Top Tips for Hiring Remotely Across Borders [Full Guide + Useful Tools)

Remote work has been growing rapidly over the past few years, with more and more companies hiring talent from all over the world. There are several key reasons why companies are expanding their talent search across borders:

Access to Larger Talent Pools - Companies can tap into a global talent pool instead of just their local area. This gives them access to more candidates with the skills they need.

Diversity & Inclusion - Hiring remotely across borders allows companies to build more diverse and inclusive teams with people from different backgrounds and cultures.

Cost Savings - In some cases, companies can save on salary expenses by hiring overseas, especially when there are wage differences between countries.

Time Zone Coverage - With team members around the world, companies can have coverage across more time zones and operate on a 24/7 basis.

Specialized Skills - Certain skills and expertise may be concentrated in specific regions, allowing companies to find qualified candidates globally.

While there are great advantages, hiring remotely across borders also comes with challenges including legal compliance, communication barriers, and managing a distributed workforce across time zones. Overall though, with the right strategy and tools, companies can overcome these hurdles and build successful global remote teams.

Know the Laws

When hiring remotely across borders, it's crucial to research and comply with labor laws, tax laws, employment laws and other regulations for the countries involved. There are several key considerations:

• Labor Laws - Understand minimum wage, overtime pay, work schedule limitations, vacation and leave policies, etc. These often vary significantly by country. Ensure remote workers are classified properly as employees or contractors based on local rules.
• Tax Laws - Determine what taxes need to be withheld and paid. Who is responsible - employer or employee? Be clear on tax residency rules. Follow proper procedures for international tax payments.
• Employment Laws - Review laws around hiring, firing, discrimination, harassment, etc. Know required terms and conditions of employment. Understand rules for remote work within a country.
• Data Privacy Laws - Be aware of regulations like GDPR that govern data transfer across borders. Ensure compliance when accessing employee information across countries.
• Immigration Laws - Understand if work permits or visas are required for employees in certain locations. Factor this into hiring timelines and budget.

Proper research is crucial when employing remote teams globally. Seek guidance from legal counsel when unsure. Staying compliant prevents major risks down the road. Keep apprised of legal changes that may impact your international team members.

Define the Job and Requirements

Clearly defining the job responsibilities, required skills and experience, and expectations upfront is crucial when hiring remotely across borders. This helps set clear expectations and ensures candidates fully understand what the role entails before accepting.

When defining the job, focus on outlining:

• The core responsibilities and day-to-day tasks the hire will be expected to perform. Get detailed and specific.
• The technical skills and professional experience required. Include years of experience, specific skills and tools, and educational background needed.
• Any key competencies like communication, collaboration, and self-management. These are especially important for remote roles.
• Expected work hours and scheduling considerations across time zones.
• Required language skills if dealing with international colleagues or customers.
• Any business travel expectations once conditions allow.
• Key performance indicators and how success will be measured in the role.

Additionally, carefully evaluate if the role can truly be done remotely long-term. Assess aspects like the need for in-person training, access to specialized equipment, security and data privacy considerations, and ability to collaborate and engage with internal teams. Clearly determine if a permanent remote set-up is feasible.

Defining the position thoroughly helps attract qualified, serious candidates and sets the foundation for a successful cross border hire. Listing detailed requirements also helps screen applicants effectively.

Find the Right Talent Pool

When hiring remotely across borders, it's important to leverage online resources to find qualified candidates from around the world. Online job boards like LinkedIn, AngelList, and Remote.co can help connect you with talent in different countries and regions. Make sure to tailor your job descriptions and requirements to clearly convey what skills and attributes you're looking for in remote employees.

You may also want to post on international hiring sites like Remotive, We Work Remotely, and FlexJobs to reach prospective candidates open to remote work in various time zones. Social media can also assist your recruiting efforts through targeted posts and ads on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit.

