Canadian thinker Marshall Macullan coined the ‘Global Village’ concept in the early ’60s. It refers to a world that has become wholly interconnected by technology.
Sixty years on, suffice to say, we are already there!
The myriad of remote employment technologies has enabled something almost akin to face-to-face workforce communication globally. A digital community has sprouted, and a truly global employment opportunity is possible.
The globalised business culture of 2024 is filled with compelling opportunities. However, developing a global career can be daunting for the aspiring borderless candidate.
In a Harris Poll, 47% of people felt they made the wrong choice in their career path but felt trapped at the same time. In a post covid world, an observation from 3 years ago may seem like a long time in the past but recent government enquiries point to the fact that we are only just realising the impacts this has had on human behaviours and outcomes and not just the economy.
We can find reasons not to leap towards a new opportunity; maybe it’s too risky, we don’t have time, or worry we may not fit in with an international company. In my experience, a good opportunity has a finite timeline before other factors such as life, death, family and financial responsibilities and ageing will get in the way.
Carpe Diem people!
Several doubts may arise and that is natural but it’s important to understand that these feelings shouldn’t stop you from broadening your horizons, packing your bags and looking for career opportunities abroad.
You can take practical steps to help you embrace a global career. Here are three things to consider when developing one.
Develop Cross-Cultural Confidence
A common concern when working abroad is a difference in culture. People fear that they may say the wrong thing, offend their employers, or struggle to fit in with their colleagues.
It’s understandable, business culture will differ from country to country. Take France and Germany. These two countries are neighbours but have entirely different business cultures.
For example, Germany has a much more relaxed approach to boss-to-employee relationships than France, which has a stricter hierarchical structure.
When looking for a job internationally, it’s important to understand the differences between business cultures. It’s like meeting your in laws for the first time, you smile, show courtesy, eat the food on offer and work towards gaining their approval. Follow these steps and you can feel confident that you’ll fit in with any organisation.
The critical thing to remember is always to be open minded, respectful, agile and understand that adapting is a continual process throughout your career at home or abroad.
Network with Professionals in a Similar Situation
One of the best ways of learning is to do it from someone who has been in the same situation before. Why not! They’ve been there and got the t-shirt! They’ll know the ropes and can highlight things you may not have previously thought about. Never underestimate the value of life/work experience regardless of your university grades!
Not only will they provide insights, but knowing you’re not alone can be invaluable in building confidence and embracing the transition to working for a global company.
Networking and building relationships with professionals who have moved to work for an international company is invaluable for practical advice and putting your mind at ease.
Create a Support System
Working for a company thousands of miles away, especially if the role is remote and part of a distributed team, can be isolating. The average employee spends almost 30% of their life at work, and being separated from the people you are working with during that time can seem lonely – not to mention the possibility of working while your colleagues are asleep.
Having a support system in place is an excellent idea to help prevent feelings of isolation from creeping in. Building a network of friends, family or even colleagues can act as a support system and help mitigate feelings of loneliness. A good employer will take this into consideration as part of their remote work policies.
Portas Global
2024’s business culture is a truly global one. There are countless opportunities for global remote employment despite all the talk of economic pressure points. Taking the first step to a global career can be intimidating. That’s called life. However, a personally and financially rewarding career can be achieved with the right approach.
The transition to a global employment market benefits both employer and employee. However, it can be challenging to take the proper steps.
If your company is looking to employ globally or just needs advice on helping candidates transition to a global career then don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’ve been there and done it!
Remote working has given companies access to the globe’s talent pool, supported by tech developments such as remote management systems like Slack or meeting software like Zoom.
However, simply having a global workforce is one thing; making the most of it is another.
To attract the best talent and maximise their productivity, here are four things companies should consider when establishing a global workforce.
When hiring worldwide, it’s common to encounter cultural differences in business and personal expectations.
For example, in Germany, overtime is rare. It’s against the law for an employee to work more than 60 hours a week. Compare this to somewhere like the USA, where the average employee works 9 hours of unpaid overtime a week.
