MV

Mara Villanueva

Executive & operations assistant

Sample portfolio. The person, clients, figures and testimonials are fictional.

Taking one new client from November

I run the inbox and calendar, so you can run the business.

Executive assistant for founders and real estate teams in the US. Six years of keeping busy people on time, followed up and out of their email.

Get in touch See my work
supporting executives
6 yrs
long-term clients, all US
4
reply time during your workday
<2 hrs

Working hours

Mon to Fri, 9 PM to 6 AM Manila time

Mon to Fri, 9 PM to 6 AM Manila time.

Skills

  • Inbox management
  • Calendar management
  • Lead follow-up
  • Client onboarding
  • SOP writing
  • Trackers and data entry
  • Bookkeeping admin
  • Time-zone scheduling

Tools

  • Gmail
  • Google Calendar
  • Google Sheets
  • Microsoft 365
  • Calendly
  • Asana
  • ClickUp
  • Notion
  • Follow Up Boss
  • HubSpot
  • Canva
  • Loom
  • Slack
  • QuickBooks Online
  • DocuSign
  • Zapier

AI tools

  • ChatGPT
  • Claude
  • Gemini
  • Perplexity
  • Grammarly
  • Fathom

Work samples

Recreations of real systems I built and run. Names and numbers from client accounts are swapped for sample data.

Inbox0 unread
  • Jenna OrtizOffer on 1120 Elm, need signatures by 5 Booked 9:42
  • Title Co.Closing docs for Ridgeview, final Filed 9:15
  • Marcus LeeCan we push the showing to Thursday? Follow up 8:58
  • Zillow LeadsNew inquiry: 3BR in Mueller Sent 8:31
  • Priya ShahInvoice for staging, March Paid 8:02
Recreated with sample data. Client details removed.

Real estate team, Austin TX

Took a broker's inbox from 3,400 unread to zero, and kept it there

11 hrs a week back for the broker

Every message now gets a label, an owner and a reply time. The broker reads a 5-minute end-of-day summary instead of the inbox.

How I did it

The broker was answering email at 11 PM and still missing lead inquiries. Nothing was labelled, and three assistants before me had tried a full cleanup and given up.

  • Archived 2,900 stale threads in two sessions using search filters, after the broker approved the rules
  • Built 9 labels and 14 filters so leads, transactions and vendors sort themselves
  • Wrote reply templates for the 12 questions buyers ask most
  • Send a daily summary at 6 PM Austin time: what came in, what I handled, what needs the broker

GmailGoogle SheetsFollow Up Boss

Week of Oct 614 meetings
MonTueWedThuFri
Focus: productInvestor callTeam standupCustomer demosFocus: product1:1 Sales leadHiring panelBoard prepFocus: productWeekly review
Recreated with sample data. Client details removed.

Founder, B2B software startup

A calendar that protects the founder's deep-work blocks

3 mornings a week kept meeting-free

Meetings get booked into set windows through one link, and nothing lands on Monday, Wednesday or Friday mornings without my sign-off.

How I did it
  • Mapped two months of the old calendar to find which meetings could move
  • Set up booking windows by meeting type: sales, hiring, investors
  • Handle every reschedule request myself, across 4 time zones

Google CalendarCalendlySlack

Active transactionsUpdated today
PropertyClientClosingStatus 1120 Elm StOrtizOct 24Pending48 RidgeviewNguyenOct 17Closed903 Lamar #4HaleNov 2In review77 Barton HillsOkaforNov 9Booked15 Mueller LnShahNov 14Draft
Recreated with sample data. Client details removed.

Same real estate team

A transaction tracker the whole team actually updates

0 missed closing deadlines in 2025

One sheet replaced sticky notes and three group chats. Agents update it from their phones, and I chase anything that goes quiet for 48 hours.

SOP: New client onboardingv3

When a client pays

Send welcome email from template A within 2 hours

Create client folder from the master template

Book kickoff call in coach's Tuesday or Thursday slots

Before the kickoff call

Intake form received

Payment recorded in QuickBooks

Coach briefed in Slack

Recreated with sample data. Client details removed.

Wellness coaching business

Client onboarding, written down so anyone can run it

2 days from payment to first session, down from 9

The coach used to onboard every client personally. Now the SOP runs the same way whether I do it or my backup does.

