How exactly does international recruitment differ from recruitment within your country? Is it more or less competitive? Do you get a greater choice of candidates? Will you find candidates who are more qualified? Or is it simply a matter of getting candidates who will do the same work for less money? These are all important questions you might want to ask before you get into international recruitment.
However, there are good reasons and bad reasons to start recruiting internationally. Consider the following points before you decide whether international recruitment is for you:
Why Are You Thinking About Recruiting Internationally?
Are you looking for a better skill set? A certain area of expertise? A certain aptitude? Or are you just looking for cheaper labor? If you’re just looking for cheap labor, international recruitment may not be for you.
It’s not that cheap to get someone from a different country to work for you. Sure, they might agree to do so at lower wages but you’ll still have to hire a lawyer and get them a visa, all of which costs money. Plus, it’s quite likely that the person will come to your country, realize that you’re underpaying them and ask for a raise.
Even if they agree to continue to work for you, they’re going to be disgruntled and they won’t be putting in their best efforts. They might start looking for other jobs which will also sponsor them for a work visa.
All in all, it’s accurate to say that finding someone on the cheap is never a good reason to recruit internationally.
Have You Tried Recruiting Within Your Country/Geographic Region?
This might seem to go against the spirit of international recruitment. But the fact is that you need to know what the situation is like within your country before you start looking abroad. It’s always going to be easier to hire someone within the country. So if there are many people with the skill set available, you might as well go with this option.
During your search, you may find that there are really no people with that skill set in your country. Or that their level of expertise is much lower than what you need. You may want someone who’s at the top of their field. In these cases, you’d be justified in going with international recruitment.
Are You Willing to Put in the Work?
As mentioned above, recruiting someone internationally is not easy. First of all, you have to find someone who’s right for the job. This means searching, interviewing and considering several candidates. Of course, you can also get a headhunter to help you with this task but the final decision will be yours.
Secondly, you’ll need to get all the visa requirements out of the way. A good lawyer should be able to help you to do this. But work visas are expensive and do require quite a bit of paperwork.
Thirdly, you’ll also need to help the person to settle in when they get to your country. You can’t just recruit someone and leave them completely on their own. They’ll need some kind of orientation, maybe even a mentor to help them through the process. They’ll need to be made to feel welcome, so you have to be prepared to do whatever it takes to make them feel that way.
A bunch of practical considerations will also need to be taken care of. They’ll have to find a place to stay and a vehicle to drive. They may even have to get a whole new wardrobe depending on the differences in climate. They’ll have to develop a social life and some community ties. As the employer who is sponsoring them, you have to be willing to have a role in all these things to make sure your employees are happy.
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