manage client calendars, inboxes, and admin tasks.
• Social media and content creation: VAs create, post, and manage content so clients can focus on strategy.
• Customer service and live chat: VAs handle live chat, email, and support.
• Data entry and reporting: accurate, detailed data entry and reporting across platforms.
• E-commerce support: VAs manage orders, inventory, and customer support for smooth store operations.
• IT and technical assistance: VAs assist with software, troubleshooting, and tool setup.
• Hiring and recruitment support: recruitment support built to cut hiring time.
• Admin and back-office tasks: invoice prep, file organisation, and reporting, saving clients 5 to 15 hours weekly.

Desk & VA’s pricing

Desk & VA publishes standardised rates rather than quoting privately. Recruitment is a one-off fee: US$499 for an office-based placement, or US$1,999 for a remote one.

Ongoing support runs weekly. The Core Plan is US$49 per week for the workstation and infrastructure, and the Signature Plan is US$249 per week fully managed.

Specialist roles attract an additional US$400 on recruitment, and an extra US$100 per week on the Signature Plan.

The company puts the all-in cost at roughly US$3.80 per hour on Core and around US$6 per hour on Signature, an estimated 55 to 75% saving against a comparable Western hire.

Clients paying six months in advance receive a 10% discount. Full plan detail sits on Desk & VA’s pricing page.

Desk & VA sets itself apart on a single promise: scale smarter, without the overhead. Its positioning rests on supervised office placement, flat weekly rates, and short commitment terms.

Cost-effective and flexible

Premium talent and infrastructure come at lower rates than traditional business process outsourcing (BPO) firms or local hiring, with capacity added only as a client needs it.

Fully managed offices

By default a virtual assistant (VA) works from a secure, professional office for consistent productivity, with work-from-home available whenever a client prefers it.

Top-tier virtual assistants

VAs are recruited, vetted, and trained in house, selected for fluency in English and alignment with Western business standards.

End-to-end support

Hiring, HR, IT, payroll, and supervision are all handled by the company rather than split across the client and a series of local vendors.

Transparent pricing, short terms

Clients pay only for what they need, with no hidden costs, and can scale up at any point on a short six-month commitment.

Time zone friendly

The model suits Australian, New Zealand, and United States businesses, and Filipino VAs are experienced working global hours.

Sina Bakhshalian (Founder)

Sina Bakhshalian is a serial entrepreneur who founded Desk & VA to pair offshore support for global businesses with sustainable employment for Filipino professionals.

Desk & VA is an innovative remote staffing and virtual assistant (VA) provider in Dumaguete City, Philippines.

While we currently do not have any third-party reviews for Desk & VA, we would suggest a comparison of the firm to other boutique VA and offshore staffing providers in the Visayas.

A comparison against other firms across the Philippines serving Australian, New Zealand, and United States clients is also worth running.

The company reports a 99% client retention rate and a 4.8/5 client rating on customer service work, and names Lumina Datamatics and Nova Ability Care among the businesses it supports.

Desk & VA’s main headquarters is located in:

PO Box 3590, Rouse Hill NSW 2155, Australia

Further, you may virtually reach out the company through the following contact information:

Website https://deskandva.com/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/desk-va/

Facebook http://facebook.com/deskandva

In addition, you may email them at [email protected] or call 1300 802 502.