Between growing labor shortages, the war for talent, and the future of work constantly evolving — finding skilled workers can be a massive challenge.
But after analyzing thousands of customers’ hiring trends, market research, and years of experience in the global HR space, we've discovered something interesting:
The power of micro-hubs when it comes to your talent acquisition strategy.
Key Takeaways:
- Micro-hubs are strategic locations where the best global talent can be found. And targeting key areas can take your business to the next level.
- Utilize AI, data, and social media: Utilize these tools and platforms to help your company discover countries where the best talent for specific fields exist that were not on your radar.
What Are Micro-hubs?
Micro-hubs are the areas around the world with a wealth of talent that are often overlooked by companies when hiring globally. These are countries that might not be well-known for a specific job field but actually have highly skilled workers who can fill gaps at your company.
We typically call these the "hidden gems" at RemoFirst.
That's because when a company decides to hire or expand internationally, a few countries are often top of mind when filling specific roles.
Two quick examples:
- Looking for talent in IT? You'd probably consider India first.
- Looking for talent in customer success? You'd probably pick the Philippines.
This shift occurred gradually as certain countries emerged as hubs for key industries and job fields, making them attractive options for companies seeking top talent.
But since the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has opened up more than ever. This has created a unique opportunity for companies to bring more talent, diversity, and innovation to their business.
So, while India should remain on your radar for IT talent, maybe a country like Bulgaria (IT is a growing sector in this country!) is another location to seek skilled IT workers.
Here are just some examples of countries that could be considered micro-hubs:
And now that more countries are investing in education, infrastructure, and better technology — such as faster internet speeds — new opportunities are emerging to tap into talent in regions that may not have been on your radar. Or previously couldn't be considered.
These markets feature highly skilled professionals across diverse industries, often with less competition for talent and lower hiring costs when compared to traditional employment hubs.
To help businesses explore these opportunities, we've created a series of country guides as well as various "hidden gem" hiring markets (Under "Country Information" on our blog). Each guide provides insights into the country's workforce, key skills available, and how these locations can help fill talent gaps.
Expanding your hiring strategy to include these regions could give you a competitive edge in securing top talent.
Why Do Micro-hubs Matter for Talent Acquisition?
Companies focusing only on traditional talent hubs risk missing out on a wealth of skilled professionals in emerging regions.
If you are building a modern talent acquisition strategy that includes hiring unique talent, no matter where they live and work, then micro-hubs are essential to understand and identify.
Here's why it matters for your hiring strategy:
1. Access to High-quality, Untapped Talent
Micro-hubs are home to skilled professionals often overlooked due to location biases.
These regions may have growing technology sectors, strong universities, and vibrant local industries — producing highly capable candidates eager for global opportunities.
Companies that recognize and tap into these hubs gain access to fresh, motivated talent before competitors.
2. Cost-effective Hiring Solutions
Salaries and living costs in traditional tech and business hubs (e.g., Silicon Valley, London, New York) are significantly higher than in emerging micro-hubs. Hiring from these overlooked regions allows businesses to maintain high-quality talent while optimizing payroll and operational costs.
This also doesn't mean you shouldn't look at countries where workers typically command higher salaries — because great talent exists there, too. Still, money efficiency is critical if you are a startup or scaling business.
3. Increased Workforce Diversity and Innovation
One thing we consistently observe with RemoFirst customers is the unique perspectives and innovation global talent brings to the organization.
A diverse team brings new perspectives, problem-solving approaches, and creative solutions. Micro-hubs often foster unique skill sets influenced by local industries, educational systems, and cultures with different points of view.
Companies that recruit from these regions benefit from fresh insights and a broader range of experiences.
4. Bridging Talent Gaps in High-demand Fields
As industries like AI, cybersecurity, and software development continue to grow, many traditional talent hubs face shortages in specialized skills.
Micro-hubs often produce highly skilled professionals in these fields, providing an alternative solution to talent scarcity in oversaturated markets.
It also helps that technology, internet speeds, and access to education are more accessible than ever for countries all over the world.
5. Strengthening Employer Brand and Global Presence
Organizations that recognize and invest in talent from micro-hubs build a reputation as forward-thinking, inclusive employers.
This enhances brand perception and helps attract top talent from around the world by demonstrating a commitment to global opportunities.
6. Future-proofing Talent Strategies
Micro-hubs are often early indicators of emerging industries and talent trends. Companies that proactively identify and engage with these regions position themselves ahead of competitors, securing top talent before demand spikes.
If global expansion is on the radar, companies will have the opportunity to get a head start on understanding local markets and how consumers engage with brands.
7. Supporting Remote and Hybrid Workforces
With the rise of remote work, physical location is no longer a limitation.
By tapping into micro-hubs, companies can build distributed teams, access top talent without the need for relocation, and boost employee satisfaction and retention.
