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How to Make Global Expansion Easy for Your Human Resources Department

Having success with a global expansion is not easy. You will need to meticulously plan out this process to ensure all bases are covered.

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Having success with a global expansion is not easy. You will need to meticulously plan out this process to ensure all bases are covered.

Photo credit: The Digital Artist

According to nearly 90 percent of the American business owners polled in a recent survey, global expansion is a necessity for long-term growth. Talking about expanding into new markets and actually doing it are two completely different things. Trying to expand too quickly or without a concrete plan in place can lead to lots of problems. This is why you need to focus on making this process as easy and cost-effective as possible.

One of the biggest concerns you should have when expanding internationally is setting up a great human resources (HR) department. With the right HR team in place, hiring and managing new team members will be much easier. Read below for some tips on how to make your expansion into a foreign country successful.

Technology Can Help You Hire Employees Much Faster

One of the main challenges you will face when moving into new markets is finding the right employees to hire. Instead of going into a new market without the right tools for success, you need to consider using an applicant tracking software program.

With this program, you will have no problem narrowing down the selection of applicants. An ATS program allows you to enter information regarding who your perfect candidate is. The program will then use this information to comb through the resumes and applications you receive. If you want to learn more about ATS software, be sure to do some online research. With a bit of time and effort, finding the information you need to choose the right software will be easy.

Focus on Communication

Trying to manage your existing business location and one located in a foreign country is difficult. Instead of trying to burn the candle at both ends and handle all of this on your own, letting a valued member of your team help is crucial. The main thing you need to do to keep your expansion on track is to focus on communicating. If you are headquartered in a particular country while members of your team set up shop in another country, you need to keep track of what they are doing.

For most business owners, using project management software is a no-brainer when trying to manage a team of employees afar. These tools help you keep track of the work being done by your remote team. Taking a hands-off approach to managing a remote team will result in lots of problems in the future. Appointing a project manager to oversee the work being done in a foreign country is crucial. You need to make sure this person reports back to you. Staying in the loop can help you find and fix problems in a relatively short amount of time.

Make New Employee Training Easier

Not only will your HR team have to hire employees in a new country, they also have to train them. Having a clearly defined company culture and guidelines for training can come in handy. Doing things like embracing virtual learning and video chats is a must when trying to get the right results from your training. Before you provide this training to new team members, you need to make sure it is easy to understand and up to date.

The last thing you want to do is provide a new employee with incorrect information. Requiring these team members to take tests after receiving this training is wise. This will help you assess just how much of the information they have retained. 

You also need to think about how to provide ongoing training to existing employees. As your industry changes, you will need to adapt to trends to keep customers loyal and happy. Employees who receive ongoing training will be more engaged and productive.

Planning is Vital

Having success with a global expansion is not easy. You will need to meticulously plan out this process to ensure all bases are covered. Consulting with a business advisor can help you during this planning phase of the expansion. They can provide you with a unique perspective on successful expansion. 

Written by

Kelvin Mokaya


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