Introduction

As our world becomes increasingly digitized, the landscape of the modern workforce has also shifted. For the first time, it's commonplace for people to work fully or partially remotely.

Because of this, more and more companies are opting for international expansion and are hiring remote talent from all over the world. However, while the benefits of working with employees and contractors from around the globe largely outweigh the barriers, employers must be careful to remain compliant with varying local tax and labor laws.

Employer of record (EOR) solution providers like Skuad make it easy for companies to access global talent while remaining compliant with local laws and regulations.

What Is an Employer of Record (EOR)?

To determine whether an employer of record solution is right for your expanding business, you'll need to understand what an EOR solution is and what it can do for you.

An employer of record is a third-party company that assumes responsibility for any independent contractors or full-time employees your company hires in states and countries where you don't have an established business entity or subsidiary.

By engaging an EOR solution, you absolve yourself and your company from any legal or financial risk associated with hiring international workers while reaping the benefits of accessing a diverse, global workforce.

The primary services that employers of record offer businesses are:

• Hiring and onboarding remote talent
• Ensuring that all hiring of employees and contractors complies with local tax and labor regulations
• Preparing legally binding and compliant contracts and documents on behalf of your company
• Managing payroll and employment features, including tax withholdings, paid leave, and payments in local currency
• Providing employees and contractors with insurance and benefits
• Making sure that your company is compliant with any local termination regulations before firing employees or terminating agreements with independent contractors
• Assisting with employee and contractor visa applications

An employer of record solution may be the right fit for your business if you're ready to hire talent internationally, but you don't want to establish a legal entity in a foreign country.

Why Use an Employer of Record (EOR)?

Now that you're familiar with what an EOR is, you may be wondering whether or not an employer of record solution is more beneficial than establishing a local entity.

EOR solutions are beneficial for the following reasons:

• They give you the flexibility to hire talent from all over the world, even if you only want to hire one person per country
• You can attract talent from all over the world and keep your highest-performing employees, wherever they decide to move
• They protect your company from legal and financial liability
• They manage all foreign employee worker's compensation and unemployment claims
• They offer an affordable solution to working with foreign employees and contractors
• EOR solution providers like Skuad provide employers with a single platform through which they can manage all aspects of global hiring, including:

• Onboarding
• Offboarding
• Statutory benefits
• Payroll
• Attendance
• Deductions
• Expenses

EOR solutions not only ensure that your company remains compliant with local tax and labor laws, but they are a time-saving and cost-effective way to hire and manage foreign contractors and employees.

EOR Industry Solutions

Utilizing an employer of record is a cross-industry solution to your company's hiring needs. EOR solutions grant your company access to the highest-performing talent in all fields, allowing you to build better, more diverse groups of workers than you'd be able to if you remained confined to your geographic location.

Consider how an employer of record solution like Skuad can help your company build the best departmental teams.

Human Resources Teams

A company's human resources department oversees all aspects of employee engagement and experience. Utilizing an EOR solution can ensure that all HR features are streamlined across your local and international talent pool.

Skuad can help your company grow its HR team by:

• Tracking down, hiring, and onboarding the best global talent while taking local tax and labor regulations into consideration
• Partnering talent with local representatives that can discuss local customs, bridge any language barriers, and pay them in local currency
• Providing a single platform through which all employment and payroll functions are available
• Streamlining and accelerating hiring in more than 160 countries

By utilizing an EOR solution to build your HR team, you can diversify the department responsible for employee management, assisting in creating an equitable environment that is conscious of the needs of both the business and the employee.

Tech Teams

As more businesses trend toward online solutions, it's more important than ever to ensure that your company remains relevant and visible, despite the ever-changing digital landscape.

Skuad can help your company grow its tech team by:

• Finding and hiring the best tech candidates in the world, including designers, developers, data scientists, and more
• Casting a wider net for tech talent that can help diversify and inform broader perspectives that reach a wider audience
• Ensuring that employees and contractors have access to secure data and intellectual property (IP) so that your business is never at risk of data breaches
• Paying employees and contractors in one of more than 100 currencies and negotiating contracts and salaries that reflect your company's values and local cost of living
• Quickly scaling and growing teams, including converting independent contractors to full-time employees

As more companies turn to remote work, your business may need to adapt by working with more digital nomads. By utilizing an EOR solution, your company has access to an entire world of potential talent and doesn't have to fear losing employees who wish to move to other states or countries.

Finance Teams

If you plan to grow your business internationally or sell your products or services outside of your country of residence, then your business can only benefit from hiring financial experts from all over the world.

Skuad can help your company grow its finance team by:

• Ensuring that employees and contractors have access to secure data and IP, reducing the risk of private employee information being breached
• Accessing new markets and diversifying revenue streams
• Keeping growth cost-effective so that you can hire finance professionals from around the world without any hidden costs or lock-in prices

Employer of record solutions provides a cost-effective answer to global expansion and hiring. You can hire employees and independent contractors worldwide without the financial burden of establishing a business entity.

Legal Teams

As companies scale and grow, an in-house legal team begins to feel like a necessity to mitigate risk and protect the business' growing financial assets. By hiring global legal talent, your company can access individuals with geographically relevant legal expertise.

Skuad can help your company grow its legal team by:

• Ensuring that all hiring and company operations are legally compliant
• Drafting locally compliant tax documents and contracts
• Reducing legal risks as your company expands internationally
• Remaining compliant with SOC and privacy regulations

An employer of record solution is a wise choice for your internationally expanding business if you don't intend to establish a local entity but want to remain legally compliant and hire the best legal talent from around the world.

Is an Employer of Record (EOR) Right for You?

Employers of record can help business streamline their remote hiring process and are typically one of the most time and cost-effective solutions to hiring an international workforce.

However, you should assess whether an EOR solution is the right choice for your company, as some businesses prefer to establish local entities, partner with staffing agencies, or utilize a global professional employer organization (PEO).

If you're considering partnering with an EOR, ask yourself the following questions to determine whether this is the best solution for your business:

• Do any of my employees work remotely, and if so, am I interested and able to expand my talent pool to states and countries outside of where my business operates?
• Am I open to hiring employees who reside in regions where I am unfamiliar with the local labor and tax regulations?
• Do I want to easily scale my workforce and seamlessly transition independent contractors to full-time employees?
• Do I want one platform through which I can handle all aspects of international workforce management?

If you answered "yes" to some or all of the above questions, an employer of record solution might make the most sense for your expanding business.

Conclusion

Employer of record solutions offer companies the ability to hire independent contractors and full-time employees residing in virtually any country.

As businesses become increasingly more open to hiring global candidates, they also need to comply with local tax and labor laws in the places where their independent contractors and employees reside.

By utilizing an EOR solution, you can quickly and effortlessly expand your business and hire and retain the best talent in the world. EOR solutions like Skuad make it easy for companies to remain compliant and provide new employees with the support they need.

Ready to start hiring industry specialists from all over the world? Book a free platform demo to learn what Skuad can do to help your business grow.