Likewise, there are personal differences. Countries like China have a culture deeply based on building relationships, which is then reflected in their business habits, compared to more distant cultures such as Switzerland.
Engaging with an employee and failing to consider their cultural expectations may leave them feeling dissatisfied and unwelcome within your team and widen the gap they experience as remote employees.
Educating senior employees on approaching remote employees is essential so they feel included.
The differences in time zones worldwide may seem like an obvious issue when outsourcing globally. However, it’s arguably the most important.
It makes sense that an employee who is awake while the rest of your employees are asleep may miss out on crucial updates and struggle to feel connected to your domestic team.
But even slight differences in time can cause significant issues. A meeting on the West Coast of America will be 3 hours earlier in the day than on the East Coast. That could be the difference between a meeting during working hours or cutting into an employee's own time.
It’s not uncommon. A study from Harvard Business Review revealed that timezone misunderstandings cost businesses up to $2 billion annually.
Time zone differences can lead to an employee working unsustainable hours and, at worst, exclusion, missed deadlines, and a remote employee feeling isolated from the rest of your team.
Establishing a standard time zone and educating employees on differences can ensure understanding. Providing a consistent communication channel for remote employees is almost essential.
Effective communication is crucial to the success of any organisation. However, a difference in languages can be a roadblock to this success.
It’s a pretty fundamental problem if an employee can’t understand your instructions or follow along with an important meeting. While it’s true that English is the language of business, 75% of a country's population knows only one language.
An English-only policy can exclude the best talent. So, it’s essential to consider how you plan to navigate language difficulties.
A multi-lingual member of staff may be invaluable. Alternatively, real-time translation software can be up to 95% accurate.
Employees can often feel isolated when a team is spread out across the globe. They may be the only employee in a country and only interact with their colleagues through a screen.
Naturally, this can result in intense feelings of isolation. This isolation can often drive people away from engaging with their work and lead to depressive symptoms.
This issue is more than just an employee’s feelings; it can affect your business, too. It’s estimated that depression costs businesses up to $44 billion yearly.
Systems must be in place to bridge the gap between your team. Having remote team bonding experiences such as weekly group catch-up meetings will certainly be useful.
Portas Global
The advent of remote work has opened the globe’s talent pool to every organisation. It’s a promising avenue for companies to get the best talent possible without the traditional limitations that come with face-to-face employment.
However, it’s essential to consider that distance and differences can isolate employees when they aren’t adequately addressed.
Considering the effect that isolation at work can have on your employee and taking proactive steps to help them feel welcome can improve their working lives and the productivity of your business.
Culture can make a difference. Putting people first will always be a benefit, especially when working internationally.
If you would like to discuss any other EoR considerations or industry insights please reach out to us:
Tel: +44 (0) 115 888 2268
Email: solutions@portasglobal.com
The 9-5 office hours merry-go-round discussion
For many businesses, the COVID-19 pandemic unwillingly drove economic activity out of the conventional environment of the office workplace, and into the presumably dire setting of employee households- remote locations. For the most part, this adventitious turn in the logistics of business workforces was significantly supported by the modernisation of technology, allowing business operations to proceed, and substantiating that the management of business activity could occur between both the employer and the employee from differing locations. In a new chapter of white-collar business, in many instances, employers no longer have the luxury of affirming the adherence of their employees to such delegated tasks from an in-house proximity.
Metrics of remote performance
At first glance it could appear that from an employers perspective, unmonitored employee activity could hinder the productivity of their output- which, in specific scenarios could certainly be the case. However, Katherine Haan’s 2023 Remote Work Statistics and Trends report ascertained that “35% of remote employees feel more productive when working fully remote”. Haan’s article registered this data to be primarily based upon pragmatic benefits regarding the flexibility of work hours, reduced in person distractions and general ‘homely’ work environments. These factors certainly capture the apparent reasonings for enhanced remote performance, but at second glance, perhaps analysts are behaving myopically toward the influence of new employee/employer relationship dynamics that remote management entails. As we scratch below the surface, these inferences come into question.