Plus, you're now getting more around-the-clock coverage for your company since distributed employees will likely encompass various time zones.
8. Economic and Social Impact
Investing in micro-hubs helps drive economic growth in these regions while creating long-term business advantages.
Supporting local talent ecosystems fosters loyalty, reduces turnover, and strengthens company-community relationships.
How to Identify the Best Micro-hubs
So, there are over 190 countries in the world. How can you identify the micro-hub country with a goldmine of talent matching your company's needs?
Besides working with a knowledgeable team like ours for your global HR needs, here’s how:
Social Media
Social media platforms can play a crucial role in helping companies identify micro-hubs. Here's a few ways:
Monitor social media interactions
You can identify active professional communities in niche industries. Platforms like Reddit, Discord, and specialized LinkedIn groups showcase discussions, projects, and innovations emerging from lesser-known regions, highlighting promising talent pools.
Analyze content shared by professionals
This content shared to social channels like blog posts, LinkedIn articles, and other social posts can help you pinpoint where expertise in high-demand skills (e.g., AI, blockchain, cybersecurity) is emerging.
Job postings on social channels
These can provide insights into where companies are already finding talent. If multiple organizations start hiring from the same small region, it could indicate a growing micro-hub. Similarly, job seekers from specific locations engaging with global companies can signal an untapped talent base.
Follow industry influencers and tech evangelists
These experts often highlight emerging talent hubs, especially those in the HR and recruiting space. By analyzing their engagement and following patterns, you can detect regional concentrations of skilled professionals.
Data Analytics and AI
There is a vast amount of information and data online.
And advanced analytics and AI-powered insights can reveal emerging talent hotspots beyond traditional tech and business centers.
Social media analysis
For example, social media platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, and GitHub generate large amounts of professional and skills-based data. So, your company can analyze this data to spot clusters of skilled professionals in unexpected locations.
AI is the real game-changer
AI can be the perfect research assistant since there is so much to comb through and try to monitor.
You can now create parameters based on job titles and budgets, then prompt AI to quickly provide recommendations of where these "micro-hubs" of untapped talent are that fit your criteria.
Or, if you have a collection of data sets, you could feed this into your preferred AI platform to analyze the data.
AI can analyze factors such as job titles, skill sets, job boards, and employment trends much faster — and pinpoint micro-hubs with emerging talent pools.
This will save companies and hiring managers time from manual research and shorten the time it takes to fill open job positions.
Here are a few ways AI can help identify micro-hubs:
- Predictive talent mapping. Machine learning algorithms can forecast where future talent hubs will emerge based on industry trends, educational output, and skill adoption rates. For example, an increase in AI or cybersecurity certifications in a particular region could indicate a developing micro-hub.
- Hiring and salary trend insights. By analyzing global job postings and salary data, AI can detect regions where high-quality talent is available at competitive rates. This helps companies strategically expand their hiring to locations where top professionals are available at a lower cost without compromising quality.
- Educational and certification data analysis. AI can track enrollment rates and graduation data from universities, online learning platforms (e.g., Coursera, Udemy), and coding boot camps. A surge in tech graduates or specialized training programs in a specific region may indicate an emerging micro-hub.
- Open-source and freelance contribution. AI can analyze contributions to open-source platforms like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and Behance to determine where highly skilled professionals are actively contributing. This provides a real-time view of talent concentration beyond traditional employment data.
- Network and collaboration analysis. AI can examine professional networking patterns, collaboration on research papers, and international partnerships to uncover hidden talent pools. A region with an increasing number of global collaborations could indicate a growing hub of expertise.
- AI-powered geospatial analysis. Using AI-driven geospatial analytics, companies can visualize global talent distributions — identifying unexpected hotspots of skilled professionals. This approach combines real-time data from multiple sources, such as job postings, migration trends, and economic indicators, to provide a comprehensive view of global talent dynamics.
- Bias-free talent recommendations. Traditional hiring practices often focus on well-known regions, leading to bias. AI-powered hiring platforms can use anonymized data to recommend talent from micro-hubs, ensuring a more diverse and inclusive recruitment process.
By leveraging data analytics and AI, companies can uncover hidden talent micro-hubs, optimize global hiring strategies, and gain a competitive advantage by accessing high-quality professionals from diverse, often underutilized regions.
Final Thoughts
Remember, it doesn't mean you shouldn't hire in popular countries either. When we examine the top 10 countries where our customers have hired the most, only one qualifies as a micro-hub.
But when we analyzed where thousands of our customers were hiring talent, we discovered a surprising diversity of countries — many of which would have been unexpected just a few years ago.
However, the point is that your organization does not have to limit itself to one specific area or country. Thanks to Employer of Record services (ahem, like RemoFirst!) and technological advances, it's easier than ever to find and employ skilled workers in almost every country.
