For a business striving for international growth, pairing up with a reliable EOR provider is not unlike finding a miracle elixir with properties that ease, or even fully eliminate, the many pains of overseas hiring that are otherwise inevitable. The offer is not scarce – but how can a decision maker evaluate the actual service quality of an EOR company or platform, beyond their marketing claims and digital facade?
Here at Acvian, personalities are the miracle workers, the drivers of our excellence as an international employment organization. We are proud of the service we provide – by people and for people – and it is made possible by our team of qualified and committed professionals. Join us in the series of conversations with some of the company’s key players, and learn how they make Acvian a trustworthy partner on your venture to business expansion.
Meet Natalia Batsmanova, Account Manager and Vendor Relations Specialist based in Bratislava, Slovakia who is on board Acvian since 2022.
Having spent a good half of her prior career working in B2B service and logistics, Natalia leads communication with our partners across the world, addresses requests from client companies and keeps in touch with their employees. She bears a pivotal responsibility of measuring potential and existing partners up to our standards of trustworthiness and expertise, making sure you as a client receive top-quality service in any country listed. We are going to have a conversation with Natalia about a systematized partner network that allows the Acvian machine to run fast and smoothly, and to discuss our entities in Slovakia, Poland, and the Czech Republic. She has also promised to share a few secrets behind the excellence of Acvian service, so make sure to read till the end!
Hello Natalia! Our first questions are as plain as these: how is it possible for a non-platform EOR provider to offer service in a multitude of countries? Does networking play a role?
Hello and straight away yes, a service-oriented EOR company such as Acvian needs to establish connections with reliable partners to provide comprehensive support to clients wherever their employees are located. By now, I can proudly say that we have built and systematized a partner network where professionalism, responsiveness and an empathetic drive to provide help to a client and their employed team are shared values. In this way, any occurring issue is directed straight to the specialist with the most suitable case- or country-specific expertise instead of bouncing from email box to email box.
At what point do you personally get to communicate with clients?
We get in touch after the client’s employee or employees is or are onboarded with our help and maintain communication throughout the period of agreement. As I said before, there isn’t much bouncing back and forth between experts for a client company: each case is curated by a designated manager who processes queries based on prior communication and understanding of the context. Thus we can guarantee that every request is addressed within 24 to 48 hours, and qualified help is provided. Our ultimate goal at this stage is to leave the client with as much headspace to concentrate on business growth as possible.
And what types of issues do you usually assist the client’s employees with?
In short, with all things related to immigration, onboarding, medical check, taxation and many, many more. Specifically, employees who need to relocate internationally for a new role receive a ‘country intro’ to have a better understanding of the initial steps ahead of them once they set foot in a new place. When possible, our team members provide in-person guidance to employees during visits to immigration centers, compulsory medical screenings and other procedures. This is a common practice in the countries where Acvian has its own entities, such as Poland and the Czech Republic. Sometimes, individuals who find themselves in a brand-new environment may reach out to us for advice that is not directly related to employment, such as obtaining medical insurance or making urgent doctor appointments – and we try our best to provide help as long as it is within our pool of expertise.
Since you’ve mentioned entities, could you elaborate on the advantages Acvian offers to customer companies in the countries where it is represented in this way?
As of spring 2023, we have entities in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine and the United States. Being represented in a country as an entity means knowing how things work there through and through, way beyond the required expertise. It also means being able to meet your employee in person whenever necessary and to provide even more intricate consultations on a number of topics. In other words, it means even better service.
In which ways is Acvian service a better service? What are the secrets that make the difference?
The principles behind being a service-oriented, people-oriented company are no secret, the hardest part is to apply them on a daily basis. And this is what Acvian is great at.
Firstly, keep in mind that any B2B or B2C ultimately comes down to B2P – Business to People. There is always a certain Someone at the other end of the receiver, so make sure to treat them with compassion and not to take things personally if a misunderstanding occurs.
Secondly, providing a service rather than a disservice starts with a genuine impulse to help whoever is at the other end of the receiver.
Last but not least, if you want to lose a client, leave them on their own with a problem. If you want long-term cooperation – do otherwise.
What do you find most fulfilling about working at Acvian?
The whole world is my workplace. I get in touch with people from everywhere: our internal team alone is represented in two continents, to say nothing of the client companies. In this way, I am exposed to diversity as well as cultural and professional exchange. Within Acvian, we are quite age-diverse, too, and come from various professional backgrounds, so there is impressive baggage of experience along with the flow of ‘fresh blood’ and innovative ideas. We are flexible, motivated and open-minded, and I never get bored.
In your opinion, what is one big reason a company should go for remote employment with EOR?
You can handpick a dream team without limits. An EOR is often called an ‘umbrella company’ for a reason: it gives you a safe space to look for professionals who are truly the best match regardless of their location and protects you from the accompanying bureaucratic headaches. Also, you can test the waters without getting stuck in the mud, so to say. An EOR provider is a guide who knows the local ways, speaks the language and shares all tips with you. It allows decision-makers to feel more comfortable while they concentrate on growing in the new market.