Shifts in supervisory dynamics? What is the deeper explanation to enhanced productivity…
The ‘trust-based’ approach of management inevitably has become the new norm. Overseeing employee performance from this approach fosters a more positive relationship between employees and employers, particularly establishing the autonomy of the employee, which, perhaps not only increases their responsibility, but also their attentiveness toward day-to-day tasks.
Will the increased employee responsibility heighten individual pressure?
The responsibility now lies more heavily with the employee- but this shouldn’t necessarily be an issue with the new dynamics of management. With firms no longer having specific ‘working hours’, our EoR customer account reviews and feedback has reaffirmed that they are more focused on outcome orientated performance, particularly achievable targets or quality of work, without the restraints of selected hours in the day. And such, it seems reasonable for individuals to be able to subjectively chose the most optimal and efficiently working hours bespoke to their home/work life situations. It goes without saying that this is not a one size fits all approach from our customers. Ultimately, they have a business to run.
While all business operations run differently, it cannot be ruled out that this, while certainly unorthodox, shift in managerial dynamics has universal benefits that apply to all concepts of day-to-day business activity. Seizing the opportunity to predict and engage with this new wave of work lifestyle is something all business leaders should embrace, and employees come to appreciate and nurture if it is to be a harmonious long term working practice.
The feed back from our Employer of Record customers is unanimous. For their purposes, distributed teams working remotely is a business critical requirement to be able to expand their services abroad without the need for costly business infrastructure. Critically, our customers have observed that open communication with their remote workforce is paramount for all the business objectives to align and being open minded to change, modern day working requirements and trusting employer/employee relationships will continue to drive their global business expansion ambitions.
As businesses around the world are forced to reassess their priorities due to the COVID-19 landscape, one of the silver linings for employers is the opportunity to reset and reinvest in building the type of culture that will attract new global talent.
Portas Global Managing Director Carlos Ruiz believes employers will be judged on how well they deal with the impact of COVID-19 on their workforce:
“We speak to employers and employees around the world every day, and I’m hearing a lot about how people going back into the workforce are going to have a different mindset. They care about how a company treated its staff during 2020, how it communicated when they were isolated and how it provided support for people’s mental health and wellbeing.”
“When something like this pandemic occurs, of course it creates all sorts of challenges but you can also seize the opportunity to strike while the iron's hot and let your inherent culture as a business rise to the top; let that be your key selling proposition,” Carlos says.
Let a better culture lead to better talent
Employees are weighing up what is important to them both in life and at work. Our feedback from the market is that it’s much less likely to be about table tennis tables, beer fridges or upmarket city offices and more about being part of a team with a genuine commitment to work culture and work-life balance, regardless of where the actual work takes place.
For HR leaders, there is an unprecedented opportunity to tap into a global talent pool of resources and promote the company culture to skilled personnel not previously available.
“Access to the global talent pool has now opened up simply because of the need to make so many qualified individuals redundant (because of COVID-19). These people have skill sets that will be highly valuable and attractive to employers, but they are not looking for opportunities in the same way they were five or ten years ago. It's now about suiting the way we need to work over the next few years living with a pandemic that could bring us in and out of lockdowns,” Carlos says.
Portas Global’s Director of Operations, Chris Lincoln, adds:
“We’re the enabler for attracting global talent, but we also help educate our clients and help our clients educate their Board members or their CEO on the benefits of outsourced employment. They might not know this solution exists, or they could be actively looking to solve an existing problem.”
Start with the right questions
Whether it is solving an existing problem or striking while the iron’s hot to snap up the best talent, it is a great time for HR teams to tap into the global talent opportunity. That should start with understanding how to ‘sell’ the type of culture employees want to buy into.
Consider what a business needs to do to appeal to global remote talent:
We live in a world of people with talent and skills that were not readily available 12 months ago and attracting the best people is about so much more than salary and benefits. Take advantage of the global talent pool, let culture be your differentiator and be judged on putting what matters to people first.
To explore the world of global talent attraction, contact the Global Solutions team for a discussion about how they can help.
