There is a potential pot of gold in international recruitment markets but significant risks need to be managed to ensure you are rewarded for your investment !
As UK recruitment businesses look to exploit the outstanding opportunities in the USA and other profitable international markets, I would recommend that in addition to developing high performance recruitment and operational teams, there is a need to ensure there is sufficient focus on managing the significant risks that will be faced.
The principal risks can be grouped under the following four categories: Compliance, Care, Corporate and Claims - the “4Cs”. Without seeking to mitigate these risks, the huge investment needed to enter and benefit from the market opportunities will be lost down a black hole, along with monies needed to respond to the consequences of failing to operate a compliant business.
I have developed the “4Cs” based upon my own experiences and observations over the last 16+ years across the recruitment industry in the management of legal and commercial risks associated with international recruitment. I hope that by sharing my insights with you, then you will be able to identify the critical business issues that you need to focus on to benefit from the financial rewards of international expansion.
Over the next 4 Blogs, I will examine each of the "4Cs", starting with the first category, Compliance.
As the graphic above shows, the key risks are associated with the following issues:
Employment - understanding how to compliantly engage temporary workers and the employment rights that they are then entitled to.
Classification - ensuring the employment status of temporary workers is correct, whether that be ‘employed’, ‘self-employed’ or through an intermediary, so as to avoid legal challenges from misclassification.
Visa - as an employer, it is your legal obligation to check the temporary worker has the right to live and do paid work for your client.
Tax - in some countries your tax obligations may be layered, for example in the USA, there are County, State and Federal regulations to be satisfied.
Data Protection - this is becoming an increasingly confusing legal issue for international businesses particularly data transfer between the EU and US. In February 2023, a European Parliament Committee recommended that the European Commission reject the proposed EU-US Data Privacy Framework - saying it did not comply with the EU's GDPR privacy regulations.
There are obviously other Compliance risks that need to be considered, some of which will be specific to where you are doing business and the manner in which you operate. It is essential to develop comprehensive risk mitigation plans to ensure your international growth continues to be successful. By effectively managing these risks, then you are on the right road to ensure success and “can put your head on your pillow at night and sleep easier”.
My mission as a Business Advisor is to champion best practice in risk and compliance for the professional recruitment sector, and extensive experience in international recruitment, enables SRC to help businesses consider and mitigate their risks, so they can enhance shareholder value through the adoption of best practice.
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