Company Background
A San Francisco–headquartered digital consulting and technology services firm specializes in delivering tailored solutions to global banks, insurers, and financial institutions. With delivery hubs across the U.S., Europe, India, and Southeast Asia, the company provides services spanning AI, cloud, cybersecurity, blockchain, software engineering, data analytics, and enterprise solutions.
The firm is well-regarded for its deep industry expertise and collaborative approach to developing systems for trading, payments, compliance, and digital transformation. As demand surged across the region, the company sought to scale its workforce without being limited by location or local entity requirements.
Hiring Goals
The company aimed to hire a fully remote team across Singapore, Hong Kong, and Vietnam, consisting of highly skilled tech professionals and project managers who could support financial services clients across multiple time zones. A key requirement was strong English communication skills, as these roles involved regular collaboration with international clients and global delivery teams.
Roles included:
- KDB Developers
- Front Office Developers
- Quant Developers (Java)
- Data Solution Architects
- Cybersecurity Engineers
- DevOps & Cloud Engineers
- Business Analysts (Credit Risk, Market Business)
- Project Managers
- UI/UX Designers
- QA & Test Automation Engineers
- Full Stack Developers
Challenges Faced
- Fully Remote Workforce Setup: The company had no existing infrastructure to support remote employees across multiple countries.
- Language and Client Communication: All candidates needed to have excellent English communication skills due to the client-facing nature of many roles.
- EP and Legal Barriers: In some markets, the company struggled to secure Employment Passes or didn’t have the ability to hire directly.
- Compliance Across Borders: Each country had its own employment regulations, and the internal HR team lacked the bandwidth and local expertise to manage this.
- Scalability: The hiring volume was expected to grow quickly, and the company needed a partner that could support both initial hires and future scaling.
Solution
Second Talent delivered a cross-border hiring solution optimized for remote work and legal compliance:
- Remote-Ready Talent Sourcing: Identified and engaged qualified candidates in Singapore, Hong Kong, and Vietnam with strong technical skills and professional-level English proficiency.
- Employer of Record (EOR) Support: Enabled compliant hiring in all three countries without requiring the company to set up local entities.
- Payroll & Placement Services: Managed local payroll, statutory contributions, and benefits under Second Talent’s legal entities, while providing ongoing employment support to remote hires.
- Simplified Hiring Experience: Acted as an extension of the company’s global TA team to streamline processes and improve candidate experience in each market.
Results Achieved
The company successfully built a distributed remote team across Singapore, Hong Kong, and Vietnam within a short timeframe. With Second Talent handling payroll, compliance, and placement, the client avoided operational delays, legal risk, and administrative overhead. The remote model gave the company flexibility to scale talent acquisition based on project demand, while ensuring strong English communication and seamless global collaboration.
Note: This case study is intended for reference purposes.