Ph: +44 (0) 115 888 2268
Or solutions@portasglobal.com
In a world where remote working is at the core of HR and Talent Management strategies and technology keeps us more connected than ever, HR leaders are increasingly turning to outsourcing solutions to simplify global employment and venture into new markets.
So how does employment outsourcing work, and what are the benefits?
Leverage the power of Global PEOs
Working with a professional employer organisation (PEO) like Portas Global means your business has no borders or boundaries, with access to immediate local knowledge, specialised experience and existing HR infrastructure in-market. You can grow your global workforce faster, without needing to create a new company, set up bank accounts, or register for tax or social securities with the local authorities.
Put simply, we do all the heavy lifting post-recruitment, lease the employee back to the company and let you get on with building an effective working relationship with your dream team.
Outsourcing is quicker and more cost effective
HR Managers and business leaders choose to outsource for many reasons, but compliance, cost and timeframe are almost always top of the list. Portas Global Managing Director Carlos Ruiz says speed to market and cost efficiencies are key:
“When we’re already registered as an employer in the country where the client wants to hire, in our experience it’s 90% faster to get a local employee operational with Portas Global than doing it alone. As well as getting staff employed quickly, outsourcing also means bypassing the cost of engaging HR, payroll, legal and accounting resources in a foreign country, and that can be around 60% more cost effective for our clients.”
Compliance and completion
If you’re considering employing staff overseas the list of unknowns can seem endless: how do I pay them, what social insurances do I need, how do employment laws differ?
And that’s where the best HR outsourcing companies shine, drawing on specialist local knowledge to ensure all the right boxes are ticked - data collection is GDPR compliant, employment contracts are robust, the relevant statutory payments and deductions are in place and employees are covered by the appropriate employment insurances.
Portas Global’s Director of Operations, Chris Lincoln, says the old adage of ‘knowledge is power’ rings true.
“Working with a Global PEO partner who understands the local jurisdiction is absolutely crucial to the success of employing people overseas. For example, you might decide to engage an independent contractor who sends an invoice, and that works in some tax jurisdictions but it's not always compliant and you run the risk of misclassifying a permanent employee. So that's where we step in - we bridge that gap and employ that person on your behalf.”
Embrace flexibility and opportunity
“Global employment is for anyone with a spirit of adventure, anyone with a vision for opportunity. We call it an agile employment solution,” Carlos Ruiz says.
Employment outsourcing is not just about maximising efficiency and minimising risk, it’s also about the opportunity to move towards a more agile global workforce and utilise compliant local fixed term contracts for greater flexibility.
Businesses are also utilising PEOs to dip a toe in the water and test new markets without setting up shop themselves, and it also allows them to take advantage of the global talent pool to get the best person for the job, regardless of where they live and what time zone they are in.
With a global support and infrastructure network, Portas Global completes the employment lifecycle for companies ready to embrace the opportunities that global outsourcing can provide.
For more information, call or email the Global Solutions team for a discussion about how they can help.
Ph: +44 (0) 115 888 2268
Or solutions@portasglobal.com
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There’s no denying that the last few weeks have brought a great many changes to our personal and remote-working lives. For some, the practicalities of remote working have been a breeze to adopt, for others, however – and three weeks into the coronavirus lockdown - it can still feel a somewhat unnatural and uncomfortable environment.
Certainly, coronavirus has played the lead role in disrupting the workplace, leaving many individuals without definitive and prescriptive processes, structures or tools.
But best practice can be achieved to ensure that the future ahead, whether that be under coronavirus lockdown or not, will ensure teams are remote-ready and that they have a professional set up at home that helps productivity and improves work-life integration.
The following apps will go some way towards helping a remote-based worker and are popular tools that we know our remote-working teams use on a daily basis, whether here in the UK or globally.
Stay organised, create a routine and get things done. Google Keep allows users to make quick to-do lists with useful tick boxes. Every morning, priority lists can be created to ensure actions are prioritised and achieve on that day, no matter how small the task.
The app can also help to organise any notes with labels and colours, store voice memos, set reminders, write shopping lists and insert photos or audio with ease.
Sometimes, life is better with music – especially when remote working.
