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SecondOffice Whitepaper
Why we’re theoretically the best way to hire global talent
McKinley Rice
January 1, 2022 | 6 min read
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In the war for tech talent, outrun domestic competitors with remote freelancers outsourcing agencies grade-A global employees

Global Offices on the Cloud (Globalization-as-a-Service)

Instantly deploy a physical satellite office overseas and start hiring tech employees. Almost as easily as ordering pizza.

Today, the global economy provides a rich and plentiful supply of cheap talent for big businesses, allowing them to offer better products at lower costs. But when small businesses cannot afford to globalize, staying competitive rapidly becomes impossible. This white paper explains the macroeconomics behind this phenomenon, the problems this imposes on businesses, and the solutions provided by Globalization-as-a-Service (GaaS).

The world is growing smaller. Google, Amazon, Microsoft and other mega-corporations are setting up giant subsidiaries in India and other 3rd world countries, hiring tens of thousands of people, to both outrun competitors and undercut prices. They have essentially perfected the process for hyper-efficient globalized tech development. On the other hand, for most other companies, if you want to access global talent, the only real option you have is to rely on freelancers or outsourcing agencies.

Imagine if you could actually deploy a physical office overseas. Imagine if you didn’t have to rely on the small handful of people that are available in outsourcing agencies and could instead just review resumes and interview actual job seekers - exactly like how Microsoft, Google, or Samsung are operating their development centers. Imagine if you could actually hire overseas employees rather than overseas freelancers - therefore building towards something more permanent. This is exactly what SecondOffice does - we offer Global Offices via the Cloud, at a fraction of the cost and the time of setting up an overseas subsidiary. We’ve turned globalization into a monthly subscription model.

 

Introduction

In business terms, globalization refers to a business operating internationally - often in an attempt to access larger markets, such as China, or to access cheaper labor, such as in India. This allows the business to produce lower-priced products than its competitors, drive up profits, and secure its position in the global marketplace.

Globalization has proven so effective in improving business competitiveness that it has now become the norm. India, for instance, has seen enormous investment from tech companies looking to outcompete their rivals by gaining access to India’s large quantity of low-cost yet highly skilled engineers.

case study

 

Yet most businesses cannot afford to do this. Establishing themselves overseas is too expensive, leaving them looking to outsourcing agencies or freelancers as a solution. However, neither agencies nor freelancers can offer the same high-quality talent that will make their business competitive. So what can businesses do?

Globalization as a Service (GaaS) is the first solution to offer true globalization to companies. By using GaaS, businesses circumvent the need to establish expensive overseas offices, all while gaining access to the same high-quality talent enjoyed by megacorporations - so businesses of all sizes can produce competitively priced products and thrive in the new global market.

 

Why your business needs to globalize

In order for your business to remain competitive, it needs to globalize. Mega-corporations such as Amazon, Google, Apple, and Microsoft are increasing their globalization efforts across the developing world - establishing themselves locally and hiring en masse. This brings with it a few implications:

1. The world is growing ‘smaller’

The resources needed to keep a business competitive are no longer located within the confines of one country. They are spread throughout the world - allowing businesses to access richer markets, and cheaper talent. Sending revenue through the roof, all while cutting costs.

This means that if your business is to remain competitive, it has to spread throughout the world as well. In this sense, the business world isn’t larger, it’s smaller. Instead of dozens of countries in which you could establish yourself, there is one location to establish yourself: globally.

30 years ago, this was not the case. A business could operate within the borders of its own country, and compete with other businesses utilizing the same market and resources that it was using. Now, with globalization, businesses that expand their reach to other countries are vastly outcompeting the businesses that stay at home. Their products are made faster and cheaper and sold into much larger markets.

2. Mega-corporations are exploiting this to outpace the competition

Mega-corporations have been the first to realize, accept, and exploit this new “smaller” world. Hiring surges and investment throughout the developing world, particularly India, have allowed megacorporations to outcompete their competition. The more they hire and invest, the more they can undercut prices (particularly in development).

Not only is this good business sense, but it’s now an essential business practice because every single mega-corporation is doing it out of necessity. Globalization has become an arms race for businesses.

3. You have to adapt in order to stay competitive

Startups have to adopt the same approach if they are to compete in the modern business world. In other words, they have to globalize or die. Failure to globalize means they won’t have enough talent, their products will be too expensive, and they’ll be incapable of competing with what the megacorporations are capable of offering.

