If Astro is providing ongoing “local fulfillment” to make “teammates” feel like first class workers on an international stage, what happens to my team in XYZ when Astro makes a radical business decision (closing offices in that city, pivoting to court a next funding round, etc) as VC-funded startups often need to do?
Aren’t I making my business extraordinarily vulnerable to an unpredictable early-stage startup? How is that better than hiring/contracting through a mature overseas staffing agency in Mumbai, Kviv, or Buenos Aires? I mean, there are thousands of the latter, many with great history and references, and I don’t see what you’re adding besides risk and branding.
Regarding VC influence, we actually bootstrapped the company in 2018, and we've had to build a profitable self sustaining business from the get-go. So we don't have the "court the next VC round" problem and given that we've built a sustainable and growing business, we're don't want pivot away from that either, but I see where you are coming from.
And yes, there are plenty of international staffing agencies to choose from, but keep in mind that their reputation in the US is only part of the equation. Among international developers, these staffing agencies may have a different reputation. We believe that by using us, companies can provide their teammates with the kinds of experiences that attract a different pool of professionals otherwise unreachable through overseas staffing agencies.
Aren’t I making my business extraordinarily vulnerable to an unpredictable early-stage startup? How is that better than hiring/contracting through a mature overseas staffing agency in Mumbai, Kviv, or Buenos Aires? I mean, there are thousands of the latter, many with great history and references, and I don’t see what you’re adding besides risk and branding.