Taking a business global is a goal many startups share. After all, entering new markets means increased revenue streams from broader, more diverse audiences. But growing from an ambitious startup to a steady scale-up takes not only time and determination, but also significant funding. Scale-ups — businesses that that have outgrown the startup phase and are looking to expand their revenue streams, grow their employee count, and add value in new global markets, often with new technologies — face other challenges than their startup counterparts; going global means acquiring global talent. And, with the global marketplace becoming ever more connected each day, sourcing and securing the brightest global talent is more crucial than ever.
A Changing Funding Landscape
Structural shifts are reshaping the global marketplace. From political upheavals to evolving trade agreements, technological advances to market globalization, the way companies do business across international lines is in a perpetual state of evolution.
But the main barrier for scale-ups has been and continues to be — perhaps unsurprisingly — adequate funding. In the past, venture capital firms have invested billions in startups — not scale-ups. But this trend has changed dramatically in the last few years. In 2017, the value of funding spiked at a high of $155 billion, with the trend projected to last well into 2018. Moreover, 2017 saw these same firms valuing quality over quantity, with larger financial injections into fewer scale-ups.
Global Shifts in Talent Availability
These and other shifts in both the global marketplace and venture-backed businesses have undoubtedly had significant impacts on the global talent pool — or at least access to it. Talent acquisition specialists in industrialized nations report that they routinely experience difficulties when sourcing qualified talent in their respective countries and other industrialized nations. However, the developing world is steadily growing its own robust talent pool, making these nations some that are well-poised to offer qualified talent for expanding businesses.
What’s a scale-up to do with this shift in talent availability? With the industrialized world experiencing talent shortages and the developing world blooming with surplus talent, trends are not projected to change anytime soon. Companies that are looking to globally scale their operations may expect that the talent best suited for their business may be found in developing nations in SEA, South America, and the Middle East. But, these developing markets (particularly India) are beginning to eye the West and are looking to expand into new markets as well.
How Global Talent Acquisition Services Benefit Your Global Scaling Efforts
While the talent pool is now largely a global one, local sourcing is still very much integral to business’ expansion efforts. Your global talent acquisition specialist should be adept at tapping into the local talent pool of your target country — as well as be equipped to assist with any relocation processes that are needed. Further, this specialist should be able to ensure that prospective employees meet eligibility requirements to work in specific countries, territories, states, and local jurisdictions.
If you’re ready to take the leap and expand on a global scale, reach out to Velocity Global to learn how our global talent acquisition services can benefit your expansion efforts.
