Hubstaff Research: Remote Work Has Gone Global, See Where It’s Changing

Remote work exists on every continent, having established a secure foothold in major markets and rapidly expanding in many new regions. At this point, it’s a fundamental way we work, but we see the need for global hiring data to understand the market.

The questions worth asking aren’t about remote work’s viability, but instead about where remote team members and companies are growing, and the roles of different markets.

When analyzing organizational and workforce data, we see a fluid system with growth opportunities. From the tech-heavy foundation of the United States to the rapidly scaling powerhouse of India, businesses and investors are looking for the next opportunity — or the next challenge.

Armed with anonymized company data from our platform, Hubstaff is diving into organizational growth and decline dynamics, remote work trends, and the ever-evolving strategies shaping our economic future. 

In our second round of analysis, we’ve reviewed global markets to identify company, country, and time zone shifts that may help businesses build a compass for navigating the complexities of tomorrow’s economy. Find our first Hubstaff data report on remote work’s deep focus here.

Key findings from our analysis are below, and we dive deeper into what they might mean in the following sections. 

As we’ll note regularly, this information is based on submitted user and organization time zones, countries, and currencies. It is not possible to verify each of these individually due to company practices and technology such as VPNs, so we present these trends as hallmarks to highlight the global hiring data and remote work world you might be facing.

5 core insights from Hubstaff global hiring data

• Dynamic markets following tech trends: In the United States, thousands of organizations are growing, while thousands of others are shrinking. Remote work trends tend to now follow industry and sector trends, such as layoffs in tech and a projected increase in the global unemployment rate after years of post-pandemic reduction.
  
• High growth in emerging markets: Guatemala, Kuwait, Andorra, and others rank among the top economies for growing remote organizations, reflecting strong economic momentum and the impact of digital transformation on small and mid-sized operations.
  
• Remote work scaling: Our data highlights a global shift towards remote work, with broad adoption. Outliers like St Vincent and the Grenadines feature 17 remote time zone users per organization, suggesting strong opportunities in new areas.
  
• Local vs. remote hiring may indicate regional preferences: The analysis identifies differences in hiring practices that could indicate areas testing remote work but not necessarily global talent. In our data, Guatemala leads in local hiring with an average of 4.75 home time zone users per organization, contrasting with broader trends towards remote employment.
  
• Economic diversity and regional growth: Small economies like Macao, Guam. Comoros, Aruba, and St. Vincent Grenadines demonstrate 100% growth rates among our customer base, with all organizations in these countries classified as growing. However, these countries had a very small user base, so they may highlight potential more than rapid expansion.

The data we reviewed

Hubstaff looked at data on companies that use our platform to manage or review employee activities. No specific companies were identified, nor was any identifiable personal data utilized. We aggregated country code and time zone information and focused on seat counts.

Our analysis broke down this information in three different kinds of ways:

Time zone and user role distribution analysis

This report delved into the distribution of users across various time zones and their roles within organizations. It aimed to understand the global spread of workforce participation and the distribution of different roles (user, manager, and owner) across geographical locations.

Remote and home timezone user trends

This analysis explored the distinction between remote and home time zone users within organizations. It identified regions where local hiring is prevalent versus those embracing remote work, highlighting how companies adapt their workforce strategies to geographic contexts.

A user was considered in the “home time zone” when their individual time zone matched that of the organization or its owner. Remote time zone designations were for those outside of this time zone.

Organizational growth and decline trends

This analysis examined the growth and decline of organizations across different countries, seeking to uncover trends in organizational dynamics and global hiring data, such as which markets are experiencing expansion and which are facing contraction, providing insights into economic health and strategic opportunities.

It utilizes information from internal Hubstaff data and provides a snapshot of markets based on our partners. Third-party data and additional analysis would best serve any use of these trends for business decisions.

Work where you live, hire where they live

First, we looked at Hubstaff data around where organizations are based, the number of organizations in each country, and the distribution of their users based on time zones. It presented an interesting distribution to add some flavor to our review of where and how companies are growing.

Broadly speaking, growth patterns in where remote-friendly companies are based and where they expand — based on high levels of employees located outside of the home time zone for the organization — suggest remote work has become viable for brands and individuals across the globe.

In our analysis, the United States leads significantly with approximately 8,800 home time zone users across organizations, indicating a strong presence of companies hiring locally or within the same timezone. However, the US still holds a top position for remote time zone users, with approximately 22,500 users across organizations. 

This highlights the US’s significant embrace of remote work or having a geographically dispersed workforce, as well as the size and scale of the country’s workforce.

The Philippines, India, and the United Kingdom followed suit, suggesting these countries also have a notable number of organizations that operate with employees in the same timezone as well as high levels of remote team members, indicating dynamic operational capabilities.

Many other significant markets in Europe, North America, and Southern Asia also demonstrated a notable presence of remote time zone users, reflecting a global trend toward remote work or international operations.

The Netherlands and Mexico appear on the top list for remote timezone users, suggesting that employees in these countries either work with many international companies or those embracing remote work to a considerable extent.

