Article
20 min read
The New Way to Scale: Why Startups Must Embrace Global Mobility
Immigration
Author
Jemima Owen-Jones
Last Update
March 31, 2025
Published
February 08, 2024
Key takeaways
- Local talent shortages and high hiring costs slow startup growth. Global mobility helps startups secure top talent through international hiring, relocation, and remote work. Deel’s EOR model removes legal and compliance barriers, making it seamless.
- Relying on one market limits growth and increases risk. Expanding globally through mobility enables startups to diversify revenue, attract investors, and scale faster. Deel simplifies visas, compliance, and payroll in 100+ countries.
- Without mobility options, startups risk losing top talent and innovation. Deel’s Work From Anywhere policy, visa support, and relocation tools help startups retain employees, strengthen employer branding, and build diverse, high-performing teams.
Startup success hinges on access to talent, funding, and customers—but local markets can only take you so far. Founders are realizing that global mobility isn’t just a perk; it’s a competitive advantage that accelerates hiring, unlocks international markets, and fuels innovation.
This article breaks down why startups should embrace global mobility as a core strategy for scaling. You’ll discover how leading companies are leveraging it to hire top talent, expand into new markets, and future-proof their businesses. Plus, learn how Deel makes it easy to navigate legal, compliance, and visa complexities.
Let’s explore why global mobility is becoming the go-to strategy for high-growth startups—and how you can make it work for yours.
1. Access to wider talent pools
47% of small business leaders reported job openings they could not fill in March 2023, and 21% reported labor quality as their top small business operating problem, according to NFIB's monthly jobs report.
Startups can overcome talent shortages and skill gaps by embracing global mobility and tapping into a wider talent pool. They can relocate international employees with desirable skills to the startup's home base, relocate employees to a new location with market potential, or enable workers to operate remotely from their home country.
Sourcing top talent for key initial hires is crucial for startups and can be a make-or-break factor for their success. The first hires set the tone for the company culture, work ethic, and skillset. Strong initial hires create a solid foundation for future business growth and attract even more global talent.
See also: A Founder’s Guide to Building and Scaling a Global, Remote-First Company
💡 Deel’s employer of record (EOR) model makes it possible for your startup to legally hire employees in new countries where it doesn’t have a legal entity. The EOR acts as the legal employer for your foreign hires, assumes all legal responsibilities regarding employment (contracts, salaries, benefits, tax compliance), and ensures you hire from different countries in full compliance with local jurisdictions and employment laws.
As the largest EOR provider globally, Deel is the official employer of over 20,000 active employees representing over 100 entities — from Spain and Singapore to New Zealand and South Africa.
✨ Discover how Keego Mobility doubled its headcount since it started working with Deel.
I can’t imagine having to open up an entity in a certain city just to be able to hire someone. Deel solves a real problem, and up to now, we’ve been very happy with the service.
—Elias Ek,
Co-founder, Keego
2. Unlocked global markets
Expanding your startup's presence in new international markets can substantially benefit your business. By deploying local talent or relocating employees quickly and efficiently, you can establish a physical presence that enhances your brand image and credibility, thereby attracting potential partners, stakeholders, investors, and customers.
💡Deel’s global HR platform also has built-in visa and immigration support to help you facilitate the work authorization and employee relocation process with minimal administrative burden. Via the platform, you can:
- Assess visa eligibility for founders and workers in a few easy steps
- Streamline visa and work permit procurement with EOR sponsorship
- Initiate the visa and work permit application process with the visa application tool
- Track the application process with real-time updates and alerts
- Access support from a team of in-house immigration experts
- View all immigration activities from a single dashboard
[Deel] enabled us to be more ambitious in our global expansion plan…[when talking with potential customers, the team is confident in saying,] Yes, we can be there in X months, [because Deel can get them set up from day one.]
—Saran Somaskanthan,
Head of International Expansion, Zoomo
3. Improved agility
Beyond expanding your customer base and revenue potential, increasing your startup's exposure to new markets acts as a powerful risk mitigation strategy.
Imagine your home market experiencing an economic downturn: by having established footholds in diverse geographical and economic landscapes, you're not solely reliant on that single source of income. This diversification acts as a financial buffer, potentially smoothing out fluctuations and ensuring consistent growth even during challenging times.
See also: Global Mobility and The Cost of Living Crisis: A Survival Guide for Businesses
✨ Discover how Floship retained its top team members, even in the case of relocation.
When the conflict started in Europe, some of our team members in Ukraine had to relocate. Thanks to Deel, we were able to provide those team members with job security and flexibility, which helped reduce the amount of stress they were feeling at the time.
—Carmen Fan,
Head of Marketing, Floship
4. Enhanced talent acquisition and retention
A staggering 77% of knowledge workers would prefer to work for a company that allows them to work from anywhere rather than one that boasts fancy corporate headquarters, according to Harvard Business Reviews’ hybrid working study. This underlines the significance of embracing talent mobility as it recognizes workers' aspirations to travel, experience new cities or countries, or even relocate to be closer to their family and friends.
By prioritizing global mobility, startups have the potential to enhance their employer brand significantly and offer a more enjoyable employee experience, ultimately leading to better talent attraction and retention rates through enhanced employee wellbeing.
💡 Deel’s free Work From Anywhere (WFA) Policy Template is a great addition to any global mobility program. A WFA policy can help your startup attract and retain skilled professionals while requiring little to no financial investment and even lowering office overheads.
Many skilled digital nomads and mobile employees are drawn to WFA initiatives as they allow them to enjoy a flexible lifestyle.
With Deel, we have an easy remote work solution powered by a user-friendly platform and a seamless process. This has been helpful in ensuring we didn’t lose key staff and the deep corporate knowledge and skills that are hugely beneficial to our business.
—Lysette Randall,
Executive, HR Performance & Partnering, Quantium
5. Elevated innovation, inclusivity, equity, and diversity
Startups that embrace global mobility gain a competitive edge through the power of diversity. By incorporating talent from around the world, you inject your startup with a vibrant mix of new cultures, backgrounds, skills, and perspectives.
Beyond innovation, global mobility fosters cultural awareness and inclusivity. Your startup gains a deeper understanding of different local markets, customs, and viewpoints, allowing you to tailor your products and services for broader resonance.
See also: The Benefits of Global Hiring for Diversity from Deel
✨ Discover how Deel’s helping Veriff become one of the fastest-growing startups around.
Deel has been a great help with all the questions ranging from Employment Law, payroll, taxes, and benefits. Hiring internationally is pretty much the norm for startups, as cultural diversity plays a vital role in any business and economy. Culture is what separates a great company from an average one— not only the culture of the company but also the cultural variety of the team.
—Veriff,
global identity verification service company, headquartered in Tallinn, Estonia
Streamline global mobility with Deel
Global mobility holds the power to bring you closer to your ideal business outcomes—but it’s a complex process to navigate alone.
Deel’s global platform combines mobility, global hiring, and HR management to hire, manage, pay, and support talented workers, provide the right experience, and remain compliant so your startup can flourish.
Learn more about how Deel makes global mobility simple, or book 30 minutes with our mobility team to get your questions answered.
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About the author
Jemima is a nomadic writer, journalist, and digital marketer with a decade of experience crafting compelling B2B content for a global audience. She is a strong advocate for equal opportunities and is dedicated to shaping the future of work. At Deel, she specializes in thought-leadership content covering global mobility, cross-border compliance, and workplace culture topics.
