Building a Software Team in Vietnam Without the Legal & Compliance Headaches

Our client is a digital consultancy established in 1999 that is a global leader in design, data, and technology innovation. With a mission to help ambitious brands reimagine their digital experiences, the company has consistently delivered award-winning solutions by blending creativity with technical excellence.

As part of their global strategy, the client identified Vietnam as a strategic market for accessing top-tier technology talent and expanding engineering capabilities. However, despite the opportunities, the road to hiring in Vietnam came with its own set of challenges.

Vietnam’s Talent Pool Is Ripe — But Compliance Hurdles Slowed the Pace

Vietnam's emergence as a tech hub made it an obvious choice for expansion. The country boasts a young, skilled, and rapidly growing developer base, with competitive labor costs and English proficiency. However, the client quickly discovered that navigating Vietnam’s labor regulations, visa requirements, and employment laws was more complex than expected.

While talent was readily available, navigating Vietnam’s legal, tax, and HR landscape posed significant challenges:

• Complex regulations around work permits, labor contracts, and social insurance.
• No legal entity in the country to onboard employees compliantly.
• Limited local talent networks, which slowed sourcing and hiring.

Faced with prolonged hiring timelines and complex compliance procedures, the company recognized the need for a trusted local partner with deep expertise in the Vietnamese market. At the same time, they valued proximity and accessibility, preferring a partner with a Singapore headquarters they could easily connect with, given their own presence there.

After conducting their own research, they reached out to Talent JDI—drawn by our strong foothold in Vietnam’s tech talent landscape and proven experience in building compliant, high-performing offshore teams for global companies.

A Turnkey Talent Solution: Recruitment + EOR Services

The client partnered with Talent JDI to help them hire and manage Vietnamese tech talent efficiently and legally, without the need to establish a local entity. Our approach combined two core services: targeted Recruitment and full-service Employer of Record (EOR) support.

1. Smart, Localized Talent Acquisition

We deployed a streamlined hiring strategy that prioritizes speed to secure top talent for the client in the quickest time possible:

Insight: We localized the candidate value proposition to resonate with Vietnam-based tech professionals, emphasizing growth opportunities, hybrid flexibility, and competitive compensation aligned with local expectations.

2. Full EOR Compliance – So the Client Didn’t Have To

Post-hiring, Talent JDI provided full EOR support, taking care of compliance, payroll, taxes, and audits. By handling the administrative workload, we allowed the client to focus on growth while ensuring a smooth experience for their team. 

We also provided continuous updates on any shifts in labor or tax regulations, helping the client avoid surprises and maintain full compliance at all times.

Confidence In Growing An Excellent Workforce With Talent JDI

With Talent JDI’s support, the client successfully built a dedicated tech team of over 50 developers in Vietnam. To this day, the team continues to operate under our management.

What stood out most to the client was Talent JDI’s responsiveness, collaborative approach, and unwavering commitment throughout the engagement. 

Looking ahead, they are exploring opportunities to expand the partnership, potentially adding contractor hiring and co-working space solutions to support future growth.

About Talent JDI

Talent JDI, a division of JDI Group, is a premier IT recruitment and EOR services firm, empowering companies to build, grow, and scale across Southeast Asia. 

We are committed to delivering fast, cost-effective, and compliant tech talent solutions, having facilitated 1,000+ successful hires and supported 300+ innovative businesses in forming tech teams.