Agile employment solutions: powering global growth

As significant uncertainty abounds on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and beyond, investment decisions and how best to service growth have become even more challenging. Yet for innovative companies operating in growing sectors, their agility is helping them to develop globally. Ruth Holmes spoke to Portas Global’s managing director, Carlos Ruiz to find out more.

World map outlined by people
Relocate Magazine Autumn Issue 2018
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One East-Midlands based company has grown since its inception in 2000 to become a leader in the field of core engine overhauls, engineering and installation and servicing of gas turbines.Expanding internationally from UK operations to become a global workforce of engineers and sales managers, it supports clients around the world industries on their energy consumption and reducing their environmental impact. 

Managing compliance, talent retention and financial risk

Yet such growth has presented both opportunities and challenges, not least in terms of cost. Setting up international operations would require close to a £250,000 budget.
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The SME therefore sought the advice of a global international professional employer organisation (PEO). Of immediate importance was finding a compliant employment solution in multiple territories: US, UAE, Italy and Spain.

Same challenges – a different solution?

In common with the issues facing many global HR and mobility managers, initial conversations between the company and its PEO, Portas Global, centred on the impact of Brexit on its multi-national workforce, talent attraction and business expansion.Following commercially and strategically focused conversations with Portas Global, its PEO partner, the company concluded it was not commercially practical or compliant to employ staff abroad on a UK employment contract.Equally, from a talent management and intellectual property perspective, the company also decided that hiring people as independent contractors, and therefore responsible for managing their own taxes and social insurance payments, was not a satisfactory solution.

Global mobility for employees – and employers

Instead, the company worked with Portas Global to set up locally compliant outsourced employment solutions for its operations around the world.“By employing staff via our local offices in the US, Dubai, Italy and Spain, on this occasion, we were able to mitigate all of our clients’ concerns,” said Carlos Ruiz, managing director of Portas Global Ltd.“While there are many suppliers that can facilitate aspects of global mobility, such as visas, international schools, benefits management and accommodation, very few can also support businesses with a compliant global employment solution to manage the local taxes and social insurance contributions.“We are very much an extension of all our clients’ businesses, offering commercially focused solutions and reality checks about the compliance aspects of setting up new operations across the globe.” 
Relocate Magazine Autumn Issue 2018
This article first appeared in the autumn 2018 issue of Relocate magazine.

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