After 18 years in IT, Filipino father turns to virtual assistant work

For Filipinos, working as a virtual assistant is being presented as a “dream job” that can rank ahead of becoming a doctor. But the reality of this career path is reflected in the experience of Mark Ifurung, who turned to virtual assistant work after leaving an 18-year career in IT.

Ifurung left his job as an IT professional in May. He was happy to give up the two-hour commute from his home in Cavite province, south of Manila, to his office in Makati City.

That daily journey had been part of his working life. After leaving his IT career, he wanted a fresh start that would allow him to work from home. The aim was not only to find another job, but also to move away from the long commute that had shaped his routine.

Ifurung is 40 years old and the father of four. Before deciding to explore freelancing and virtual assistant work, he spent five months unemployed. During that period, he looked for a new direction that could make use of the experience he had built during his years in IT.

“After being unemployed for five months, I decided to explore freelancing,” he said.

His decision to look at freelancing was linked to his earlier professional background. He had worked in IT operations and application support, and he believed those skills could still be useful in a different kind of job.

“With my background in IT operations and application support, I realised I already have transferable skills that I can offer to clients,” he said.

For Ifurung, moving towards virtual assistant work did not mean leaving all his earlier experience behind. Instead, he saw the possibility of using his existing skills in a new work arrangement. His IT background gave him experience that he believed could be offered to clients, even outside a conventional IT professional role.

While searching for jobs online, he came across information about the “virtual assistant” industry. The work attracted him because of the flexibility it appeared to offer. The possibility of attractive pay also drew his attention.

The option of working from home was another important part of the appeal. It offered Ifurung a way to begin again without returning to the daily two-hour journey between Cavite province and Makati City. The flexibility of the work matched what he was looking for after leaving his previous career and spending five months unemployed.

His experience comes as Filipinos continue to be highly valued in English-speaking countries for virtual assistant work. A placement agency says Filipinos make up about 38 per cent of the global virtual assistant market.

That figure places Ifurung’s career change within a much larger market. His move from an IT career to freelancing and virtual assistant work reflects the growing interest in a job that can be done from home, offers flexibility and may provide attractive pay.

For Filipino workers, the appeal of the industry is therefore tied to both the nature of the work and the opportunities available in the global market. In Ifurung’s case, the path began with leaving an 18-year IT career, followed by five months without a job, before he started exploring freelancing and found the virtual assistant industry while searching online.