Quite a few possible options are available for a Hong Kong based and registered company to complete a project in which the company does not possess the required skills.
Hire an expat from overseas
When a Hong Kong company struggles to find some specialized skills that are too hard to be available locally in HK, the company may look for such specialist from overseas (i.e. expatriate person).
The first thing is to fill in the application form that is provided by HK Immigration Department and go through the Hong Kong visa application (i.e. work visa) for the foreign specialist.
If you will need this expat professional to continue or extend working for the company after her first employment visa expires, the company will have to continue to be her sponsoring employer for the next visa. The next visa may be granted for 2 more years for the expat to work in Hong Kong.
Usually when hiring a full-time staff provided that this specialist is a foreigner (without a HK permanent residence status), it may be costly.
Outsource the work to an experienced freelancer
Hong Kong companies nowadays have the option to hire freelancers for the expertise and knowledge that they bring along. Very often the company would need a specific problem or a set of related but complicated problems to be resolved.
What qualities differentiate a great freelancer from mediocre ones? The technical expertise is one thing. It is the higher proficiency in the soft skills such as communication, ability to ask questions, ability to resolve problems, and ability to manage time.
To ensure the freelancer suits the needs of your project, you may have to evaluate the potential candidates holistically and have them screened based on multiple parameters.
In some cases, you may have to look for a high degree of technical proficiency. This reduces the timeframe for the freelancer when learning about your project’s exact issues.
Overall, hiring a freelancer for only the project that is needed can be a less inexpensive option, even though managing the freelancer takes some skills.
One freelancing example
A freelancing case is that the person who is a mother of a young kid has been doing project management as a freelancer. What has motived her in the first place is the work-from-home aspect not long after she has given birth to her new baby.
Running a company initiative, a program or an important project is usually a challenging task. Hong Kong companies would usually simply assign the role to their internal staffs. The idea behind the whole thing is to develop some internal project managers and allow them earn their necessary experience so in the future they will fit into useful roles in the company.
