To thrive in the competitive global economy, businesses across all sectors must look beyond borders to attract top talent worldwide.
However, dealing with the complexities of global recruitment can be overwhelming. According to a 2022 Future of Work Report,9 out of 10 employers are struggling to fill jobs — with 29% of employers agreeing that the skills gap has increased year on year.
Let's look at how growing organizations can solve these challenges and supercharge their global hiring strategies.
The Barriers to Global Hiring
Today, a world of talent is available to employers, but accessing and harnessing this workforce comes with significant challenges. Let's examine some of the leading barriers to global recruitment.
• Understanding Labor Laws
As global hiring continues to gain momentum, authorities in multiple countries have intensified their oversight of companies' compliance with local labor laws.
Specifically, determining whether future employees will be employees or contractors is crucial no matter where a company hires. This requires understanding the company's needs and assessing the classification criteria in each country, as they can vary greatly. However, misclassifying an employee in any country can result in serious penalties.
• Payroll and Tax Compliance
To recruit a global workforce, a company must be capable of paying them compliantly. Creating an effective global payroll system demands a deep understanding of various local and international regulations and processes, making it a challenging task.
Organizations must understand and comply with the diverse tax regulations in each region where they hire employees. Failure to do so may lead to severe repercussions, including significant fines and penalties for the organization.
• Compensation and Benefits
Like tax and payroll, every country has different salary and benefit regulations. Companies must thoroughly research the region's compulsory benefits and employee expectations to succeed in new markets and attract top-tier candidates.
Unfamiliarity with salary and benefits norms affects an organization's ability to recruit suitable candidates, potentially resulting in overpaying or underpaying talent.
• High Cost of Global Recruitment
The old-school approach to hiring global employees involves establishing a company entity, which incurs significant expenses, such as legal fees, office space, utilities, and additional costs like local taxes and government fees.
Thankfully, there are alternatives to this strategy that allow organizations to grow globally without the substantial cost of expansion.
How to Overcome and Accelerate Global Hiring
Global recruitment comes with many challenges. The good news is that there are proven strategies to help overcome and boost international talent acquisition. Here are three of the top solutions below.
• Employer of Record (EOR)
An Employer of Record can help a company avoid the talent shortage by accessing highly skilled international candidates. It can offer expert advice on the best global hiring hubs and target the candidates who best fit an organization's needs.
A leading EOR will integrate fully compliant technology with in-depth legal, financial, and HR expertise within each country to optimize payroll, taxes, benefits, and all HR procedures associated with global hiring. (Disclosure: My company offers these services.)
• Leverage Technology
As someone with years of experience in the global recruitment industry, I have seen firsthand how AI has rapidly transformed things. AI-driven tools, for instance, can quickly analyze CVs, job site profiles, and online applications to pinpoint the best candidates.
AI tech also allows HR teams to tap into a wide range of global talent with its ability to process data and interact with candidates via chatbots. Now, job seekers can receive real-time updates in their native language and schedule interviews with a click of a button.
• Harness the Gig Economy
The United States is predicted to have more gig workers than traditional workers by 2027. The gig economy presents companies with an extraordinary opportunity for global growth. Now, organizations can access international contractors or freelance talent via sites like Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer.
Smart companies can hire specialized, on-demand talent to fit their current workforce needs while paying fewer benefits.
Build a Global Team and Reap the Rewards
Companies can boost their global hiring processes by embracing these progressive hiring strategies. To stay competitive, organizations must look further afield for talent. They need a solid, evolving global hiring plan to succeed. There is no one-size-fits-all solution, but the insights above can provide a great starting point for any expanding business.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
