The global workforce is transforming rapidly. As per research by Staffing Industry Analysts, nearly 80% of large corporations plan to substantially increase use of flexible talent in the next 3-5 years.
Small and mid-sized businesses are also jumping on board. This is evident in the staggering 114% CAGR rise in adoption of contractor management platforms since 2016.
Statistics source: MMC Ventures
These trends highlight the strategic value delivered by external consultants, freelancers and independent contractors. With prudent management, your contingent workforce can become a core driver fuelling business growth.
However, effectively collaborating with external workers spread across geographies has many challenges:
- Compliance with local employment, tax and trade laws
- Streamlining sourcing, onboarding and offboarding
- Administering payroll in different currencies with dynamic policy changes
- Communication barriers across cultures and time zones
- Visibility and accountability into work status and deliverables
Without the right technology, managing these complexities manually will stifle operational efficiency.
This is where purpose-built contractor management platforms come into the picture. They provide comprehensive solutions tailored to seamlessly hire, engage and manage your external talent pools globally.
In this guide, we dive deep into the top 9 software solutions enabling frictionless management of contingent workforces.
Key Capabilities Offered by Contractor Management Platforms
Before analyzing the leading tools, let‘s discuss the core capabilities you need for effectively collaborating with flexible talent:
End-to-End Workflow Automation
The platform should simplify the entire process from talent sourcing to offboarding. This includes – configurable job application forms, assessment testing, compliance signatures, custom onboarding checklists and offboarding workflows.
Automating manual tasks reduces administrative overheads for your team by over 60% as per research firm NelsonHall.
Global Employment Compliance
To de-risk non-compliance with local regulations, the system must auto-generate compliant contracts and stay on top of employment law changes across geographies.
Payroll and Trade Compliance
Processing international payments involving foreign currencies, taxes, statutory benefits and trade compliance needs expertise. Choosing a platform that handles payments and payroll centrally provides peace of mind.
Access to Specialized Talent
A ready marketplace with pre-vetted talent in relevant skills and industries eliminates lengthy sourcing efforts. Bonus benefits include faster onboarding and higher engagement levels.
Collaboration Tools
Contract workers function best when aligned closely with internal teams. Built-in tools for task management, video conferencing, document sharing and instant messaging enable seamless collaboration.
Keeping these solution considerations in mind, let‘s review the top players that enable resilient management of your non-traditional workforce.
Leading Technology Platforms for Contractor Workforce Management
Here are the top 9 contractor management systems promising to seamlessly handle every aspect of flexible talent administration:
1. Deel
Claiming the top spot is Deel, the all-in-one platform to hire, manage and pay contractors globally. With a 95% 5-star rating from over 8000 customers, Deel is the platform of choice for leading enterprises like Coinbase, Shopify, Dropbox and BNP Paribas.
Deel handles all compliance obligations, paperwork, payments and workflows centrally so your team stays focused on delivery.
Deel‘s contractor management dashboard
From automated US tax forms to country-specificlocalized contracts supporting 184 currencies, Deel has your compliance needs covered. Their airtight legal protection includes $1M coverage for misclassification incidents.
Advanced users can further customize workflows spanning invoicing, document e-signature approvals, reimbursement requests and payment releases.
Integrations with tools like Ripplingand Mercury help conduct background checks and manage HR workflows externally.
Pricing starts from $499/month for 5 contractors plus additional fee per member per month. Enterprise packages available for 1000+ users.
2. Remote
Claiming second spot is Remote – an HR platform tailored for location-independent and globally distributed teams.
Trusted by over 6000 companies globally, Remote‘s 92% 5-star rating comes from its specialized expertise in efficiently managing payroll and compliance for contractors based in 155+ countries.
Some highlight features include:
- STEP automation for streamlined onboarding with custom workflows
- Auto-generated localized contracts reviewed by Remote legal experts
- In-house built payroll engine to support complex country-specific rules
- Vetted employee benefits plans in 100+ countries
- Tools to track time, run payroll, expenses, PTO and reimbursements
An end-to-end workforce management ecosystem purpose-built for remote teams positions Remote strongly to support the future of work trends.
Pricing starts at $149/month plus $39 per month per contractor billed. Enterprise pricing available.