What I can take off your plate

Most clients start with one of these and hand over the rest within a month.

Inbox and calendar

You stop reading email that doesn't need you, and your week shows up already arranged.

  • Daily inbox triage and replies in your voice
  • Scheduling across time zones
  • Meeting prep notes and follow-ups
  • End-of-day summary

Client and lead follow-up

Nobody who wants to work with you waits more than a business day.

  • Lead response from templates
  • CRM updates
  • Showing and consult booking
  • Review and referral requests

Operations and SOPs

The things you do every week, written down so they run without you.

  • Process documentation with Loom
  • Project boards in Asana or ClickUp
  • Vendor and contractor coordination
  • Simple automations with Zapier

Light bookkeeping admin

Paperwork done on time, ready for your accountant.

  • Invoices and payment reminders
  • Receipt capture and categorizing
  • Expense reports
  • Contract routing in DocuSign

How working with me goes

The first two weeks decide whether delegation sticks, so I keep them structured.

  1. 15-minute call

    You tell me what is eating your week. I tell you honestly whether I'm the right person for it.

  2. Access and a short list

    We agree on the first three things I take over and how you want them done. You share access, nothing more.

  3. Two shadow weeks

    I do the work and you see everything. Daily summaries, quick questions in one Slack thread, no surprises.

  4. Hand it over

    Once the first three run without you, we add the next ones. Most clients are fully delegated by week six.

Where I have done this before

  1. 2022 to now

    Executive assistant (freelance) 4 US clients in real estate, software and coaching

    • Own inbox, calendar and follow-up for a real estate broker handling about 40 transactions a year
    • Run onboarding and billing for a coaching business with 60 active clients
    • Built SOPs that let a backup assistant cover my leave without a single missed task

  2. 2020 to 2022

    Admin and scheduling coordinator Multi-branch dental clinic, Quezon City

    • Booked and confirmed around 80 patient appointments a day across 3 dentists
    • Cut no-shows by setting up text reminders the day before
    • Handled insurance paperwork and daily cash reconciliation

  3. 2018 to 2020

    Customer support representative Telecom account, BPO in Eastwood

    • Handled billing and service calls for US customers on night shift
    • Kept a 92% customer satisfaction score while handling 60+ calls a day
    • Learned to stay calm and specific with people who are already annoyed

What people I have worked with say

Mara is the reason I stopped answering email at midnight. She knows my business well enough that I only see what actually needs me, and she catches things I would have missed.

Dana R.Broker and team lead, Austin real estate team

She rebuilt our onboarding in two weeks and wrote it down so clearly that our new hire learned it in an afternoon.

Kim A.Founder, Wellness coaching practice

Four time zones, a board, investors and a hiring push, and my calendar has not double-booked once.

Ravi P.Co-founder and CEO, B2B software startup
MV

Hi, I'm Mara.

I started on the phones at a call center, moved to running the front desk of a busy dental clinic, and have been an executive assistant for US business owners since 2022. Every job taught me the same thing: busy people don't need someone to do tasks, they need someone who notices what's about to slip.

I work your business hours from Manila, write in clear American English, and put everything I do somewhere you can see it. If I don't know how to do something, I tell you, then I learn it.

Based in
Quezon City, PH
Works
US business hours
Languages
English, Filipino
Setup
Fiber + backup LTE, UPS

Training and certificates

  • Google Workspace Administrator learning pathGoogle Cloud Skills Boost, 2024
  • Executive Assistant certificateOnline course, 40 hours, 2022
  • BS Business AdministrationPolytechnic University of the Philippines, 2018

Questions people ask before hiring me

How many hours a week do you work with each client?

Between 10 and 30 hours, billed monthly. I keep to four clients so each one gets reliable coverage during their workday.

How do you keep my accounts and data safe?

I use the access you share through your own tools, a password manager you control, and two-factor on everything. I'm happy to sign an NDA before we start.

What happens when you're sick or offline?

Everything I do is written in an SOP. I have a vetted backup assistant who can cover urgent tasks, and I give at least two weeks' notice for planned leave.

What's your internet and power setup?

Fiber with a separate LTE backup and a UPS, so a brownout doesn't take me offline.

Let's see if I'm a fit.

Tell me what is taking up your week. I'll reply within one business day with whether I can help, and how.

© 2026 Mara Villanueva