Consider leveraging international staffing agencies and recruiters as well, who can help source candidates, manage applications, and handle visa logistics. They often have existing relationships and talent pipelines around the world.

Be open to candidates from diverse backgrounds and markets. Hiring remotely provides access to an incredible global talent pool, if you cast your net wide enough and know where to look. Leverage online resources and hiring professionals to connect with qualified individuals eager to work remotely for companies based in other countries.

Screen and Interview Candidates

When hiring remotely across borders, it's important to have a consistent and thoughtful screening and interview process. Here are some tips:

• Have a consistent screening process. Make sure all candidates go through the same initial screening steps, whether it's a phone screen, completing a technical assessment, or submitting a writing sample. This ensures you evaluate everyone equally. Use a structured interview guide and rubric for assessing candidates to reduce bias.
• Conduct remote interviews via video chat. Schedule video interviews to simulate in-person meetings as much as possible. Video lets you evaluate body language, communication skills, and presentation. Test the technology beforehand. Provide candidates instructions for using the video platform. Use AI Transcriptions tools such as Glyph AI to quickly generate actionable insights.
• Assess communication skills and cultural fit. Part of interviewing remote candidates is evaluating how well they can communicate and collaborate virtually. Ask questions that reveal their communication style. Assess their English proficiency if relevant. Also evaluate if they seem like a cultural fit for your globally distributed team.

Having standardized screening procedures and virtual interviews allows you to thoughtfully evaluate candidates when hiring abroad. Carefully assessing their communication skills, cultural fit and capabilities will help find the best hires.

Make a Competitive Offer

When hiring remotely across borders, it's important to make a competitive offer that accounts for local market rates and norms. Here are some tips:

• Research comparable salaries and benefits in the candidate's location. Look at average pay for similar roles and experience levels. Sites like Glassdoor, PayScale, and LinkedIn Salary can provide this data. Also check with local HR contacts.
• Factor in costs of living and purchasing power. $50,000 goes a lot further in some places than others. Adjust offers accordingly.
• Clearly outline compensation, benefits, perks, and contractual terms in the offer letter. Specify salary amounts and currencies.
• Understand typical employee benefits in the candidate's country. Offer comparable medical insurance, retirement plans, vacation time, etc.
• Consider that many countries have required minimum vacation days, parental leave, notice periods, and severance pay. Make sure to meet legal requirements.
• Determine whether to pay contractors hourly or a fixed project fee based on local norms.
• Provide relocation support if asking the candidate to move for the role. This can include visa fees, moving costs, temporary housing, etc.
• Allow flexibility in work hours and locations to accommodate different time zones and cultural needs.

Making a fair, competitive offer helps attract top talent globally and gets new hires off to a good start. Do your research to determine what's appropriate in each market.

Onboard and Integrate New Hires

A thorough remote onboarding process is essential for bringing new remote hires up to speed. This involves setting clear expectations, introducing them to the company culture, and making sure they have the tools and knowledge needed to be productive.

• Have a structured onboarding plan. Walk through company policies, tools, and resources. Assign a mentor or buddy to help answer questions. Schedule video calls to introduce the new hire to key team members.
• Communicate company culture. Share your mission, values, norms and traditions. Have video coffee chats to convey culture in a more personal way. Send welcome swag or gifts to make them feel part of the team.
• Set clear expectations and goals. Ensure new hires understand their role, priorities and success metrics. Frequently check-in on progress and provide feedback. Have them shadow meetings and collaborate on projects.
• Make introductions. Schedule video calls for the new hire to meet directly with key stakeholders. Create opportunities for social interactions with coworkers. Add them to important Slack channels and email lists.
• Confirm the technology is working. Test all the collaboration platforms and tools ahead of time. Have an IT point person to immediately resolve any issues accessing systems or infrastructure.

Thoughtfully onboarding remote employees sets them up for success and gives them the connections needed to become productive team members.

