Ask HN: How would you recruit developers to move to the Cayman Islands? - caruana
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chollida1
We have an office in the Barbados, which is obviously a different place, but
for the purpose of recruiting I'd imagine its pretty similar.

We do a couple of things:

1) Throw money at them, starting salary of $250,000 plus a bonus multiplier of
0.5x to 2x gets you some very good candidates.

2) Emphasize these two things: [http://www.cayman.com.ky/caymans-tax-free-
status](http://www.cayman.com.ky/caymans-tax-free-status) and
[http://www.weather.gov.ky/portal/page?_pageid=4421,1&_dad=po...](http://www.weather.gov.ky/portal/page?_pageid=4421,1&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL)

3) pay for trips home, give them $10,000 for travel a year and let them book
their own flights.

Also it helps if this position is a set term, ie 2 years. I find having a
definitive end date makes most things bearable as it gives people certainty
about when their expat trip will be over. This is especially critical if there
is a spouse or family that will be coming along with the employee.

Let people know that after their 2 year stint is up they are welcome to move
to your head office if there is one somewhere else.

 __EDIT __the salary and bonus I mention, only to make the point of paying
well. The type of person we typically hire is very in demand, hence the pay.

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gamechangr
As an american Project Manager, I originally was recruited to working in the
South Pacific with a very similar situation.

Set terms is critical! Usually it does NOT end up being that important in the
end, but at the beginning it can be very difficult to say "YES" to moving when
you have six figure options that you always know that you can quit and walk
across the street and get another well paying job. That's not the case on the
Island I lived on.

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trcollinson
Well, first off, giving more than a single line subject would help! I enjoy
the Cayman Islands. I am a developer. A lot of other developers who enjoy
islands frequent Hacker News. Why don't you start by giving us an idea about
what you are doing and what specific problems with recruitment you are having.

~~~
caruana
I'm just trying to keep the conversation broad right now. Not sure if we will
go the Cayman Islands route, or open an office onshore and hire local talent
there.

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zerr
In the first place, ask yourself - why do you need devs to sit next to you in
the office? A lot of people just don't think about this and assume 1800s style
offices are the norm...

~~~
yellowapple
This depends on the company culture.

On one hand, there are plenty of programming shops nowadays that are perfectly
productive with all-remote or mostly-remote approaches.

On the other hand, I personally can't stay focused on work unless I'm in some
sort of office, and I'm pretty sure I'm not alone. A company office is the
easiest way to go about that, though office rentals and coworking spaces are a
viable alternative.

Basically, there are arguments for either extreme (and all the increments in
between those two extremes). It just depends on the team's preference.

~~~
zerr
Well, one can easily adopt a mixed style - everyone would work where they
prefer - onsite/cafe/home/etc..

I personally work from home, but time to time I do 1-2 week onsite visits. I
find it really frustrating how people live like that - they just plan all
their life around weekends.

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b_t_s
Normally I'd have to pay a few grand to to go the Caymans and then leave in a
week or two....and you're going to pay me to stay there....and it's tax free?
Seriously, programming jobs in the tropics are pretty rare, well at lest ones
paying anything even remotely approaching first world salaries. Maybe I just
don't know where to look, but I've looked in the past and found hardly
anything. Sure, a lot of people might be too settled to relocate(true wherever
you are), but I'm sure there are plenty like myself who would absolutely jump
at the chance to move to the Caymans.

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devonkim
You could just let try to offer up comp packages to developers that already
live there. But a lot of developers that are already interested in relocating
outside the typical tech centers (myself included) look primarily for remote
work because you're unlikely to find a gig worth a damn in Bristol, VA or
whatnot and you could advertise as remote jobs for the "right" candidates when
you really just want them onsite. That should open you up to a lot more folks.

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yellowapple
Is this a problem you're trying to solve for yourself? Because if so, I'd be
happy to solve it by taking up such an offer (assuming other factors - like
salary, paid leave, benefits, etc. are satisfactory, of course).

I generally prefer snowy landscapes to tropical islands, but it's hard to
argue with "tax free".

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phantom_oracle
I don't think you need to recruit them to move to the Caymans.

Having your head-office there is a bonus for employees who want to come visit.

You can do recruitment globally through hiring remote.

Test it out, you may find you get the best talent through offering both:

1) Either come live with us in the Caymans

2) Stay on your own island and work remotely

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mod
Offer me a good salary, interesting work, and do your best to minimize the
red-tape, as I hate it.

Moving package is a plus, too, and possibly offering assistance in finding a
place to stay.

~~~
_random_
What about chicks?

~~~
gyardley
Not important. While I know some exceptions, most developers don't want to
raise their own poultry.

~~~
stephenr
Best. Reply. Ever.

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gt565k
Just offer them a job on the Cayman Islands ;). I'm sold

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chrisbennet
Does "tax free" apply to U.S. Citizens? I thought the U.S. taxed you wherever
you lived.

~~~
seanmcdirmid
Only if you make $96k+ or you aren't paying any other significant taxes.

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partisan
How would developers find you? I was interested in exactly this last year, but
found only dead ends.

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caruana
Well, we are currently exploring the idea and i'm doing a bit of research
right now. But, if you were really interested in moving out here I would be
happy to point you in the right direction. my email is on my profile page.

~~~
mromanuk
are these jobs finances related?

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Avalaxy
I'd be up for it if the pay is good and you can help me move from Europe.

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lgomezma
I guess both money and an interesting project. For me both are requirements.

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nnoitra
What are you building there?

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andrewstuart
Why would you want to?

