Why is Employee Global Mobility Important?

The future of work is changing from companies just offering remote work initiatives in their local country to companies now reaping the benefits of global hiring. In this article, you will learn the benefits, challenges, and opportunities of embracing global mobility.

Why is global mobility important?

The future of work is changing quickly, and it is essential to ask:

• What is the future of global mobility?
• How does workplace mobility affect the employee experience?

For companies to be successful in the war on talent, they need to embrace borderless hiring and be human-centric in their approach to talent management. Global mobility allows companies to connect with the global talent pool and change the misconception that the best professionals come from certain countries. Global mobility allows company stakeholders to create a world where ability alone determines opportunity. 

Companies are now working with their mobile workforce to understand the right, flexible solution for both parties rather than simply applying a one size fits all approach to international assignments. The question is no longer what the business needs are but how a company can lead the field in a competitive marketplace.

With more and more employees expecting mobility as part of their personal and professional development at some point in their careers, competitive global mobility strategies are essential to the recruitment drive.

Where you find a portion of the workforce who want to embrace global mobility, you may also find those for whom it is not a priority or who have barriers. When considering your global mobility policies, be sure to ask, is mobility an opportunity for all employees, and how can a relocation package help?

Benefits of global mobility

Companies should implement a global mobility strategy to reap the following benefits.

Let’s look at the benefits of embracing global mobility in more detail.

Tap into emerging talent hotspots

Gone are the days of believing the best talent lives in the world’s major cities or within commuting distance of your HQ. Global hiring is becoming a priority for companies as finding talent hubs in untapped markets and encouraging your workforce to work from anywhere significantly expands your talent pool. 

Our State of Global Hiring Report illustrates that the rate of global hiring is increasing across all regions.

Unlock global markets 

Global mobility enables companies to quickly and efficiently expand into cross-border markets. Establishing a physical presence supports intercultural knowledge exchange and global alignment and helps to build credibility and brand trust.

Discover how Deel is helping E-Bikes solutions provider Zoomo increase its speed to market. 

Improve workforce agility 

Addressing global market developments requires adaptability and the ability to pivot. Global and mobile workforces can enter new markets to generate alternative revenue streams and reduce dependence on a single market. 

Upskilling your workforce will establish a future-fit workforce and drive economic growth and innovation. 

A clearly defined relocation process and assistance will help mobile employees settle into their new homes and be up and running in no time. To help, we’ve put together an employee relocation policy template.

Attract and retain top talent 

The last few years have forced millions of workers to reevaluate their relationship with work. Millennials and Gen Z are both purpose-driven generations that fundamentally think about jobs as opportunities to learn and grow. This mindset has delivered results, thanks to the broad adoption of flexible and remote working due to the pandemic. 

Companies that offer their future and current employees the opportunity to work wherever they choose see increased employee retention, with wanting to live as a digital nomad becoming the aspiration of a generation searching for a life without borders. 

Flexibility and life experience are now top priorities in career growth, and if a particular employer doesn’t meet these needs, then talent is simply finding a company that can. Companies need to adapt and offer a workplace experience that embraces global mobility.

Foster inclusivity and diversity

Without borders, opportunities open up to the best person rather than the best person in a specific location. Companies can then cultivate diversity in the workplace by employing people of different ages, genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and cultural backgrounds.

The benefits of an inclusive and diverse global workforce are:

• Reaching untapped customer demographics
• Creating more significant opportunities for professional growth
• Promoting gender equality
• Reducing the gender pay gap
• Closing skill gaps

The opportunity to learn from a diverse international workforce is unbeaten in terms of personal and professional development. 

Understanding how your people feel matters; celebrating your diverse and remote workforce will directly impact your retention metrics.

Global mobility challenges and solutions

Whether you run a small business or head a multinational corporation, working with an international team comes with challenges; immigration, legal and tax compliance, and benefits are particularly complex on a global scale. 

Fortunately, technology serves as a global mobility solution, removing internal HR teams’ many burdens. We’ll take you through these challenges and the opportunities to overcome them.

Payroll compliance 

When hiring from a foreign country or relocating an employee, you must understand the global payroll solutions you can use to overcome the most common challenges. International payroll processing is a challenge for companies hiring in different countries for the first time. Key considerations are:

• Local laws and regulations
• Employee compensation across other countries
• International tax laws
• Employee benefits
• Bank charges and exchange rates
• Data protection
• Pressure on the human resources department

Paying your international workforce shouldn’t be an obstacle to global hiring. Trying to make sense of all the different elements can put a lot of pressure on internal HR professionals, which is why the best solution for most companies is a service like Deel.

Deel makes paying your team simple. A single click pays your entire team in their local currency or through their preferred payment methods. Deel also offers various local payouts to simplify your international payroll process.

Visas

Using visa mobility support services, you can increase workplace mobility within your multinational organization. Some countries that suffered due to the absence of tourism during the pandemic developed visa programs to stimulate the economy. We’ve compiled a list of countries offering remote working visas to help every digital nomad fulfill their dream! 

At Deel, our mobility team handles the entire visa process in-house. We assess your employee’s eligibility, employ them through our employer of record (EOR) solution, and start the visa application process for you, taking the burden off your human resources team.

Legal compliance

Moving employees internationally and hiring team members from abroad come with complexities. Ensure your global mobility program is compliant to mitigate risk and avoid misclassification. Seek advice to navigate international employment laws before considering talent mobility. 

Alternatively, if you have identified a country where you don’t already have a legal entity or permanent establishment, use an EOR provider such as Deel. Deel employs the worker on your behalf, ensures compliance with local employment laws and labor regulations, and runs payroll. 

Using an EOR can improve your international employee experience in so many ways.

International taxes

Your global workforce will come to you with a limitless amount of questions, and at the forefront of these should be how do they pay taxes in their host country when they aren’t living in their home country?

We’ve put together a tax guide for international workers to introduce five remote worker types and their income tax responsibilities that cover the main factors at play:

• The country they’re working from
• Where the company is based
• Their citizenship
• Their tax residency status

Outsourcing this can save your human resources team valuable time and worry over misclassification.

International recruitment and hiring

Recruiting remote teams comes with challenges, which become even more complex when doing so internationally. 

The following articles will help you understand the opportunities, benefits, and how to address these challenges:

• Ultimate Guide to Remote Teams: Hire And Manage Virtual Workers
• Recruiting Internationally: Licenses and Regulations to Know About
• How to Recruit and Hire Overseas Talent

Manage global mobility compliantly with Deel

Deel is compliant global hiring, payroll, and HR for remote teams. That means anyone, anywhere, can get hired, paid, and managed with Deel. 

Using a tech-enabled self-serve platform, companies can instantly hire and onboard full-time employees or independent contractors across the world legally in minutes, provide visa and immigration support, and pay their entire global team with one click.

Sounds like the solution you’re looking for? Request a demo to see Deel in action today.