Intoday’s fast-paced landscape, companies are under great pressure to scale leaner, smarter, and faster. That ushers in an increasingly complex accounting function that demands attention. But the demand for financial expertise is outpacing domestic supply. Although about 124,200 openings for accountants and auditors are projected each year, there are only roughly 340,000 fewer accountants in the US workforce now compared to five years ago, driving up salaries and stretching hiring timelines. In this competitive environment, hiring locally has become unsustainable. Companies that embrace global hiring get an edge. There turn-on-investment (ROI) of hiring global talent isn’t just about trimming budgets – it’s about unlocking productivity, scalability, and long-term strategic value.
Why Traditional Hiring Isn’t Enough
Traditional hiring practices are no longer adequate for the modern developmental needs of expanding finance teams. In fact, there is simply not enough talent to spreadaround. Fewer students major in accounting degrees; experienced CPAs have leftthe profession altogether; and mid-level talent has been stolen by the BigFour. Higher salaries, benefits, and hiring costs add pressure to companybudgets and often result in a choice to pay people or fund other criticalbusiness needs that support growth. Even if companies are willing to pay,extended hiring times can push back projects and deadlines for period-endclose. Turnover also impacts the situation, with lost first-week onboardingtraining costs and then company knowledge, driving down performance and morale.
What CompaniesGain From Hiring Global Talent
Globalhiring allows companies to tap into an extended pool of high-skilled talent ata more cost-efficient price, promising high talent ROI. For instance, MAVIplaces the top 2% of globalaccounting talent into scaling US companies at less cost than otherhiring alternatives, helping build in-house teams without compromising onquality. As a continuous partner, MAVI handles all the admin, reducing overheadand ensuring that teams never have to deal with any gaps. Here’s what companiesgain from hiring abroad.
Direct CostSavings
Organizationshave the opportunity to engage talented workers in regions such as APAC andLatin America for well below U.S. salaries – and maintain comparable quality.Not only do organizations save on salaries, but hiring remotely alsodrastically reduces overhead related to an office location, equipment, andemployee benefits. This translates into serious cost savings remote finance teams can utilize forcost reallocation toward growth or innovation.
Access toSpecialized Skills
Whencompanies expand their talent search globally, they are exposed to a vastlylarger array of expertise. For example, a company may need to hire a SeniorAccountant to address complexity in a SaaS model, or an A/P Specialist to helpwith cross-border compliance issues, but hiring from a global talent poolgreatly diminishes the time and effectiveness of finding the right person.Immediately connecting finance team members to candidates who are eager tobegin working helps shorten the downtime that the team would otherwise dealwith if hiring domestically.
IncreasedScalability & Flexibility
Globalhiring allows companies to quickly staff up the number of team members tosupport a new set of objectives, or following an acquisition, and then quicklyadjust to changes in the condition of the decision-making process, without thelong-term commitment that the traditional full-time employee process imposes.This also allows for the agility needed for scaling finance teams globally, as being nimblegives them a chance to establish a key competitive advantage.
Productivity& Round-the-Clock Operations
Hiringacross time zones offers a hidden productivity boost. While US teams arefinishing their day, global accountants in other regions can continue advancingreconciliations, preparing reports, or addressing other urgent tasks. Thiscreates a continuous workflow, accelerates month-end close processes, andensures that leaders always have timely data.
ReducedTurnover Risk
Aconsiderable number of global professionals appreciate the ability to be stableand well-respected while working with organizations headquartered in the US,which generally leads to lower turnover. A lower turnover rate leads to lowerturnover-related costs associated with rehiring and retraining talent, as wellas improved continuity of processes and institutional knowledge. When reliablestaff members are in roles longer, it allows for the development of strongerrelationships with clients and stakeholders over time.
Beyond theNumbers: Strategic ROI
TheROI of hiring global talentis about more than just reducing costs – it helps reclaim and strengthen thecompany’s strategic position. By eliminating staffing matters, the financeleader will be able to spend their time focused on higher-value organizationalmatters, such as growth planning, process improvement, and digitaltransformation initiatives, rather than getting buried in the books or in weeksof interviewing potential candidates to fill open positions. Using global hiresin The companies that are open to remotely hiring and building a global financeteam will be able to innovate faster, serve their customers better, and getahead of their competition. addition to AI and automation tools will enhanceaccounting functions and position the organization for the future. Byincorporating a global talent model, organizations will also benefit fromaccess to diverse skillsets and perspectives, which contribute to buildingresilience and agility against unexpected changes in technology and regulations.