Recruitment presents challenges to any affiliate scaling up, especially when deciding to start building local teams in different markets. Rita Mendes, people and culture manager at Alts Digital, explains how she helped the company build its team internationally.
Recruiting global talent can be challenging, especially for a rapidly growing, small to mid-sized company like Alts Digital. Scaling from 20 to 50 employees in just two years meant we had to adjust our approach to attract and select the best candidates.
What follows are some of the unique challenges we’ve faced recruiting across different parts of the world, along with some tips that my recruitment colleagues, Maria Clara Ramos and Maria Fernanda Coelho, and I have picked up over the last two and a half years.
Early challenges
When I first started, we were a small team of 20 people. For us it didn’t make sense to invest hugely on employer branding, so we relied on active sourcing as our main hiring strategy. Organic applications rarely met the qualifications for our open positions, so we adopted a proactive approach, directly reaching out to candidates that matched our needs, something that proved essential. We’ve had a dedicated recruitment team from early on, which has made all the difference.
We primarily hire for roles in content creation and management, SEO and tech. However, the recruitment process varies by region.
Investing in LinkedIn presence
We’ve been steadily building our presence on LinkedIn, regularly posting about our company and culture. This is crucial for a company like ours, which has multiple products. Unlike companies where the product name is also the company name, we need to consciously craft a distinct corporate identity to attract qualified candidates and make them feel connected to our brand.
Adapting to cultural differences is essential to refining the recruitment approach
In our sourcing efforts, we make sure to clarify these differences, showcasing the specific products we’re hiring for. Naturally, if we’re recruiting in Brazil, we highlight our product tailored to the Brazilian market.
Adapting by country: learning through experience
Expanding into new markets requires adaptability. Here are some key points to keep in mind:
- Experimentation in new markets: Initial sourcing attempts in a country can be experimental. Each country has its own recruitment culture, so early candidate interactions may not go as planned.
- Managing expectations: It’s helpful to set hiring managers’ expectations by informing them if it’s our first time sourcing in a specific geography.
- Local experience adds value: Having team members with local experience, especially those familiar with multiple regions, can be invaluable. Their insights help validate our approaches and refine our strategies.
- Improvement with experience: As we gain experience in a market, our processes and understanding tend to improve. Adapting to cultural differences is essential to refining the recruitment approach.
- First hire as a milestone: Once we make our first hire in a new country, the process usually becomes smoother.
Building trust is essential
When recruiting internationally, it’s common for candidates to be initially cautious, especially if they’re unfamiliar with the company or have never worked for a company abroad. Here are some strategies we’ve found effective:
- Establish trust from the start: Creating a trusting environment right from the first interaction is essential. Candidates may question the legitimacy of an unfamiliar company, so it’s crucial to build credibility early on.
- Ensure a positive candidate experience: A personalised, human touch throughout the recruitment process makes candidates feel valued and respected. This approach emphasises the company’s professionalism and authenticity.
- Leverage local employees: Having someone from the candidate’s country on the team can provide valuable reassurance. This connection helps candidates feel more comfortable and allows them to ask specific questions about bureaucratic or legal nuances in their home country.
A personalised, human touch throughout the recruitment process makes candidates feel valued and respected
Mastering bureaucratic questions
One critical aspect of global recruitment is mastering responses to the bureaucratic questions candidates may have. Issues around contracts and taxes often come up, and it’s important for recruiters to be well-prepared to answer them clearly. This not only builds the candidate’s confidence but also conveys that they’re dealing with a professional, structured company, which is essential in the international recruitment landscape.
Specific cases by geography
These insights are based on the domains we recruit for and may not apply to every field – note that these are generalisations from my perspective as a Portuguese recruiter.
Brazil
In Brazil, candidates demonstrate a confident and positive attitude in the job search process, even if they feel their English skills could be improved. This confidence helps move the recruitment process forward, as candidates are generally more open to engaging. Being a Portuguese company also plays a role, as shared language and cultural aspects make them feel more comfortable.
LatAm
In other LatAm countries, we find that candidates are more cautious, particularly about their English skills. Many feel insecure and prefer initial communication in Spanish. In our initial contact we start by speaking in Spanish before asking if we can switch to English, which usually alleviates the pressure.
In other LatAm countries, we find that candidates are more cautious, particularly about their English skills. Many feel insecure and prefer initial communication in Spanish
Additionally, candidates from these countries tend to read job descriptions carefully and ask a lot of questions before feeling confident enough to apply.
India
In India, we’ve noticed a higher level of caution from candidates who initially avoid interactions with unfamiliar companies. To address this, we started offering direct calls early in the process to ensure candidates understood that we were a legitimate company and not a bot or scam.
Europe
In Europe, we’ve seen more instances of ghosting, where candidates may disengage from the process unexpectedly. Additionally, European candidates tend to disengage more quickly if they aren’t 100% convinced about the role or company. This requires a faster, more engaging recruitment process to keep their interest.
Recruiting globally for a growing company like Alts Digital requires constant adaptation to cultural and market differences. Active sourcing remains our primary strategy, but it’s equally important to understand the nuances of each region and adjust our approach accordingly.
Building trust and delivering a positive candidate experience is crucial, especially in markets where people may be hesitant to apply to a lesser-known international company.
Rita Mendes
With over 10 years of experience in the field of people, culture, and human resources, Rita currently serves as the people and culture manager at Alts Digital. She has worked in various environments, including consultancies, international tech companies, and startups, primarily focusing on recruitment and selection, as well as people management and development. In private practice, she is a psychologist specialising in career development.