How to choose the right delivery model: Staff Leasing, EOR, or Fully Managed BPO
Finding the right talent is challenging when your business is growing. You want skilled people, reliable operations, and the ability to scale without unnecessary complexity.
That is where choosing the right outsourcing delivery model becomes crucial.
This guide breaks down three engagement options that global SMEs rely on to expand efficiently: Staff Leasing, Employer of Record (EOR), and Fully Managed BPO. Each model gives you access to offshore talent, but at different levels of control and support.
Understanding the difference helps you decide the best fit for your goals.
What is Staff leasing?
Staff leasing allows you to hire offshore employees who work exclusively for your business. They are part of your team day to day, while your outsourcing partner manages payroll, benefits, and compliance.
This structure gives you hands-on oversight of performance and culture, without the HR administration that normally comes with hiring in another country. It is ideal for roles such as customer support, finance, IT support, and marketing where direct brand alignment matters.
What is an Employer of Record (EOR)?
An Employer of Record becomes the legal employer for your offshore talent. You choose who to hire and you manage their work. The EOR handles the legal and administrative side, including contracts, taxes, benefits, and compliance with local labor laws.
For organizations expanding into new markets, this removes the need to set up a foreign entity.
According to the World Economic Forum, the global EOR market continues to grow significantly due to the rise of distributed workforces. It provides rapid entry into new territories with reduced risk and complexity.
What is a Fully Managed BPO?
A fully managed BPO goes beyond staffing individual roles. You hand over complete business functions such as CX operations, data entry, finance processes, or IT support.
The outsourcing provider manages the team, workflow, technology, and delivery of
results.
This approach is ideal if you want to focus internal teams on strategy and innovation
while specialists take care of the operational workload.
How to choose the right model
Your decision depends on how much involvement you want in daily management and
how fast you need to scale.
Key considerations:
- Control: Staff leasing offers full operational oversight. EOR and BPO hand off more responsibility to the provider.
- Compliance: EOR removes the risk of legal missteps when operating in multiple countries.
- Cost: All three models are cost efficient compared to domestic hiring. BPOs usually provide the greatest operational savings at scale.
- Speed: EOR and BPO make it easier to launch and grow quickly without building internal infrastructure.
- Integration: Staff leasing offers a straightforward way to build a cohesive remote team that still feels part of your culture.
Comparison table
| Criteria | Staff leasing | Employer of Record (EOR) | Fully Managed BPO |
| Primary purpose | Build your own offshore team with direct control. | Hire internationally without setting up legal entities. | Outsource full functions to a specialist provider. |
| Legal employer | Service provider | EOR provider | BPO provider |
| Who manages work | You | You | BPO provider |
| Level of control | High | Medium | Low |
| Compliance | Managed by provider | Managed by EOR | Managed by BPO |
| Best for | SMEs needing close team integration | Companies expanding globally | Businesses offloading full processes |
| Speed to start | Fast | Very fast | Moderate |
| Cost efficiency | High | High | Highest at scale |
| Integration | High | Medium | Lower day to day |
| Typical roles | Customer support, IT, finance | Sales, specialists | CX, finance, data ops |
When to choose each model
- Staff Leasing: When you want to grow your team overseas while keeping control of daily operations.
- EOR: When expanding internationally without wanting to set up entities or manage compliance.
- Fully Managed BPO: When you prefer to outsource entire business functions and focus on strategy.
Many companies use more than one model at different stages of growth. The important thing is selecting the structure that supports your current strategy.
The market value for global outsourcing services was estimated at $3.8 trillion in 2024. According to projections, this market is expected to surge, potentially reaching $7.11 trillion by 2030. This anticipated growth represents a CAGR of 11.3% between 2025 and 2030.
This shows that an increasing number of companies are becoming more open to hiring offshore talent.
Benefits of offshore talent across all models
Access to global talent is no longer a competitive advantage; it is becoming a necessity.
Offshore staffing enables:
- Broader access to specialized skills
- Significant labor and operational cost savings
- Business continuity with global coverage
The delivery model simply determines how you operationalize these benefits.
Why partner with Sourcefit
Sourcefit supports companies at every stage of outsourcing maturity. Whether you need
to build a remote team, hire internationally without complexity, or hand over full operational responsibility, we deliver the structure that fits your business. We help you scale confidently, improve efficiency, and access top-tier talent through the right combination of models.
FAQs
1. What is the main difference between Staff Leasing and EOR?
Staff leasing gives you more day-to-day management control, while EOR focuses on
compliance and legal employment across countries.
2. Can I combine Staff Leasing and BPO models?
Yes. Many companies use staff leasing for core roles and BPO for high-volume or
process-heavy functions.
3. Is EOR suitable for short-term projects?
Yes. EOR is often used for pilot projects or quick market entry without establishing a
legal entity.
4. How fast can I get started with Sourcefit?
Depending on your model, setup can take as little as one to four weeks once roles and
requirements are finalized.
5. Which delivery model offers the best cost savings?
All models reduce costs versus in-house hiring, but fully managed BPO typically
delivers the highest savings at scale.
Independent
