Covid-19 pandemic gave everyone a taste of what work-from-home truly feels like. It took the stress off the plate of many employees and employers around the world. The remote working model has been practiced in the past by many companies even if it got popularized by the pandemic. IBM, the multinational technology company was one of the first top major corporations to experiment with the remote working model. Gradually it led to other companies embracing it with time and hiring remote teams keeping cost perspective in mind.
Remote teams help small and medium-sized businesses to attract top talent, and hiring a large remote team is way more affordable as compared to on-location employees. As well as widening the access to a larger pool of talent and reducing overhead costs.
In this article, we aim to take SME decision-makers through an understanding of the benefits of having remote teams.
Understanding remote teams and remote working
Remote working introduced employees to the concept of working from anywhere whereas to employers, the benefits of having remote teams.
Remote working benefits employees as it subtracts traveling hours and offers them a good work-life balance. Whereas, remote teams present employers around the world with the opportunity to have access to a larger pool of skilled talent. One that surpasses the restrictions of limiting their search to local locations only. They can leverage the advantage of expanding their search to other countries and hire remote employees affordably as compared to their on-location employees. Globally, CEOs are adopting remote hiring because it gives them access to a larger pool of talent, ensures employee retention, and lowers overhead costs.
What are the benefits of having remote teams?
Mercer’s 2022 Global Talent trends study shows that 74% of the employees would join an organization if offered remote working or hybrid opportunities. Mostly, remote working offers flexibility to employees. The practice of remote working has stemmed in the past but has relatively gained popularity after the Covid-19 pandemic forced people to work from within four walls. This situation made them realize they could contribute more by working from home.
Considering these statistics, remote teams give companies access to international talent, reduce operational costs, employee retention, and a competitive edge in the market.
Remote teams attracting top talent
Indians stepping in the forefront for securing C-level positions gives global clients the opportunity to recognize the talent stemming from India.
Indians are highly skilled in the domains of IT, digital marketing, big data analytics, software development, etc. India houses about 75% of digital talent around the world. All you need to do is rightly source these skilled professionals. By sourcing talent from India, you will have the opportunity to hire highly educated and talented professionals remotely.
Remote teams give access to an explicit talent pool
Remote hiring presents you with an opportunity to look for a wider pool of keen talent outside your local market, city, and country. The literacy rate of India is 77.7% as of 2022, it has 612 medical colleges and 23 Indian Institute of Technology (IITs) of National importance. It is said, that by 2030, India will have 20 universities that will make it to the top 200 universities in the world and climb the ladder to the top 5 countries for research output.
However, considering India’s population, the unemployment rate was 7.12% in May 2022 as per The Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy report. Also, the availability of jobs in Indian companies is not proportional to the number of engineers graduating every year. So in such scenarios employees in India are always on the lookout for job opportunities outside or remotely. Employees prefer remote work compared to work-from-office, which in turn means you have a wider horizon to narrow down on. Here, they won’t only bring in their skill and expertise, but a deep-rooted desire to contribute to your company brand. Remote work can turn revolutionary for such potential employees.
The employees in India are immensely skilled in domains of shared services like payroll, finance, HR, and Information Technology. As a European-based SME or businessperson, you can tap into the Indian market to access a more affordable labor force and avail the language skills, educational qualifications, and cultural diversities of the employees in India to benefits.
Remote work enables you to hire a large team
Hubstaff, Buffer, and Workfrom surveys suggest that 9 out of 10 employees would like to choose remote working throughout their career.
It is way more convenient to hire a larger team and manage a remote team from a cost perspective as compared to a local team onshore. The average salary of a software developer in India is lesser than compared in Western cities. Similarly, a larger team can be hired keeping in mind the same affordability quotient.
When a large team is presented with the same comfort level, their contribution will always be unanimous. After all, a common goal and good head space go a long way in achieving a company’s goal. Also, conducting remote team-building activities like conducting virtual company events, encouraging employee recognition, and team bonding sessions will help in employee retention.
Remote teams lower overhead costs
Organizations can cut down costs fixed or variable overhead costs like of investing or renting out large office spaces. The utilities, other office supplies, and equipment costs also get minimized. The cost of an office space per employee is $18000 per year when multiplied by the number of employees working for your company will generate a tentative estimate for the overall headcount expense. According to a report published by Global Workplace Analytics, companies can save as good as $11000 per employee per year if they allow their workforce to work 50% remotely. Flexjob saved $5 million through remote working whereas IBM reduced $50 million in real estate costs.
By hiring remotely, you can move your team to a cloud-based operation completely. You may rather invest in upgraded tools, project collaboration software, document storage, and cloud services. Also better VPN configurations, firewalls, antivirus software, and cybersecurity tools. Having remote teams will turn out to be more economical than operating local teams.
Salary differences also play a major role in cost savings. For example, a US developer is paid three times more than $109000 annually whereas the developers in India are paid $38000.
How an Employer of Record services/ International PEO can help in finding remote teams?
You can have your own remote team in India without forming an entity. An EOR (Employer of Record)/International PEO is aware of the global clients’ need for a good remote team and helps you expand your global presence in India without establishing an Indian office. They conduct in-depth research about the fluctuating market scenarios and hand-pick talent accordingly. An International Professional Employer Organization will nurture your remote team with the best-suited employees. Simply transfer all the employee-related responsibilities like HR management, local compliance, and payroll onto the on-paper employer of your company- an EOR.
Benefits of having remote teams the Remunance way
We, at Remunance, have conducted in-depth research for years to understand what you need as a global business leader. As an Employer of Record/International PEO, we ensure your company is backed up with a skilled remote team. Our team of skilled HR professionals spares no effort in hand-picking the right talent from the corners of the country to groom your remote team. We support teams in every possible way by extending our employee-like IT, logistical, and infrastructure support. That is the Remunance way of helping you manage your remote teams.