And, whether it’s a favourite artist, ‘concentration music’ (yes there is such a thing) or a podcast, some sort of background noise can help to disrupt the silence of remote working and help to lift the spirits.
Toggl helps users to keep track of time – something that we know many workers may be struggling to do in these early transition phases. Toggl allows team members to discover what tasks are being lost to time and will help them to become accountable for actions instead.
Whether juggling family and work – and feeling overwhelmed with the delicate balancing act, this app will help to destress and keep spirits lifted.
The app provides guided meditations to help work through any obstacles being faced in the current climate and will help to improve the daily life challenges of sleep, stress and anxiety.
Struggling to stay away from the phone when working from home? This app could be a perfect remedy.
Whenever users begin work, they can simply go on to the app and plant a virtual tree, and the tree will grow whilst focusing on work.
The clever aspect of this app is, if you do happen to get side-tracked and go onto your phone while the tree is growing, it will die. Therefore, this simple app is motivation to keep you off your phone and help you concentrate on your work, while building a forest simultaneously.
Google Documents, Sheets and Slides
Google Documents allows users to make notes, insert diagrams and pictures. However, through Google Documents links can be sent to colleagues and clients for them to either view or edit the document together, all whilst working remotely.
These apps eliminate the worry of losing files, as they’re all online and cannot be lost if a computer breaks down or a home connection is lost.
Daily Yoga: Workout and Fitness
Keeping body and mind healthy is so important during a remote-working day. There’s only so much sitting that can be done so ensure exercise or movement is scheduled throughout the day. This Daily Yoga app helps users to physically relax – whether sitting or standing and will leave anyone feeling fresh and revived for the next job on the to-do list.
With all of the changes that we’re experiencing right now, remember that we’re in one of the most connected moments of time that we have ever been in. Feeling lost at times is quite normal but with all of these apps at our disposal and perhaps a renewed mental adjustment, remote working could just become the perfect antidote to a perfect work-life balance.
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In a new spotlight for us, we take some of the most common questions we’re asked by HR professionals ahead of working with our clients…and answer them for you.
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This year Portas Global was to be attending multiple remote workforce summits, conferences and “Nomad” seminars around the world. There was a good reason for this. During the last twenty years, there has been an explosion in the number of companies shifting their recruitment strategies to focus on remote workers. Survey released last year stated that over 70% of employees around the world are now working remotely at least one day per week. The world is a different place today due to COVID-19 but the momentum of the remote workforce has now been amplified.
HR Business Partners are key strategic contributors around the boardroom table. Their skill set extends beyond merely setting talent retention and acquisition strategies. They now need to understand business financials, marketing strategies and operational management. It is no wonder that HR professionals identified that by implementing a remote workforce strategy they were able to find the solution to a lot of business challenges that have been unique to the last 20 years;
Global remote employment is here to stay
As a Global PEO, we support businesses when they have decided to embark on this journey. Over 99% of the employees we engage on behalf of our customers are remote workers so we need to understand the opportunities and challenges the new world of work presents. Remote workers are not part of the gig economy or freelancers. They are employees who want a choice of where and how they deliver their skills to their employer. Positively, large corporate employers have embraced this changing mindset and have accepted the many benefits that remote employment provides. Remote working is disrupting the workplace as we know it today.
HR leaders recognise that today’s working culture is more receptive to agile working practices and management techniques. Having a remote working infrastructure is necessary to support employees and there are a myriad of technology solutions already available. This is not a business challenge. The real challenge is remote workforce management. Setting boundaries to a borderless workforce requires some thinking. As well as establishing designated touch base events for global teams, remote employees will benefit and thrive with the correct performance management policies being put in place. Freedom of choice where and how to work does not mean that performance metrics will be taken for granted. On the contrary, our best performing global remote teams thrive in an environment where their results are measured.
Things to look out for with a remote workforce
As with all aspects of running a business, there are key considerations for HR professionals to put in place from the outset to ensure a positive remote employee experience. These are just to name a few;
Getting any of these wrong can contribute towards a dream remote employee engagement turning into a nightmare - but the good news is that these obstacles are easy to put in place with the correct Global PEO specialist on board.
