The Fastest Way to Build a Global Team

Let’s be honest: building a global team sounds exciting, until you hit the paperwork.

Entity setup. Tax compliance. Local labor laws.

It can feel like you need a law degree just to hire a single engineer in another country.

But here’s the thing: You don’t need to set up a local entity in every country to hire globally. In fact, that’s often the slowest, riskiest path.

There are faster, smarter ways to build a global team - especially if you want to stay lean and focused.

Let’s walk through what actually works.

Why Local Offices Are No Longer the Default

It used to be that if you wanted to hire someone abroad, you had two choices:

1. Open a local office
2. Fly them to your HQ and sponsor a visa

Neither option scales well.

Today, most fast-moving startups skip both. Why?

• Global work norms have changed: Remote-first is no longer a novelty.
• Compliance partners exist: Employer of Record (EOR) platforms let you hire abroad without setting up a local business.
• Speed beats bureaucracy: If it takes 6 months to open a local entity, your competitors will already have built their teams.

Bottom line? Local offices might make sense for enterprise companies or deep local operations. But for lean startups, they’re usually overkill.

What Makes a Global Team Work

It’s easy to get distracted by where people are. But the real question is: How well do they work together?

Here’s what actually makes a global team succeed:

• Time zone alignment (or smart async processes)
• Cultural compatibility and clear communication norms
• Reliable infrastructure: tools, security, and systems that work anywhere
• Shared goals: clarity beats proximity every time

A global team isn’t just about spreading people across a map. It’s about uniting them under one playbook.

And that can be done without ever signing a lease.

Case Study: Scaling Without Borders

Take the example of a US-based fintech startup we worked with at Callus.

They needed to grow fast, but budgets were tight, and HQ was in a small talent market.

Instead of opening international offices, they:

• Used Callus to find vetted junior developers in India
• Onboarded them via our global compliance infrastructure
• Focused on team integration, not geography

Within 90 days, they added 5 full-time engineers at half the cost of Bay Area hires without hiring a single immigration lawyer.

Fast forward a year? That distributed team is now leading product sprints, contributing across time zones, and even training the next wave of junior hires.

Common Myths About Global Teams

Let’s bust a few myths that hold founders back:

• "Remote teams aren’t as productive." Not true. The best ones outperform because they build around focus, not face time.
• "It’s impossible to manage people in other countries." It’s hard to manage anyone without the right systems. Geography just forces you to get better at it.
• "You need a big budget to go global." Not if you hire smart. Junior remote talent is often a better investment than pricey local seniors.

Global teams aren’t a luxury. They’re often a startup’s competitive edge - if you build them right.

So, What's the Fastest Route?

Here’s the streamlined playbook:

• Define the roles you can open up globally (start with product, engineering, design)
• Use platforms like Callus to source pre-vetted remote junior talent
• Hire via an Employer of Record to skip the legal setup hassle
• Build onboarding and team rituals that work remotely

This route cuts months of red tape and saves serious money—without sacrificing quality.

You can either spend 6 months setting up an office or 6 weeks building your team. Your call.