At a time when the traditional workplace environment is evolving at record speed, and remote working is common practice for many organisations, you may be considering offshore recruitment as a viable option to expand or supplement your workforce.
But what is offshore recruiting, exactly? And why should your business consider recruiting contractors abroad?
Suppose you have an open position to fill, and you’re thinking about widening your search by recruiting internationally. In that case, you’ll find there are a number of benefits to be gained by doing so.
Understanding offshore recruitment
Offshore recruitment is the process of hiring contractors abroad, typically in regions where the cost of living and labour is lower than in your home country.
There are several reasons why businesses might consider offshore recruitment. Perhaps you’re struggling to find qualified candidates for a specific position, or you’re thinking about expanding operations abroad. You might even be looking to outsource some of your administrative work. Any one of these reasons would be a good justification for considering offshore recruitment.
Why hire offshore?
There are several benefits to hiring offshore contractors, particularly when remote work has become so common. For one, you can tap into the global talent pool where you will find a wide selection of highly qualified candidates for your open roles. Why limit your recruitment to one region when you can search the world for the best candidate?
You might have hopes of expanding your business internationally and bringing your products and services into new markets or shoring up your business process by shifting some of your core operations to an offshore team. Whatever your reason for hiring abroad, you’ll find that this can be a great opportunity to tap into new talent pools and cut operating costs.
What are the benefits of offshore recruitment?
Offshore recruitment can be a great way to find qualified candidates, save money, and increase diversity in your workplace. If you’re considering hiring offshore candidates, but you’re not sure if this is the right option for your business, consider some of the following benefits:
Widening the talent pool
When you open your recruitment process to candidates from all over the world, you’re no longer limited by geography. This means you can find the best person for the job, no matter where they live.
With a global talent pool at your fingertips, you’re sure to find qualified candidates for any role you’re looking to fill – whether it’s an entry-level position or a senior executive role. Leading top offshore recruitment agencies like ours can help you navigate the recruitment process offshore and find expert candidates to plug the skills gap in your company.
Additionally, by widening your talent pool, you’re also increasing the diversity of your workforce. This can bring new perspectives and ideas to your organisation, which can lead to increased innovation and creativity.
If you’re looking to tap into a global talent pool, utilising offshore recruitment teams is an excellent option for your business.
Reduce operational costs
Offshore recruitment can also help you save money on salaries and benefits. When you hire contractors from regions with a lower cost of living, you can often negotiate lower salaries and benefits packages.
Companies that recruit offshore in less prosperous regions can take advantage of their lower minimum wage laws. Minimum wage contractors in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Slovakia and Hungry, for example, earn less than 500 USD per month, much lower than some of their Western neighbours.
Businesses operating in countries like Australia and Germany pay their workers in accordance with some of the highest national minimum wage laws in the world, (2,136 USD and 1,466 USD per month respectively).
Offshore recruitment can translate into significant savings for your business, especially if you’re hiring multiple contractors from abroad. In addition to saving on salaries, you may also be able to take advantage of tax incentives when you hire offshore. These incentives can further reduce the cost of hiring for your business.
Take advantage of financial incentives abroad
Some governments offer financial incentives to international employers in order to attract foreign investment. Incentives include tax breaks, grants, operational assistance, access to premium industry facilities and more.
EU states offer investors a combination of tax benefits, cash grants, guarantees and loans, which vary from country to country. Some of the more disadvantaged regions, like Poland, Romania, Moldova and Hungry, offer incentives of up to 50% compared with 10% for some of the more advanced nations.
Hiring offshore enables your company to take advantage of the financial incentives offered in the contractors home country. This can help offset the cost of recruiting.
Additionally, you could be eligible for further financial support when you expand your operations in the contractors home country. Including lowering corporate tax rates, accessing government grants, and more.
If that wasn’t enough, many of these offshore locations benefit from liberal employment laws, providing organisations with greater flexibility and control over hiring and contractor management.
Expand internationally
Hiring offshore contractors can also be a great way to expand your business internationally. When you have contractors in different countries, you can open up new markets for your products or services. This can help you grow your business and reach new customers all over the world.
It can also enable you to provide greater continuity of services, offering 24/7 support for customers by hiring workers across different time zones. Instead of hiring a local workforce to work through the night, for which the hourly rate of pay may be higher, you can outsource this work to offshore contractors at a reduced cost.
This is a common recruitment strategy for customer service companies and IT businesses who regularly use offshore recruitment to cover maintenance and administrative work while their onshore team are out of the office.
Microsoft is a good example of this. They utilise an offshore workforce in India to handle technical support and customer service operations when their US team sign off for the evening. The 12.5 hour time difference makes India the perfect base for their offshore operations.
Why offshoring is different to outsourcing
A common misconception about offshoring is that it is the same as outsourcing. This is simply not the case.
Offshoring is the process of recruiting staff to work within your organisation from a different country, typically to take advantage of cost savings. Outsourcing also offers significant cost-saving benefits. However, this process involves recruiting the support of third-party companies to carry out work on behalf of your company.
These people are not part of your in-house team, and are often used by companies to plug the gaps in staffing when resources are limited.
Work can be outsourced but not offshored. For instance, by contracting recruitment agencies from outside to manage staffing, payroll, HR and recruitment processes rather than keeping a HR team on staff internally.
Work is offshored without being outsourced when you hire an offshore team to provide services for your key clients in another market. Employing a vendor to do the task offshore is known as offshore outsourcing. This approach is typically done to reduce costs and to make use of your offshore partner’s knowledge, resources and location.
Work with an offshore recruitment agency
If you’re considering hiring offshore contractors, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, you’ll need to ensure that your business complies with all applicable laws and regulations in your offshore contractor’s home country. You’ll also need to be aware of the cultural differences between your current workforce and your offshore contractors to ensure the onboarding process runs smoothly.
When you’re ready to start recruiting for your vacant offshore jobs, it’s essential to partner with a reputable offshore recruitment agency that can help you navigate these challenges.
A good recruitment agency will have an international network of qualified candidates and a deep understanding of the local labour market in your preferred regions. They should also have the knowledge and experience necessary to help you address any legal and compliance issues associated with hiring contractors from another country.
Our offshore recruiting services are designed to plug the skills gap in your operations.
Make us your offshore recruiting agency of choice
We work internationally across a wide range of key sectors, including renewable energy, oil and gas, construction, science and technology, to deliver specialist recruitment solutions for our clients. Our recruiters have years of experience recruiting, screening and matching candidates whose skills and experience are the perfect fit for our clients’ open roles.
We can provide employment services and international payrolling in over 150 countries. All of our partners have a presence in country, allowing them to navigate local regulations, tax and employment law. We will manage the process by working with them to provide a complete solution.
Find out more about the advantages of using recruitment agencies and start recruiting experienced offshore professionals to supplement your core business operations today by contacting Energy Resourcing and ask about our Agile Recruitment program.