Furthermore, as smaller businesses realize how the new business world operates, and seek efforts to globalize in response, businesses that do not will fall even further behind.

However, unlike megacorporations that are opening multiple offices in India, these businesses cannot afford to duplicate their HQ overseas - forcing them to find other solutions.

 

Despite the need for businesses to globalize in order to remain competitive, it’s unlikely they’ll be able to afford to or even be able to find the talent you want.

In business terms, globalization refers to a business operating internationally This is because despite the world becoming more global, it hasn’t yet become cheap or easy to access grade-A global talent. But what can businesses do? Well, they are typically left with two imperfect solutions:

1. Hire an elite consulting firm

The first solution is to hire an elite consulting firm such as McKinsey or Deloitte. They help businesses set up an overseas office and start sourcing grade-A talent at a lower cost. This is a solution they’ve provided to many businesses before, so it’s likely they will be able to provide at least some kind of positive outcome. There’s only one issue: it will very likely cost the serviced business millions of dollars to do this. A sum that many may not be able to afford.

2. Hire freelancers

The second solution is to hire freelancers through outsourcing agencies or platforms such as Upwork, Freelancer, and Fiverr. This can be done remotely and circumvents the need for establishing abroad.

However, this comes with many risks. It is difficult to know how many projects the freelancer/agency is working on behind the scenes. They may be overburdened and unable to dedicate enough time to produce a quality result.

Likewise, it is extremely hard to know who is actually working on the project. The freelancer on calls might not be the one who’s doing the work. The business might not be getting the talent they think they’re paying for. On top of this, there is little legal recourse or quality safeguards in place to offer them any kind of security.

As you can see, neither solution offered by the market are effective - and in many cases cause more problems than they solve.

 

How to globalize your business

“Our philosophy is simple: Why outsource to IBM when you can recruit ex-IBM employees?”

- Felix Kim, SecondOffice’s CEO

In order to compete in the modern business world, you need to be able to deploy a physical office overseas and hire grade-A employees. No freelancers. No agency employees. This is the only way you can control the outcome while having access to a larger talent pool at a lower cost. This is the globalization solution that your competitors are using. And they’re going to use this to kill you.

But how can you do this?

1. SecondOffice: Globalization-as-a-Service

SecondOffice allows you to instantly deploy a physical office overseas and hire grade-A employees - allowing you to interact directly with your talent, shepherd your projects through development, and compete on cost with the largest companies in the world. All through the cloud.

Instead of investing millions into a consultancy firm, or sinking thousands into unreliable freelancing solutions - SecondOffice provides cloud-based access to the same strategies enjoyed by megacorporations for a monthly fee.

Call it ‘Globalization-as-a-Service’ (GaaS).

2. Proprietary Recruitment

SecondOffice gives you a complete talent pipeline through proprietary recruitment. They are on location, sourcing, and vetting candidates from one of the largest databases in the country. This allows them to provide you with high-quality candidates in a short period of time. Instead of you having to establish yourselves abroad and navigate the logistical and cultural difficulties of recruiting in another country - SecondOffice takes care of that for you. The only thing you have to do is pick which candidate you want from a curated shortlist.

3. Cost and time saving

It’s far cheaper to choose SecondOffice. Unless you’re setting up a subsidiary with a hundred employees, you won’t have access to the quantity of talent and the ability to pipeline new employees into local offices with the same efficiency. You’ll have to deal with the headaches of setting yourself up abroad, navigating unfamiliar recruitment, and huge upfront costs.

4. Executive control

SecondOffice doesn’t just give you more control over your employees, it gives you complete control. You have a direct line to whoever is working on your project. You can speak to them directly, know which work is being allocated where, and what they might need from you in order to produce their best work.

This means unlike agencies, where the relationship is obscured by managers, or freelancers, where relationships are fleeting and unreliable - SecondOffice gives you a direct 1 on 1 relationship with your employee. The same one you’d have if they worked in your company, in the same office, in the same continent.

5. Competitive advantage

The competitive advantage this gives you is enormous. You circumvent the high cost faced by companies setting up subsidiaries abroad while simultaneously enjoying the advantages of globalization that many companies are missing out on.

In other words, Second Office allows you to outcompete the market leaders on cost and to outcompete your competitors on talent.

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