🌏 Why Southeast Asia Is on the Offshore Hiring Map

Before choosing where to hire offshore, it helps to be clear on what your business needs. Some companies offshore to lower costs. Others want to find skilled talent they can’t easily hire locally. Offshore hiring can also help teams grow faster or support expansion into new markets.

Southeast Asia is a strong option for all of these goals. The region offers skilled talent, competitive costs, and a growing number of professionals who are experienced in working with global teams. It offers a unique blend of advantages for offshore hiring such as:

Skilled and growing workforce:

Countries like Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines produce a large number of university graduates each year, particularly in tech, finance, design, and digital marketing. For example, Indonesia alone graduates over 1 million tertiary-level students annually, according to UNESCO. Many of these professionals are digitally savvy, adaptable, and increasingly familiar with remote collaboration tools.

This growing workforce is not only large but also youthful. Southeast Asia has one of the youngest populations globally, giving companies access to talent that can grow with them in the long term.

Cost advantage

Compared to hiring in Singapore, Hong Kong, or the US, talent costs in Southeast Asia are significantly lower. In some cases, companies can save 40–60% on salary and overhead without compromising on output quality.

This cost difference allows businesses to do more with leaner budgets—whether that means hiring more people for the same cost, extending team coverage across time zones, or investing more in tools and growth. When planned well, it becomes a way to reinvest cost savings into higher-impact areas of the business.

Cultural alignment

Many Southeast Asian countries are familiar with global business practices and maintain a high level of English proficiency—especially in urban centers. The Philippines, for example, ranks among the top countries for English skills in Asia and has a long-standing history in working with multinational teams.

Culturally, SEA professionals are known for their collaborative mindset, adaptability, and strong work ethic—making cross-border teamwork smoother. Many companies find that integrating SEA talent into their workflows requires minimal adjustment compared to other offshore regions.

Time zone compatibility

Southeast Asia operates in time zones that align well with APAC business hours and even partially overlap with EMEA and ANZ regions. This allows for real-time communication, faster project turnaround, and easier coordination without the lag often seen in offshore setups across larger time gaps.

For companies with HQs in Singapore, Australia, or even Dubai, this makes Southeast Asia an ideal offshore location, not only for operational convenience, but also for maintaining team cohesion across borders.

These factors make Southeast Asia a compelling option for companies looking to scale operations or diversify their workforce.

🔍 Step-by-Step: How to Implement Offshore Hiring in Southeast Asia

Whether you’re building your first offshore team or refining an existing setup, the success of offshore hiring starts with having the right foundation. That means being intentional about why you’re hiring offshore, who you’re hiring, and how you’ll manage the process from recruitment to retention.

Below is a step-by-step guide to help you think through key decisions—from clarifying your business case to ensuring compliance across borders.

1. Start with a Clear Business Case

Before diving into recruitment, it’s important to align internally on why you’re hiring offshore. This helps prevent misalignment later in the process and ensures your offshore strategy is tied to real business goals.

Some common reasons companies choose offshore include:

• Trying to reduce operational costs?
• Expanding your team for a specific project?
• Entering new markets and need local know-how?
• Testing out a leaner structure before long-term investment?

Your business objectives will shape everything—from which hiring model to choose, to where you hire, and how you structure onboarding and collaboration.

2. Identify Roles That Are Suitable for Offshore Hiring

Not all roles are a natural fit for offshore hiring—especially those that require constant in-person interaction or high levels of coordination across departments. That said, many functions today can be successfully run by offshore team members, particularly when processes are well-defined and tools are in place to support remote work.

Start by identifying which roles can be clearly scoped, have measurable outputs, and allow asynchronous communication where needed.

