Could remote working be the key to company success?

Here’s some advice from Talent.io Founder, Jonathan Azoulay, on how to maximize remote hiring.

Hosted by Elaia.

Will remote work stay forever?

For many tech companies, the pandemic created a huge rush to convert their businesses so that they could effectively operate remotely. For others, this process had already begun with home office days and remote working options. What’s sure, according to Jonathan Azoulay, Founder of Talent.io, is that “remote working is here to stay” and a recent Linkedin case study agrees, 84% of recruiters believe there won’t be any U-turn on remote working.

We’ve taken note of the best practices he’s passed on to us during a recent workshop hosted by Elaia.

I — Want the best? Then it’s time to recruit and hire remotely

A company that offers remote work gets access to a bigger talent pool to choose from by removing limitations created by location. Jonathan suggests using remote recruitment especially for more senior roles and tech roles that are often harder to find as remote recruiting gives access to high quality candidates. This also means creating and implementing new ways of working is essential to make the whole process seamless. Our portfolio company, Traefik Labs was built remotely, and they have seen great success with their hires and as a result, with their company.

II — Looking to hire international profiles?

Talent.io recommends 3 ways to do this:

• If you’re looking to hire several people in the same location, creating a local affiliate team in that location might be the right option for you. You’ll have a complete and capable team based elsewhere and able to operate remotely.
• Freelance contracts are the norm in some countries such as Poland. Talent.io recommends working with intermediary companies that know the local market and will be able to help you recruit and hire international or national freelance profiles. Keep in mind that some countries have some limitations for these contracts.
• Work with a company that creates mirror contracts that allow you to hire talent from another country more easily albeit, with higher costs. Deel is an example of a resource to help achieve this and avoid the time and paperwork necessary in some countries.

III - Remote recruitment should mean you’re becoming a full remote organization

That doesn’t mean that your entire company only exists online. But, it does mean that you need you to be able to offer a hybrid solution so that people can come to the office, or they can work from home or another location. Giving employees options and the freedom to choose is integral to a hybrid organization.

IV — Keep cultural and linguistic differences in mind when hiring international profiles

If your company is based in France, but you’re hiring international profiles that will be based elsewhere, you need to consider that professional and personal cultural differences may arise. Human Resources practices such as onboarding, etc, can help to reduce this impact and make sure your employees have healthy and easy communication with all team members, no matter where they are. This also means that you have to be able to equip your team to work remotely whether that requires office equipment or transportation costs for work related events, you should have a budget allocated to these new ways of working.

V — Keep your office culture strong and consistent

Communication is key and needs to happen much more often if you’re moving to a hybrid or remote model. You should consider using good internal knowledge management platforms (many of our portfolio companies use Notion for example) to give everyone access to up-to-date information at all times and create moments when the employees can learn from each other. Invest in a proper meeting software, so that everyone is able to take part easily — whether in the office or not. As Jonathan put it “the ways of working have changed, but that doesn’t mean that the rules or culture of your organization change.” The same rules apply so don’t change how your management or employees react or behave just because they’re working from somewhere else.

To remote or not to remote, is it right for the long term?

Going to a remote or hybrid model does require work and investment both in terms of time and money, but it can be a great step towards hiring strong talent to reach and exceed your objectives. If it matches your business model and can help your projections, then it might be the right choice for your company. As always, it’s important to consider your unique business needs before making any choice. So, are you ready to go remote?

Talent.io specializes in helping companies hire tech talent throughout Europe and placing talent in the right roles. Whether your company wants to go remote or not, Talent.io can help you find the right tech talent.