Over the past few years, many companies have been trying to expand internationally, even small businesses have been thinking about this major change. The reason behind this is that sometimes certain companies are needed abroad, or maybe there was an opportunity abroad that could not be rejected. However, many companies that are thinking of going international have never dealt with foreign workers, even though they are a great addition to the workforce.
Hiring international workers might sound like a complicated thing to do, as much paperwork is needed, visas and much time has to be put into the whole process. But the truth is that this time-consuming idea has numerous benefits, as most foreign employees tend to put much time into work and effort so as to get hired, and after they get that they do not stop with such hard work, even if it’s part-time, or full-time.
But why should a company take that major step on hiring foreign workers?
If you are thinking on getting more recognised in the industry, or you have your eyes on a specific market, you need to have somebody who might be familiar with that particular market. In this case, let’s say interpreting, and you want to expand your services abroad – South America for example – the best option in this case would be hiring someone who knows the language and could communicate in an effective way, and could understand cultural references. This person would be the right person to do foreign business with you. Imagine how difficult it would be for you to expand abroad if you do not speak the language, but also do not understand how laws work. A reliable foreign workforce would enable you to go bigger and keep your style of operation.
It is well known that sometimes in certain sectors there is a shortage of skilled workers from your country-of-origin. A reliable foreign worker can fill the right position. Many times, companies have open positions, which foreign workers can see online and apply, however, they are rejected because they are in another country, ignoring their skills and their complete experience that could definitely give the company a boost or help them grow even more. In other words, they could provide the expertise your company needs. Most of the time they would even apply to unwanted job vacancies, or positions that require lots of work or implies a heavy workflow, but they would still be rejected.
How could they help in improving the workspace? It is simple. Talk-Business explains that when all of the employees come from the same background, some creativity might be lacking. However, hiring someone who comes from a totally different country, where things – business, studies, etc – might be done differently, they bring creativity with them, as well as other perspectives on how to deal with certain problems, clients or even advertisements. All ideas that could arise can be blended and so everyone could cooperate and as a team, everyone could take the company to new heights.
These new bright ideas could help you take your business abroad successfully, as Ford Murray states, because your headquarters would be known for being a culturally enriched workplace. A place in which workers can cooperate and share different global perspectives, bringing everyone together. This would be considered a big plus and would probably bring better reputation and attract new talents and clients.
Those new ideas and a foreign workforce could help you cross this cultural bridge and a cultural barrier. For example, many potential clients in a translation company would write or call in a foreign language because they might not be able to explain in detail what they want in English; now imagine if you did not have the adequate workforce to take up calls or write back in other languages more than English. Would the client feel comfortable to come back? Sometimes, countries have a significant number of immigrants from other non-English-speaking countries, and it is important to be prepared to deal with them and be able to help them effectively. The truth is, that many language services have a more important role than just being a language solution, they act as cultural “translators”, because they deal with clients from a very early stage such as common salutations, customer interaction and support. In this case, a foreign employee would only be a plus.
Many companies claim to be diverse, but the problem lays on not giving opportunities to potential workers that show enthusiasm in collaborating. It is easy to distinguish a person who is clearly interested and wants to share new ideas with the company. Do not forget qualifications, most people applying for positions from abroad might be as skilled as you are, and willing to learn more so as to fit in properly. This international workforce is important to both, personal and business success, as it could bring a much broader perspective into decision making and of course, increases the chances of being totally successful not only in your home country but also abroad, since you would have someone who understands how a foreign culture and businesses work.
In the face of the future economic slowdown due to Covid-19, SmallBiz proposes that hiring international people to join your team will provide new ideas, help fill certain skills that could be missing, and of course drive innovation, all this resulting in growth and recognition globally.
By CATALINA BELEN TAPIA
