Nearshore Hiring… easy, right?
Nope! Essentially there’s very little left of the world that hasn’t been scoped for it’s value. Particularly in Tech.
There’s cycle of start/ scale-ups exploring talent pockets that don’t break the bank, & ensure you don’t haemorrhage funds before you’re even established.
However, where do you go to? Ukraine was great but with the conflict, that’s off the table; Poland, incredible devs but the cost has risen; RoI, good but not cheap either & dispersed outside Dublin if you want a hub.
What about Spain?
– Barcelona isn’t cheap but definitely some talent there.
– Sevilla & Valencia, both some some strong candidates for sure but not huge.
– Madrid; sure, why not – talent, culture, attractive option & good connections.
As with any of these locations, you have to know what your sample size & competition looks like to understand what your hiring criteria should be?
Imprinting a UK/US model might get you a few hires, but from a sustainability perspective, unless you’re paying above market, you’re going to find it a challenge.
There’s very talented engineers in Madrid. The biggest challenge though in my opinion is language barrier. Don’t get me wrong, even the weakest English speakers are probably 10x better than your ave. Brit/ American at speaking another language.
Though, if you’re looking for someone to work on complex builds & nuanced products, they have to be C1+ for Leadership & B2 for a team hire. That is, if you want english to be the chose business language.
What’s the other hurdles then? Hybrid v Remote rages on globally & will still be clickbait in 2056 but every location has it’s own reaction to the “callback”.
Spaniards & those accustomed to Spanish lifestyle aren’t afraid to say NO!
“I don’t want to join a company that insists on time in the office” even if the €10k extra comes in handy. I praise them for their approach. If something’s important to you & you can still enjoy your wage, then why sacrifice it.
Toss in Education… What is the benchmark for education. Of course, you shouldn’t be ashamed to want to hire those with an educational pedigree, but what does good look like in Spain & from those that have moved there.
Do you know what a good CompSci or STEM degree is from numerous locations. Sure we can look on ChatGpt (*Spoiler. It’s rarely correct) & you’re close to overloading the average Sourcers’ brain re: candidate acceptance criteria.
After all this. How big is the sample size… & has it become the equivalent to finding needles in a very large haystack. You’ll stumble on some for sure, but to know your way around, that haystack needs to be mapped!
So, before you commit, think… what do I want, how much of it do I want, & is it feasible?
Plus, do we have those that can help us deliver the strategy.