3. Papaya Global
Papaya Global provides automated global employment services for your entire distributed workforce – including payroll, payments and compliance support. Their SaaS platform coupled with regional legal entities allows you to compliantly hire and pay workers in over 160 countries without having to set up subsidiaries.
Companies can simplify onboarding paperwork, local taxation rules and cross-border salary payouts with Papaya‘s unified SaaS dashboard providing real-time reporting insights.
Advanced users can model scenarios for expansion planning instantly with Papaya‘s Global Workforce Optimizer feature leveraging market data from 50+ countries.
Pricing starts at $100 per month for 1-5 employees. Volume discounts apply for larger teams.
4. Oyster
Going beyond contractors, Oyster allows you to compliantly hire, pay and give locally competitive benefits to all your globally distributed employees. Their technology automates onboarding, contracts, payroll, taxes and payments in 100+ countries while ensuring legal compliance through partnerships with specialized firms.
The platform even provides access to local HR services for performance management, offboarding, and employee relocation across regions.
Metrics focused users will appreciate Oyster‘s rich country-specific compensation data and benchmarking platform allowing you to make fair and competitive salary offers tailored to local living costs in cities worldwide.
Recognizing the strategic value of contingent workers, Oyster now provides dedicated support for efficiently managing independent contractors as well.
Pricing starts at $399 per month with additional costs based on number of global employees/contractors.
5. Velocity Global
Velocity Global offers a tech-enabled Contractor Management Service (CMS) specializing in deploying large and complex outsourced talent at scale across a multitude of jurisdictions. Its centralized Talent Management System CMS platform is purpose built for globally distributed workforces. Their wide partner network, in-region specialists, subject matter expertise allows companies to compliantly engage international teams with full confidence.
The cloud CMS system handles everything related to distributed teams – talent sourcing, onboarding, contracts, documenting, background checks, task tracking, payroll processing, compliance audits and offboarding fully online.
The CMS team acts as an extension of internal HR providing dedicated assistance for workforce planning, cost optimization, global expansion strategy, demand forecasting and scenario analysis for agile allocation.
Pricing is custom based on scope, team size and jurisdictions covered.
6. Shield GEO
Shield GEO focuses on minimizing the time, cost and risk challenges for companies engaging international talent. Their geo-employer platform called GEOEMPLOYER handles employee leasing allowing businesses to compliantly hire overseas workers without establishing foreign legal entities.
By serving as the legal employer abroad on your behalf, Shield GEO absorbs all risks and liabilities related to local regulations enabling swift overseas expansion and cost management.
The cloud-based dashboard manages end-to-end employee lifecycle activities and provides detailed country guides covering employer compliance, immigration norms, payroll processes and more for over 150 jurisdictions.
Pricing starts at €599 per month for companies to hire their first international team member. Subsequent pricing is custom tiered.
7. Elements Global Services
ElementsGlobal offers detailed support through their Employer of Record (EOR) services for anyone looking to compliantly hire overseas workers as full-time employees.
Specialized legal entities across North America, EMEA and APAC geographies managed by Elements absorb employer risks and liabilities related to local labor regulation compliance, payroll taxes, benefits and more – allowing clients to focus on core business priorities.
The Elements WorkForce portal delivers end-to-end workforce administration from onboarding, compensation planning to payroll processing along with real-time reporting and analytical decision support for your distributed teams. Additional services span global immigration, supply chain security, trade management and integrated payments.
Pricing is customized based on team size and country mix.
8. RemoteMore
RemoteMore positions itself as an aggregator platform for companies to instantly access pre-vetted international talent specialized for remote work.
Leveraging partnerships across 5000+ recruitment agencies globally, RemoteMore has pre-screened over 15 million freelance profiles across 50+ disciplines providing detailed visibility into past client reviews, sample work portfolios and preferred payment rates.
You can instantly connect and collaborate using video calls and built-in project management workflows. Automated B2B contracts, Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA), invoice generation and international payments via PayPal, Deel are supported natively once terms are agreed upon.
A dedicated account manager assists throughout the hiring and onboarding process coordinating paperwork completion and more.
Pricing includes 15% fee charged on member payment amount per project milestone up to 10% for longer term managed services contracts.
9. Maltiverse
Maltiverse‘s digital platform allows businesses to compliantly recruit, engage and manage highly skilled freelance talent for technology projects.
