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New Year Business Guide - brought to you by APL Media • Wednesday 14 January 2026 ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE


T e £340,000 decision most HR directors make alone


Teamed provides strategic guidance backed by execution


A London fi ntech recently faced a £340,000 decision with IP implications: establish a German entity for 12 engineers developing core technology, or stay on Employer of Record services? Three vendors gave three diff erent answers, each aligned with what they sold. The HR director made the call alone at 11pm, without strategic counsel. For companies in regulated


industries, these decisions carry additional board scrutiny and compliance risk. This is the reality of international


expansion for mid-market companies. Employment model decisions (contractors versus Employer of Record versus owned entities) carry six-fi gure implications. Yet most HR directors navigate them without strategic counsel, relying


T ree vendors gave three diff erent answers, each aligned with their product


on vendor sales pitches rather than independent advice. The distinction matters.


Contractors off er fl exibility but the EU Platform Work Directive has intensifi ed misclassifi cation scrutiny. Employer of Record arrangements provide speed to market but become economically ineffi cient beyond 15-20 employees per country. Own entity establishment delivers control, tax optimisation, intellectual property protection and tender eligibility. However, it requires governance capacity and compliance expertise most mid-market companies lack. The questions are straightforward.


When does entity establishment genuinely make economic sense versus serving a provider’s interests? Which markets justify immediate entity setup for government tender access? How do businesses plan contractor-to-employee conversions that satisfy German works council requirements? Most vendors won’t answer these honestly. What’s needed is strategic guidance


before execution, with advisers who help businesses determine the right employment model without commercial bias. Teamed provides


this through strategic advisers with local legal expertise across more than 180 countries, who guide the decision, then coordinate execution. The company helps businesses transition between employment models (contractors to EOR to owned entities) while minimising disruption to employee experience and the need for re-onboarding. For HR directors in regulated


Teamed offers strategic employment


for mid-market companies scaling globally — speak with the advisory team at teamed.global/lp/ strategic-counsel


industries (fi nancial services, healthcare, defence) Teamed’s approach addresses board-level pressure to justify employment decisions with strategic rationale, not vendor recommendations. Local legal expertise in over 180 countries ensures compliance advice refl ects jurisdiction-specifi c requirements, from French CDI contracts to UK IR35 determinations to German works council obligations. The outcome: relief from decision-


making isolation. Confi dence in compliance. Clarity when options are murky. Teamed guides the decision, then executes the strategy.


Speak to a global employment expert today Visit: teamed.global/lp/strategic-counsel


ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE AI automation for SMEs


For many SMEs, AI still feels overwhelming, says Robert Lynch, managing partner at Old.St Labs


Leaders know they should be exploring automation, but fi nding the time, the right tools and the right partners can be daunting. That’s where Old.St Labs comes in. Old.St Labs specialises in helping


SMEs take their fi rst practical steps into AI automation. Rather than pushing off -the-shelf solutions, the team focus on understanding the real people behind a business — how they work, where time is being lost and which processes could quietly be made easier. Their approach is simple: start


small, automate the everyday bottlenecks and give teams back valuable hours. Whether it’s generating management reports, summarising customer feedback or removing repetitive admin, Old.St Labs builds tailored AI workfl ows that fi t how each business already operates. Crucially, the team believe AI


adoption should feel supportive, not stressful. Every project begins with a conversation, in plain English, with real humans who take the time to listen. The goal isn’t to replace jobs, but to free up teams to do what they do best.


For further information


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For a


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31 March 2026


Mondu is a leading European fi ntech off ering innovative B2B fl exible payment solutions, which drive sales and accelerate cash fl ow — paying sellers upfront while off ering buyers short-term fi nancing.


YOUR SWISS ARMY KNIFE FOR B2B PAYMENTS Whether you want to off er trade credit and fl exible payment terms to your buyers, or defer your supplier payments, Mondu has the solution. • Increase sales and conversion by off ering fl exible payment options (BNPL) to your business customers.


• Eliminate risk as Mondu handles credit and fraud checks and assumes default risk.


• Improve cash fl ow with upfront payments, while your customers pay later. Additionally, defer your own supplier payments.


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Mondu enables you to offer your business buyers trade credit and fl exible payments options without risk


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