Todd Blyth -
Business Analyst & Global Process Manager
A key benefit of our 23-year experience is being able to help you choose the right operating model for your global workforce.
As organizations expand globally, managing teams, payroll, and compliance across multiple countries becomes a more complex strategic priority. Selecting the most suitable operating model to manage this complexity and aligning it with your organization’s structure and growth ambitions are essential for sustainable, long‑term success.
Two operating models dominate global growth:
Employer of Record (EOR)
Global Payroll
Each model solves different challenges and the “right” choice depends on headcount, timeline, and operational commitment in each country.
What is an Employer of Record (EOR)?
An EOR is a third-party provider that legally employs professionals on behalf of your organization in a given country, while you retain day-to-day operational control.
What is Global Payroll?
With Global Payroll, your organization is the legal employer. You operate through your own registered local entities while centralizing payroll processing across multiple countries.
EOR vs Global Payroll: The Core Differences that matter
Below is a comparison of the two models across the areas that directly impact global expansion outcomes the most.
AREA | EOR | GLOBAL PAYROLL |
|---|---|---|
Who is the Legal Employer? | EOR is the legal employer in- country | Your organization is the legal employer and must establish/maintain a local entity |
Compliance & Risk | EOR absorbs local regulatory risk and ensures compliance | Your organization is responsible for local compliance and risk management |
Scope of Services | EOR offers full end-to-end support: HR, Immigration, Legal, Accounting, and Payroll support | Your organization is responsible for sourcing and managing all business support functions |
Costs | Higher monthly fees per employee; often a refundable deposit and add-on fees may apply | There is a large upfront entity set-up cost and lower ongoing fees per employee. |
Flexibility & Control | Your organization has less direct control over HR policies and contractual terms | Your organization has greater control over policies, reporting, and employee communication |
Employee Onboarding Timelines | Fast (≈1–2 weeks), no entity set-up is required | Slower (≈4–20 weeks) if entity set-up is required. However quicker when entity already exists (≈1 week) |
When to use an EOR
An EOR is the optimal solution when your organization needs:
Rapid market entry
Low legal and administrative exposure
Short-term market testing
Immigration and visa sponsorship support
EORs are especially valuable for early expansion phases and more uncertain markets.
When Global Payroll makes more sense
Global Payroll is the optimal solution when your organization:
Plans long-term growth in a country
Seeks cost efficiency at scale
Requires full control over policies, systems, and reporting
Wishes to benefit from local employer incentives
For larger expansion strategies, Global Payroll delivers stronger governance and significantly lower operating costs over time.
Common Pitfalls when choosing
Payroll Timeliness - EORs often require earlier cut-off dates for compensation changes and bonuses due to contract amendment processes. Global payroll offers more real-time flexibility.
Fragmented Employee Experience - EOR employees may need to interact directly with an EOR platform which can fragment their experience. Centralised global payroll typically provides employee self-service within a single platform.
Mandatory Benefits - EORs have established statutory insurance frameworks for immediate employee onboarding. With Global Payroll, these benefits must be implemented and managed by your organization.
FX and Funding - EORs may impose fixed currency and FX pricing models. With Global Payroll, organizations retain control over funding, currency strategy, and treasury planning.
A Practical Rule of Thumb
Choose an EOR when you need speed, reduced risk, and small exploratory headcounts in countries.
Choose Global Payroll when you have operational commitment, want maximum control, and need cost-effectiveness at scale.
Why Leading Organizations choose Globalise?
With 23 years’ operation, Globalise is built on an agile network model across 160+ countries, providing our clients with flexibility, scalability, resilience, and expertise across all our services.
Organizations with overseas workforces can manage EOR and Global Payroll models seamlessly and side-by-side on our First-Party Platform, with the ability to transition smoothly as they scale.
Key advantages to choosing Globalise include:
Full Gross-to-net Payroll Transparency for EOR employees
Unified Employee Self-Service Experience across models
Flexible First-Party Platform to support both models
Managed Integrations to bridge the gap across models
Strategic Migration Planning from EOR to local payroll
Security Segmentation for complex operating environments
Whether you are expanding globally for the first time or optimizing an already established global operation, Globalise can help you build the right model for sustainable growth and excellence. Contact us to find out more.