This analysis highlights the trends towards remote work, especially in technologically advanced or large economies, and suggests a significant number of companies in various countries operate with a mix of home and remote timezone users.

Taking a per-organization approach

Note: our analysis is based solely on our customers, so trends like those above may give some weight to larger markets. We’re based in the US and have had a presence here since our founding, which could sway some of our data.

To account for this and consider the makeup of organizations in more areas, we also looked at user data in “home” or “remote” time zones at a per-organization level.

Home time zone users

For countries with the highest number of home time zone users per organization, Guatemala and Slovenia top the list, with averages of 4.75 and 4.67 home timezone users per organization, respectively. This may indicate a strong preference or trend toward local hiring within these regions — though preferences and regulations may also cause companies to prioritize local talent or operate predominantly within their local time zones.

Other notable countries include St Vincent and Grenadines and Azerbaijan, with data suggesting similar local hiring trends.

Remote time zone users

When looking at countries with the highest number of remote time zone users per organization, St Vincent and Grenadines is an outlier due to a low number of organizations. However, it having 17 users in remote time zones shows the potential for companies in general as well as those in the country.

The Ivory Coast, Macao, Puerto Rico, and South Korea follow, with high averages of remote timezone users per organization, highlighting these regions as potentially embracing remote work more openly or having operations spread across multiple time zones.

The Union of Comoros, an archipelagic country of three islands in Southeastern Africa, also shows a notable difference between home and remote time zone users.

Our data does not represent country trends as a whole. Instead, we’re highlighting areas that companies supporting remote businesses should monitor. 

When a country in our analysis showed significant trends towards either local hiring or remote work on a per-organization basis, this may indicate areas of new opportunities or countries more likely to exhibit more clear-cut trends in employment practices.

Expanding opportunity and flexibility

Hubstaff analysis of global hiring data suggests that while some countries exhibit a strong preference for local hiring, there’s a significant and diverse set of regions where remote work is not just prevalent but heavily favored. 

The stark difference in places like St Vincent and Grenadines and Ivory Coast highlights the potential for organizations to leverage global talent pools. This may challenge some traditional norms around geographic and timezone constraints in employment.

These trends bear the need for further study for conclusive results, but a trends-focused analysis may indicate these regions have a high willingness for remote work.

While the United States, the Philippines, India, and European regions are undoubtedly key players in the global workforce, the per-organization analysis reveals a broader and more diverse set of countries where trends in remote work and local hiring are pronounced. 

The variability shows that many regions worldwide are taking dynamic employment and workforce management approaches.

It may not be for long that remote work, and work in general, remain dominated by past major players for global brands.

Additionally, the diversity of countries embracing remote work indicates that this trend transcends economic and geographic boundaries, potentially pointing to a broader shift in how companies approach hiring and workforce management in a globalized economy.

Organizational growth and decline by country

Monitoring organizational growth and decline dynamics across different regions can offer invaluable lessons. Studying our world’s diverse cultures and economies presents an opportunity to explore the intricacies of market dynamics. 

Hubstaff has taken a snapshot of country information and global hiring data that you might be able to use to prepare for economic shifts and identify opportunities in the uncharted territories of the universe.

Our recent analysis delves into two critical datasets, providing an overview of the growth and shrinkage of organizations across various countries, alongside total organizational volumes for remote-friendly companies that use the Hubstaff platform.

For instance, with its vast number of organizations, the dynamic interplay between growth and decline in the United States mirrors the complexities of established economies where forces of innovation and competition are in constant flux. 

Similarly, the rapid growth observed in markets such as Guatemala, Israel, Kuwait, and India highlights the potential for emerging sectors and technological advancements to propel economic expansion.

Here’s what our data found when looking at where organizations are growing and shrinking within Hubstaff’s customer footprint.

Top countries by growth rate

Guatemala, Israel, and Kuwait rank among the top three countries for their percentage of growing organizations — 50%, 46.81%, and 46.15%, respectively. This suggests a substantial period of expansion or recovery for organizations within these relatively smaller markets. As with all data presented in these sections, this is relative to use for Hubstaff, and you should apply it to other data for context before making business expansion decisions.

Andorra follows with a 40% growth rate, indicating significant organizational growth within this country.

Saudi Arabia, Australia, and Denmark all come in at just under the 40% mark, showcasing these countries could be turning into long-term hubs for organizational development with remote and flexible work.

A note on countries with large shrink rates

Our review comparing companies from January 2022 to now highlights declines that could be out of the control of remote work or even the companies themselves. Conflicts, increased sanctions, economic uncertainty, high debt, worsening trade imbalances, or political upheaval face nearly every country in our list that had a substantial shrink rate.

The top countries based on Hubstaff customer data were Palestine, Ethiopia, Somalia, Tanzania, Iran, Belize, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Senegal. These countries were at or close to a 100% shrink rate, though this means companies were reducing seats and not that all companies folded. 

