Welcome to RemoLabs! This research series presents insights derived from anonymized customer data, utilizing RemoFirst's Employer of Record platform, as well as surveys and third-party market research. We then share our findings to help you hire smarter and navigate global expansion.
As global hiring becomes a long-term strategy for companies of all sizes, a clear trend has emerged: employers are increasingly drawn to emerging regions they haven’t yet entered.
In a recent survey of global People and HR teams, companies cited Southeast Asia (74%), the Middle East and North Africa (69%), and Sub-Saharan Africa (56%) as top areas they’re considering for future hiring. Those survey were allowed to select more than one region of interest.
These regions offer compelling advantages:
- Access to large, educated talent pools
- Competitive salary expectations
- Expanding digital infrastructure
- Favorable time zones for global collaboration
This growing interest signals a shift in mindset. Companies are looking beyond the traditional hubs — like Western Europe or North America — and rethinking where and how they build international teams.
But while curiosity is high, action is lagging. These regions are under consideration, not yet major hiring destinations. The opportunity is real, but companies remain hesitant to take the leap.
Managers See the Opportunity Before Executives Do
Interestingly, the push toward untapped talent markets is being led from the ground up. Nearly 49% of people managers expressed interest in hiring from Latin America. In contrast, only 22% of directors and 31% of executives said the same.
This suggests a disconnect in perspective. Managers, who are closer to operational gaps and candidate pipelines, often recognize where talent is available and cost-effective.
They may be the first to notice that certain roles could be filled faster — or more affordably — by sourcing talent in emerging markets.
Executives, meanwhile, may remain focused on more traditional hiring zones or wary of perceived complexity. When leadership and HR teams aren't aligned, it becomes harder to act on promising global opportunities.
What’s Actually Holding Companies Back?
While emerging markets are rich with opportunity, several practical barriers are slowing companies down. The top reasons cited in the report include:
- Lack of internal knowledge or resources (54%)
- Concerns about compliance or legal risks (53%)
- Lack of trusted local partners or vendors (40%)
These challenges aren’t about the availability of talent. They’re about confidence, capacity, and clarity.
Smaller tech companies — especially those with 100 to 199 employees — feel this burden more acutely. For lean HR and legal teams, researching local labor laws, vetting vendors, and managing new-country onboarding processes can feel overwhelming.
As a result, perceived risk outweighs opportunity. Companies delay or avoid expansion, even when the talent they need exists in regions they’ve already identified as high potential.
Why Emerging Markets Still Offer a Competitive Advantage
Despite the challenges, the benefits of hiring from emerging markets remain clear. Companies that make the move often see improvements in:
- Cost-efficiency: Salaries and operational expenses are typically lower in these regions.
- Access to skilled talent: Many countries in Southeast Asia, MENA, and Africa produce large numbers of STEM and business graduates.
- Time zone coverage: Teams distributed across time zones can improve support coverage, reduce turnaround time, and foster around-the-clock productivity.
In many cases, early movers gain a first-mover advantage — building brand recognition and loyalty in talent markets their competitors haven’t entered yet.
How Companies Can Move From Interest to Action
Here’s what organizations can do to bridge the gap between curiosity and capability:
Start Small With a Pilot
You don’t need to launch in five countries at once. Pilot a hire in one promising region to test processes, evaluate talent fit, and identify regulatory needs in a controlled way. This builds internal confidence and creates a repeatable playbook for future expansion.
Align HR and Leadership
Bring managers’ regional insights into strategic conversations. Create space for People teams to present talent data, sourcing trends, and hiring bottlenecks that emerging markets could solve.
Partner With Global Experts
You don’t have to become an expert in every market you hire from. Working with an Employer of Record (EOR) like RemoFirst can help companies navigate country-specific labor laws, payroll, benefits, and compliance obligations — without needing to open a local entity.
An EOR handles legal employment on your behalf, reducing risk and enabling compliant hiring in days, not months. For lean teams without in-house legal support, this kind of partnership can be a game-changer.
Curiosity Isn’t Enough
Emerging markets are ready. The talent is there. Infrastructure is growing. Salary expectations remain competitive.
The biggest obstacle isn’t the market — it’s internal hesitation.
Companies that stay stuck in curiosity mode risk falling behind competitors who are faster to act. But with the right support, strategic alignment, and a willingness to pilot new regions, organizations can unlock the full potential of global hiring.
About This Data
Our data is anonymized from customer insights and trends as well as surveyed from hundreds of HR and People Ops leaders globally. While this does not include millions of data points, this is collected among thousands of companies globally who are finding and open to talent based in countries around the world.