Whilst it’s exciting to move a business forward and expand into other territories, it’s not always easy – and that’s where our expertise comes in. We’ve been helping companies to grow teams globally for many years and have the knowledge and reputation to make it a seamless and exciting process, rather than it being a business headache.
Our comprehensive global coverage ensures that wherever you’re looking to expand to, we have the knowledge, experience and reputation to ensure you’re fully compliant with your global remote employment obligations from the outset.
Remote global working is here to stay. Today, an adaptable employer that embraces change will set the groundwork for better-performing remote teams – and putting the steppingstones in place to ensure these teams are ready to hit the ground running when they start work is imperative.
Growing a business globally is no longer seen as visionary. It is the new norm and understanding the services and benefits a Global PEO presents to HR professionals will ensure you reduce your business barriers to entry.
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The hiring of a new candidate is an exciting prospect that can help an overseas venture to prosper and new candidates to thrive.
But if not executed correctly from the outset, a good candidate with the right skills, attitude and motivation could bring unforeseen consequences should a termination turn into a dispute because the process was not followed correctly.
Here’s how to become prudent when it comes to avoiding contentious HR issues and potential claims for wrongful dismissal.
Prepare in advance
Planning for the end of an employment relationship has to start at the beginning. At a minimum, the employment contract arrangements have to be specific with local laws being adhered to and clearly outlined. Next, follow a correct Employee Performance Management protocol. Give your employee every chance to succeed in their role and provide clarity. If things go off track then document the process and communication you have had to bring things back into line. Ultimately, you want things to work out for all parties.
Be clear
When terminating an employee at any level, state the reason or justification that led to the termination clearly, with evidence of the reasoning in writing. With or without cause termination is not always clear cut.
Some countries have strict termination rules so it’s imperative to familiarise yourself with those at the outset.
As a rule of thumb, stick to clear, truthful and conclusive reasons to avoid any come back at a later stage. “Settlements” are common when issues arise but the secret is to avoid arriving at this outcome by being prudent from the outset. Sounds simple, and it is, when you work with a Global PEO partner that manage these situations regularly across the world.
Notice periods
These are not all the same and they are your best friend to avoid settlement costs. Post notice period, you are at the mercy of local labour courts. In many countries this period is a time for consultation with the employee. Even if the relationship has broken down, this is the law!
More information is available at the Local Compliance section of our Guide to Global Employment so please download this or contact us for more information.
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Holidays, vacations, breaks.
Whatever word you use to describe this particular time of year - when many people take leave for some well-deserved down time from work – if you’re an employer of people here in the UK or have a growing global workforce, there can still be a number of unknowns that go with the territory of holidays.
If you’re just starting out with the deployment of staff abroad there may be a number of questions you’re asking:
All of these questions (and more), of course, depends entirely on you and your company. For example, in the UK there is certainly no law that requires a certain set of holidays be observed by a private-sector company or that employees working a holiday be paid at a premium.
Private sector employees have free reign over the whole concept of holidays. As a company, you can choose which holidays you would like to close or stay open, open late or early, and whether employees will be staffed on those days or not. Furthermore, respecting different religious holidays is an important and necessary consideration.
But when it comes to holiday leave, how does the UK fair compared with the rest of the world?
In a 2015 ACAS survey of 2,000 people, half of UK employees didn’t take all of their annual leave for fear of getting behind with work. Even when away, half of respondents said that they worked while away from the office.
Further afield, in Australia, Malaysia and the US, employees here are also predicted not take all of their annual paid holiday entitlement.
When it comes to holiday pay, there are a number of differences to be aware of:
Getting serious with holidays – make your guidelines clear:
Formalising holidays is an important part of any process and whether your teams are here or abroad, clearly defining what your holiday policy is (and isn’t) will help with the on-boarding of new teams in your home country and overseas.
This formal document could include:
Like all employment documents, ensuring that both holiday and payment terms are clearly outlined from the outset will eliminate any surprises for you and your employees, enabling everyone to have a peaceful and restful vacation.
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