Could the answer lie in employing remote workers across different geographies?

The growth of remote work has provided organisations with opportunities to hire talent based on merit, not location, thereby overcoming skill shortages and capability gaps to build high-performing, diverse teams cost-effectively and at scale.

So, how can SMEs tap into this global talent pool effectively and create the best environment for their remote staff? From technology to regulatory compliance, here is everything you need to know about hiring remote staff for your small business.

Three remote hiring tips

There are three easy steps that businesses can take to make hiring remote workers easier and smooth. Here are the five we consider important.

1. Take care of compliance, take care of your employees

Be mindful that employment regulations are not the same in every country. Don't assume it's the same as ‘home’. Remember that labour laws can change at any time so it’s crucial to be constantly abreast with specific laws and regulations of the relevant country. For example, in Colombia, employees get a mandatory Christmas bonus and in Iceland, equal pay between genders is mandated by law. When hiring remotely SMEs should be familiar with the regulatory nuances in order to remain compliant at all times. At Teamed, we help make it easy for businesses to hire, pay and take care of their remote workforces, by handling local regulations, payroll, benefits, and onboarding.

2.  Investing in technology to help your teams thrive

To effectively hire staff remotely, your technology should be fit for purpose.

Technology, as the pandemic laid bare, is the foundation for success when hiring talent in different parts of the world. But investing in technology doesn’t have to break the bank. For remote teams to function successfully, the most important technology you will need are video conferencing tools such as Zoom and Skype, chat tools such as Slack and Microsoft Teams, file-sharing tools like Google Drive and Dropbox, and shareable calendars such as Outlook and Google Calendar. With these in place, you can be assured that you are prepared to enable workflows across multiple time zones, which means you are ready to recruit talent from just across the globe.

3. Consider time zones, and be coordinated around the clock

The world is your new talent playground but consider time zones. How and when will this person interact with your team? Do they need to be plus/minus three hours for example?

Consider time zones as regular communication can become tricky when workers are spread out across multiple time zones, especially if there are times that overlap between the zones. But this is also a strength, and means you can have employees that can be reactive around the clock.

As a business, you need to be mindful of this challenge and ensure that your teams are aware, putting processes in place for effective cross timezone collaboration. This will also mean that the right tools are available to make communication and collaboration as seamless as possible.

More than anything else in their businesses, smart small/medium-sized business owners recognise that staying on top of the talent gap is critical for the long-term health of their businesses.