Common roles that work well in offshore setups include:

• Software development – Developers, QA engineers, DevOps, etc.
• Design and creative – UI/UX designers, visual designers, motion graphic specialists
• Marketing and content – Content writers, performance marketers, SEO specialists
• Customer support or sales operations – Customer success reps, telesales support, lead qualifiers
• Finance or HR support – Payroll analysts, recruitment coordinators, admin specialists

If a role requires frequent cross-functional collaboration, consider whether your current tools and workflows are ready to support it offshore, or if it’s better suited for in-market hiring.

3. Select the Right Country (and Talent Pool)

Once you’ve clarified the roles, the next step is choosing where to hire. The Southeast Asia region offers a wide range of talent options, but each country has its own strengths, cost structures, and cultural context. Picking the right location can make a big difference in talent fit, collaboration, and retention.

Think about your business needs—do you need strong English skills, specific technical expertise, or lower costs for scale? These criteria can help guide your country’s selection.

Here’s a quick snapshot of key SEA countries:

Choosing the right location depends on your industry, budget, and team structure.

4. Understand the Hiring Models: Direct vs. EOR

Choosing the right hiring model is a key part of setting your offshore team up for success. It impacts how quickly you can get started, your level of control, and your compliance responsibilities. In Southeast Asia, companies typically choose between direct hiring or using an Employer of Record (EOR), depending on whether they have a local entity.

Direct hiring vs. Employer of Record (EOR)

• Direct hiring: You establish a local entity and handle all HR, legal, and payroll matters internally. This approach offers full control but requires more time, budget, and legal knowledge.
• Employer of Record (EOR): A third-party provider becomes the legal employer on your behalf. They handle contracts, payroll, benefits, and compliance—while you continue managing the employee’s daily work.

5. Local Compliance Isn’t Optional

Each Southeast Asian country has its own labor regulations, payroll standards, and mandatory benefits. These aren’t just legal details—they directly affect employee satisfaction, retention, and your brand’s reputation.

Key areas to be aware of:

• Probation and notice periods
• Leave entitlements and 13th-month salary (common in the Philippines and Indonesia)
• Mandatory insurance and social security contributions
• Currency regulations and payroll processing

Failure to follow these can lead to fines or legal issues. If you’re unsure about compliance requirements, it’s wise to consult local HR/legal advisors or work with an EOR partner to reduce risk.

6. Plan for Integration, Not Just Recruitment

Hiring offshore talent is only one part of the equation—what happens after they join matters just as much. Teams that integrate offshore members well tend to see better productivity, engagement, and long-term success.

Tips to help your offshore team feel connected and empowered:

• Set up clear onboarding documents and expectations before Day 1
• Use tools that support remote collaboration (e.g. Slack, Notion, Loom)
• Schedule regular team check-ins that include offshore members
• Create moments of inclusion and recognition to foster a sense of belonging

Treat your offshore team as part of your core team, not just an add-on. Integration is what turns offshore hiring into a long-term strategic advantage.

⚖️ Offshore Hiring: A Strategic, Not Just Operational, Decision

Too often, offshore hiring is seen purely as a cost-saving tactic. But the companies that get the most value from it treat it as a long-term strategy—one that requires structure, investment, and cultural alignment. For Singapore-based companies weighing the benefits, this guide unpacks five strategic reasons why offshoring to Indonesia makes business sense.

When done right, offshore teams become an extension of your core business, helping you move faster, serve clients better, and access perspectives you may not have locally.

This article is brought to you by Glints TalentHub. Leading companies are actively building their borderless teams in Southeast Asia, Taiwan, and beyond. However, the prospect of going borderless can be daunting due to complex regulations and cultural ambiguities. With Glints TalentHub, you’ll have a dedicated team of in-market legal, HR, and talent experts by your side at every step of the way.

Glints TalentHub offers an end-to-end, tech-enabled talent solution that encompasses talent acquisition, EOR, and talent development. We empower businesses to leverage the strengths of regional talent efficiently to build high-performing, cost-efficient teams.

Schedule a no-obligation consultation with our experts to receive a tailored proposal today!