Other countries on our list, such as Nigeria with a 95% shrink rate, could be contracting for more positive reasons. The country has had periods during the past 20 years where it was one of the fastest-growing economies, as well as times where it struggled. Oil production still accounts for two-thirds of government earnings and 90% of its foreign exchange income. This may mean the economy is still testing the waters around remote companies or has a limited need for remote opportunities.

At the same time, Nigeria has one of the fastest-growing populations in the world. Recent political changes may signal opportunities for investment within the country or by remote companies looking to secure a vibrant, knowledgeable workforce seeking new opportunities.

A snapshot of leaders by organizational volume

The analysis of the top countries by total organization volume alongside their growth reveals interesting trends, particularly concerning the major and emerging markets. We see some of the shrink in organizational size reflected in ongoing economic and social concerns laid out by reports such as this 2024 look from the International Labour Organization. It reminds us how nuanced global hiring data can be.

United States

Leading with a total of 6,056 organizations, the United States showcases a robust economic landscape with 2,173 organizations growing, reflecting a growth rate of 35.88%. This diversity and scale highlight the country’s position as a hub for organizational development and expansion, even at a time of substantial layoffs in the technology sector.

India

India, with 2,467 total organizations, of which 252 are growing (a growth rate of 10.21%), represents a vast and diverse economic ecosystem. Despite a relatively lower growth rate, the large number of organizations indicates significant potential for development and innovation within the country.

Philippines

The Philippines has 1,599 total organizations, with 224 experiencing growth, yielding a growth rate of 14.01%. This figure underscores the country’s growing economy and the increasing opportunities for organizations in various sectors.

Pakistan

With 1,250 total organizations and 117 of them growing, a rate of 9.36%, Pakistan’s economic environment is showing signs of growth and development. The country’s market is evolving, with a focus on expanding existing organizations and fostering new ventures.

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom, housing 735 total organizations, with 212 of them growing (a growth rate of 28.84%), demonstrates a strong and resilient economy. The relatively high growth rate compared to the total number of organizations highlights the UK’s competitive and innovative business landscape.

These countries, each with a significant number of total organizations, showcase the diverse economic conditions and opportunities for growth within their respective regions, reflecting their roles in the global economic landscape.

Top and bottom comparison notes

The contrast between the top growing and shrinking countries highlights diverse economic landscapes and varying industry sectors that may be experiencing different phases of growth or decline.

Countries like Guatemala, Israel, Kuwait, Andorra, and Saudi Arabia feature prominently in our review, with high company growth rates. These countries vary widely in size, economic structure, and geopolitical context. While some are emerging from COVID-19 related political and socioeconomic concerns, our data does not identify a common thread for their adoption of Hubstaff or remote work.

That said, these countries showcase strong economic resilience or dynamic sectors driving growth, which could represent targeted opportunities that organizations are successfully capitalizing on in terms of scaling up their remote workforce.

On the other end, countries like India and Pakistan, with much larger total numbers of organizations, have lower growth rates. This might reflect broader economic challenges, more competitive markets, or sectors that are facing downturns. Despite having a vast number of organizations, the proportion of those growing is relatively small, indicating that growth could be more challenging to achieve or is concentrated in specific sectors.

Considerations beyond our data

There are also outside pressures that may be causing remote work to adapt. India, for example, is experiencing historically low unemployment, especially in urban areas. Job opportunities and local demand could put pressure on remote work that often relies on contractors and freelancers without the same benefits as full-time employees, such as insurance or an employees’ provident fund.

The variation in growth and shrink rates across different countries underscores the impact of regional dynamics, economic policies, sectoral strengths, and global market trends on organizational growth.

We can speculate on potential relationships here. High growth rates in smaller or medium-sized economies may indicate niche sectors thriving or more agile economic policies. In contrast, lower growth rates in larger economies might highlight the challenges of sustaining growth across a more diverse and complex economic landscape.

What’s important is that companies looking to expand or hire pursue further investigation. This is just a launchpad for any considering hiring decisions. We recommend you review industries, economic policies, and external factors influencing these trends to determine the causes behind these patterns of growth and decline.

Exploring global hiring data with Hubstaff intelligence

In our journey through the analysis of organizational dynamics and global hiring data, we have traversed data sets that shed light on the growth and decline of organizations, the embrace of remote work versus local hiring, and the vibrancy of different markets.

Our exploration has provided us with initial insights into potential economic undercurrents and patterns shaping the landscapes of major and emerging markets.

However, it is crucial to acknowledge that our analysis is based on snapshots of data provided by Hubstaff, a platform capturing specific dimensions of organizational and workforce dynamics. While the insights gleaned offer a fascinating glimpse into the economic activity within these regions, they represent a segment of the broader economic universe, not its entirety.

You should view our analysis as the starting point for more specific research or investment in a market, company, or growth strategy. 

Hubstaff data provides a valuable lens through which to observe trends. Still, the broader context — cultural, political, and technological — will fully illuminate the opportunities and challenges within each market.

To fellow data analysts and enthusiasts, we hope this serves as a beacon of what’s possible with data from a single platform. Such explorations demand curiosity, caution, and an ever-expanding knowledge base. We welcome what others may do with this data or with their own.