Are HR leaders searching for tech talent in the wrong locations?

Organisations willing to explore markets beyond saturated tech hubs have the best chance of uncovering underappreciated pools of remote tech talent. This report shows that ambitious organisations open to building globally distributed teams can capitalise on an untapped opportunity — and the process is less complex than many assume.

What are the principal challenges in global tech recruitment?

Receive direct perspectives from more than 1,400 executives and hiring managers from organisations across Germany, the Netherlands, France, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

This 2022 survey questioned participants on the primary factors when hiring in established talent centres such as New York, London, and Tokyo, alongside 15 emerging tech hubs across the globe.

Our research revealed that hiring managers are anxious about maintaining compliance.

38%

Over one third of respondents report difficulty in understanding local legal requirements when hiring in new regions.

Download the report to discover how quickly and securely you can gain the advantages of international employment with minimal risk.

Expert global recruitment insight 02

Emerging tech hubs provide competitive advantages

You can often attract another country’s top tier talent that might not be accessible in your local market because of the level of competition. Tech professionals located outside of the established saturated hubs are more responsive to established organisations offering globally competitive compensation. This type of job opportunity can be life changing for international candidates and their families, especially in developing nations. You’ll see increased motivation and loyalty in return.

Brett Jones, Co-founder at OFFERZEN

02. Legal requirements and cultural fit are concerns for hiring managers

Hiring managers who intend to recruit tech talent in new regions express concern about two key aspects of remote work: how to lawfully employ staff and how to effectively manage culture across a geographically dispersed team.

Legal requirements

The survey shows hiring managers are apprehensive about staying compliant when hiring outside of their own country. It’s a real concern, but a navigable one for companies serious about onboarding the right talent.

Expert global recruitment insight 04

Overcoming barriers to global hiring

The benefit of international hiring is obvious and compelling – you can suddenly open up access to the world's very best talent. Crucially, you can also develop truly a diverse team. Value-based recruitment provides the foundation for lasting success here. Leaders who seek out new team members with shared values can build an inclusive, equitable, and trusting environment that empowers a global team to thrive.

Anastasia Pshegodskaya, Director of Talent Acquisition. Remote

01. Experienced remote tech professionals are located across the globe

Knowledge workers move into remote team environments with relative ease if you adopt a globally inclusive recruitment approach. Talented candidates exist worldwide, but securing them requires a fresh remote-first hiring strategy.

Action

Hire a global workforce legally and compliantly, with ease

Hiring remote tech talent doesn’t have to be complicated. As the most trusted EOR in the business, Remote eliminates the need for you to have your own entity in each location — an expensive undertaking that can inhibit your ability to scale your operation. Remote provides the confidence you need to be sure you:

• Have the right contracts

• Be compliant with local labour laws and tax regulations

• Classify your employees and contractors correctly

You can hire people all over the world with Remote legally, easily, and quickly. You can even offer your international employees stock options in your business using Remote’s platform!

02. There is no one-size-fits-all global compensation plan

Scaling teams internationally offers major benefits, but HR managers must overcome several challenges when developing remote compensation plans to build a high-performing international workforce.

• Employees quickly discover if you’re underpaying them compared to their colleagues and international market rates, but it’s not as simple as paying everyone the same.

• Benefits packages need to be tailored to different geographies.

• Employees with comparable education, skills, and experience should have access to similar standards of living and disposable income in their country of residence.

Action

Offer competitive pay and benefits packages

Remote’s global employment platform saves you time, money, and effort by creating country-specific benefits packages at highly negotiated prices. You can provide equitable, best-in-class benefits to your employees for a fraction of the cost of handling everything yourself or setting up a legal entity. You can even offer stock options to your international workforce.

03. Asynchronous work is the key to globally successful teams

Asynchronous (async) working allows distributed teams worldwide to maximise output irrespective of time zones. Success is judged by work delivered rather than by when individuals were online. The autonomy and flexibility this model affords are major draws for highly skilled, experienced tech professionals.

Many prospective employees have years of experience working productively in fully remote environments.

Action

Build deliberate remote-first work practices

An async work model demands more communication and documentation which, in turn, leads to higher employee morale and stronger productivity.

04. Async work removes several barriers to global work

An asynchronous approach tackles many obstacles that deter hiring managers from adopting remote work. Deliberate inclusive practices foster diversity and enable genuinely global teams to prosper. Experienced remote tech professionals often seek roles that promote life–work balance, allowing employers to let remote staff work hours aligned with their time zone and lifestyle. Beyond attracting elite remote talent, establishing robust processes to manage a globally distributed team increases productivity and improves retention. Skilled remote tech professionals are actively seeking roles where life-work balance is encouraged. That means employers can enable remote workers anywhere to work on the schedule that suits their timezone and lifestyle. Apart from attracting top remote talent, building the processes to manage a globally distributed team will maximize productivity while boosting staff retention rates.

Employ with Remote

Intentional remote-first work practices and async workflows facilitate innovation and maximise the productivity of your global team. While it takes discipline to develop good documentation and move away from real-time workflows, the benefits far outweigh the downsides of the traditional, synchronous way of working. In the process of developing those documentation assets, you can transform your organisation into one ready for the future of work. Diversity brings significant long-term advantages and a culture of inclusion baked into the fabric of your company.

Remote can help you remove the complexity of managing compliance with international legislation.

Establishing local entities abroad is usually prohibitively costly and time-consuming. We maintain our entities to the highest standards of compliance so you can expand your global footprint with confidence.

About this study

Remote surveyed a total of 1,485 decision-makers across six key markets who self-identified as currently hiring tech talent. The survey was conducted between 9 and 26 September 2022 in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands. Each country contributed approximately 200 respondents to the survey.

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