Payroll and Compliance

Deel is a modern payroll and compliance solution that makes it easy to hire and pay contractors and employees globally. With Deel, you can onboard team members in over 150 countries, handle international payroll, and ensure compliance with local laws and regulations. This can be a valuable tool for remote teams spread across multiple countries and regions.

AI Notetaker and Transcription

Glyph AI is an AI-powered insight extraction and notetaking tool that can be particularly useful for recruiters conducting interviews with candidates for remote teams. During virtual interviews, Glyph AI can automatically transcribe the conversation and generate detailed recruitment notes, technical debrief, screening call notes and more with over 10+ ready made templates.

This allows recruiters to focus fully on the conversation and candidate evaluation, without being distracted by manually taking notes. After the interview, the AI-generated notes can be quickly reviewed, shared with the hiring team, and referenced to make faster and more informed hiring decisions.

Enable Collaboration

Collaboration is key for remote teams spread across borders. Provide tools and encourage connections to unite everyone.

Communication Tools

Equip the team with tools for seamless communication, like Slack, Zoom, and Google Hangouts. Have clear guidelines on when to use chat vs email vs video calls.

File Sharing & Task Management

Get everyone on the same page (literally) with shared docs in Google Drive, Office 365, or Dropbox. Use Trello, Asana, or Jira to coordinate tasks and projects.

Team Bonding

Don't forget the human element! Schedule regular video hangouts for socializing and team building. Send care packages or UberEats to connect across borders. Consider an annual offsite if budgets allow.

One Team Mindset

Foster an inclusive, one-team culture. Discourage "us vs them" mentalities between locations. Highlight shared goals and values. Celebrate wins as a unified group.

Track Performance

It's essential to track performance and provide feedback for remote employees. Here are some tips:

• Set clear key performance indicators (KPIs) and goals that align with broader company objectives. Make sure the employee understands what success looks like.
• Schedule regular one-on-one check-ins, at least every 2 weeks. This provides a chance to touch base on progress, blockers, and goals.
• Conduct quarterly or bi-annual reviews to assess performance more comprehensively. Gather feedback from stakeholders. Hold an open discussion on achievements, development areas, and future objectives.
• Give timely feedback throughout projects and assignments. Don't wait for scheduled reviews. Provide real-time coaching and recognition to reinforce good work.
• Send weekly updates to summarize achievements and highlight areas for improvement. Use tools like email, Slack, or project management software.
• Track productivity through measurable metrics like tasks completed, goals hit, bugs fixed, sales closed, etc. Leverage project management and collaboration tools.
• Monitor capacity and workload. Make sure employees aren't overburdened. Check on their work-life balance.
• Be flexible and understanding of remote working challenges. Offer resources and support to optimize the employee's home office setup and schedule.
• Use surveys and stay interviews to take the pulse on job satisfaction and engagement. Identify problems early.
• Have an open door policy for employees to ask questions and raise concerns. Maintain strong communication.

Conclusion

Hiring remotely across borders can be challenging but also rewarding if done right. Here are some key takeaways:

Summary of Key Tips

• Know the employment laws and regulations for the countries involved. Consult lawyers if needed.
• Clearly define the job requirements and evaluate if remote work is suitable.
• Tap into large, diverse talent pools on global freelance sites and remote job boards.
• Use video interviews and skills tests to thoroughly screen candidates.
• Offer competitive pay and benefits tailored to the employee's location.
• Onboard remote workers with care to setup communication and collaboration tools.
• Enable team bonding through virtual hangouts and meetings.
• Set clear goals and frequently track performance through online tools.

The Future of Remote Hiring Globally

Remote work is growing rapidly as technology improves. Companies able to source talent globally will have an edge. The workplace is now global. With proper management, remote teams can be just as productive and satisfied despite being distributed worldwide. More countries are also creating visas and programs to attract digital nomads. The remote hiring process will only get more streamlined over time. The future workplace will be globally connected like never before.

‍