To increase your chances of winning the war on talent, startups must offer prospective candidates flexibility and choice. One way to do this is by allowing new hires to choose between the independent contractor (IC) and employer of record (EOR) model.

By offering both IC and EOR models, companies allow candidates to choose the working arrangement that best suits their needs and preferences. For instance, some candidates prefer the autonomy and flexibility of being an IC, such as setting their own hours and maintaining control over their work process.

On the other hand, some candidates prefer the stability and benefits of being an EOR employee. An EOR employee is a type of worker who is employed by an employer of record (EOR). An EOR is an organisation like Deel that engages and pays one or more employees in another country without your startup needing to establish a physical office in that country or region. 

In practical terms, the EOR acts as an intermediary between the EOR employee and the company where the employee performs professional work.

The advantages of the EOR arrangement for workers include: 

• Guaranteed compliance: The EOR ensures compliance with local labor laws, tax regulations, and employment standards, minimising legal risks for workers (and the company) and ensuring they receive all of their benefit entitlements and protections   
• Reduced administration: The EOR handles onboarding, global payroll, benefits, and HR tasks, streamlining many administrative steps, including background checks, compliance document sharing and signing, visa and immigration support, equity management, and more
• Enhanced employee experience: The best EORs enhance the entire employee lifecycle, providing workers with engagement and collaboration tools, self-serve platform features, flexible payment options and withdrawal methods, equipment rentals, flexible workspace memberships, and perks 

See also: Employer of Record for Global Expansion and Market Testing

Should the worker prefer the IC model, organisations like Deel also provide an agent of record (AOR) solution that makes hiring contractors in over 150 countries convenient, compliant, and competitive. At Deel, we call this AOR solution Deel Shield. 

The advantages of Deel Shield for workers are: 

• Accurate worker classification: Deel Shield eliminates the risk of misclassifying employees as contractors and ensures that their contractor agreements comply with local labour laws and that the work arrangement is appropriate
• Fast onboarding: Unlike traditional AORs, Deel classifies and onboards new hires at a record speed (up to 7 days) and streamlines compensation, compliance document sharing and signing, equity management, and more
• Enhanced contractor experience: With Deel Shield, the contractor lifecycle is also carefully considered. Contractors have access to the same benefits and perks as employees, self-serve platform features, engagement and collaboration tools, flexible payment and withdrawal methods, equipment rentals, flexible workspace memberships, a Deel Card, tax advice and support, invoice generation and access to the Deel contractor community 

See also: When Should You Move from Contractors to Full-Time Employees?

Attract and hire global talent with Deel

Offering contractor and EOR models provides a flexible and inclusive hiring approach that caters to diverse candidate preferences while meeting your startup’s varying needs. Doing so can increase your chances of attracting and retaining top talent for your startup team.

Deel's the future of global HR and compliance, but it's a platform companies can use today. It works for teams wherever they are, whatever their employment status. It's built-in contracts, visas, background checks, global payroll, equipment, benefits, equity, salary insights, compliance monitoring, and more, made to help businesses of all sizes compliantly hire, manage, and pay anyone worry-free.

Whether companies want to hire worldwide without opening legal entities, streamline HR compliance for global teams, or consolidate payroll for everyone, Deel does it all. Plus, local legal experts teamed with the latest advancements in AI and automation help you stay on top of labour laws everywhere and remain compliant.  

Deel's the only global-first HR platform built to scale with businesses no matter their stage of growth.

Sounds like the solution you’re looking for? Book a demo today to start your global expansion journey.