Leveraging their global network spanning 80+ countries gives you instant access to pre-screened technical consultants rated 4+ out of 5 by previous employers.
Project collaboration is simplified through built-in tools like video conferencing, document sharing, code repositories, Kanban boards and automated invoicing.
Team productivity is optimized through dedicated engagement managers tracking deliverables and aligning expectations throughout the project lifecycle.
Maltiverse guarantees compliance in overseas markets by providing localized contracts, invoice processing and payroll management without clients needing to set up local legal entities.
Pricing includes a standard 15% fee on member rate per milestone paid by the business. Volume discounts apply.
Quick Takeaway: Key Capabilities Offered By Contractor Management Platforms
- Simplified end-to-end contractor workforce lifecycle – from sourcing, onboarding to offboarding
- Guaranteed legal and trade compliance across global markets
- Payroll processing and payments expertise in 120+ foreign currencies
- Built-in collaboration tools for aligning remote teams
- Configurable workflows, detailed compliance documentation storage
- Vetted talent pools through partnerships for faster hiring
- Rich analytics and insights on workforce planning scenarios
Key Metrics to Consider When Choosing Your Platform
Now that we‘ve covered the leading players providing technology infrastructure for managing non-traditional talent models, how do you select the ideal solution tailored to your environment?
Here are the 5 key aspects to evaluate as you streamline workflows for your external teams:
1. Geographies Supported
Review specific countries covered to ensure alignment with your current and future expansion plans across LATAM, EMEA, North America or APAC regions.
Understand country support details before finalizing system selection
2. Compliance Factors
Different solutions offer dedicated legal employer entities in select regions and specialized expertise by jurisdiction for minimizing employment, tax filing and immigration risks.
Compare contractual terms, legal liability coverage and local partner networks as you formalize overseas engagements.
3. Pricing Models
Tiered pricing models based on number of contractors are common for technical platforms focused on workflow automation. Others charge as percentage fee on foreign currency payment volume processed through the system. Select plans providing the right balance of capabilities to maximize value.
4. Payments Support
Ensure the system allows payouts in acceptable local currencies to align with worker preferences. Growing solutions now integrate cryptocurrency and blockchain mechanisms for payments.
5. Customer Support
Given regional complexities managing global teams, having access to responsive in-house legal and domain experts when needed is crucial for fulfillment.
Using these parameters, you can zero-in on platforms that move the needle on flexibility, productivity and speed when collaborating with your external teams.
Realize the Strategic Benefits of Investing in Contractor Workforce Technology
Here‘s a quick recap of the transformational impact delivered by purpose-built contractor management platforms:
- Embrace Agility with on-demand skills where and when you need
- Access specialized capabilities from global talent pools
- Simplified productivity through workflow automation
- Enhanced speed via ready talent benches with quicker onboarding cycles
- Higher legal protection from compliance guarantees
- Improved cost efficiency through talent aggregation models
- Informed decision making powered by rich workforce analytics
- Focused execution liberated from administrative distractions
By embracing the future of work fueled by skills-based independent talent models, your business is primed to accelerate growth.
Combining versatile human capital with enabling technologies to administer external teams compliantly gives your organization the ultimate competitive edge.
Key Takeaways: A Quick Guide to Effectively Managing Your Contingent Workforce
Here are the key takeaways from this guide on efficiently managing your extended teams leveraging purpose-built technology:
- Adopting specialized SaaS platforms is indispensable for reducing the complexity of external talent programs
- Choose solutions offering end-to-end contractor lifecycle automation – sourcing, onboarding, payroll, payments – globally
- Opting for tools providing compliance guarantee through localized contracts and dedicated legal entities is strongly recommended
- Look for built-in talent pooling through staffing partner ecosystems for faster hiring
- Ensure platform supports distributed teams through messaging and project dashboards
- Carefully evaluate support for target countries and currencies required
- Prioritize responsive guidance from legal and technical specialists
- Analyze workforce planning scenarios using modeling tools powered by real-time market data
- Continuous iteration leveraging analytics gives strategic advantage
The takeaway is clear – combining innovation in flexible resource models with automation technology is key to building resilient distributed teams that drive competitive differentiation.
I hope this guide has armed you with clarity and conviction to kickstart your next external workforce program leveraging capable technology partners. As always, share any questions or ideas in the comments section!
