Global capability center builders for a 20 to 40 person team
A first global capability center (GCC) of 20 to 40 people needs a builder sized for it. InCommon hires, seats, pays, and runs your India team under one agreement.
Plan my first India teamTeam retention, client by client
Which GCC builder fits a 20 to 40 person team?
Any builder can set up the entity. At 20 to 40 people, choose one that also owns the hiring and the day-to-day running of the team. Here is how the four options compare:
| Option | Best when | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Enterprise GCC firm | Your board has approved a program of hundreds | More process than a first team needs |
| Employer of record only | You need a few people before an entity exists | No workspace, leader, or long-term ownership |
| Do it yourself | You already run India hiring, payroll, and legal in house | Each workstream waits on another |
| InCommon | You want one partner for a first team of 20 to 40 | Not for one-off hires or a software-only tool |
Below 20 people, direct hiring or an employer of record is often enough.
Is 20 to 40 people a real GCC?
A team of 20 to 40 is a full GCC, even if some buyers call it a nano GCC. It has its own leader, entity, workspace, and operating rhythm. Three or four pods of 8 people make a center of 30 to 35.
What your builder must own
Three things decide whether a first team of 20 to 40 works.
The first leader
Hire the India lead before the team. Everyone after them is measured against their bar.
The hiring bar
Scorecards, interview loop, pay bands, and a replacement plan, all set before sourcing. A team this size has no room for weak hires.
Everything else
Entity, payroll, compliance, devices, and workspace, handled by the same partner that hires your team.
How fast can a 20 to 40 person team go live?
Across our published builds, the answer is anywhere from 4 weeks to 4 months. Incorporation takes about 12 weeks and runs alongside hiring and workspace. To start sooner, use employer of record: Podifi had 9 engineers live in 6 weeks, employed through employer of record with no wait for incorporation.
What a 30 to 60 person budget includes
Plan for 30 to 60 people, even if you start at 20. That is where the model often changes, from employer of record to your own entity, or from one pod to three. Cost each of these before the plan goes to your board:
- Salaries for each role and seniority level, not one blended average
- Employer provident fund and gratuity, budgeted from the first offer
- Recruiting costs, with the first leader and senior engineers costed separately
- Devices, endpoint security, and software licenses
- Managed workspace, until you know how big the team will get
- Payroll, accounting, and compliance management
- Transfer pricing, once your India entity starts billing the parent company
- Replacement risk, because every early exit costs a new search, a notice-period wait, and ramp time for the next hire
Once the team is meant to be permanent, model your own entity before employer of record becomes a habit.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a GCC builder?
A company that sets up and runs an India capability center for a parent company, from the entity and the hiring to payroll, workspace, and day-to-day operations.
Is 20 to 40 people too small for a GCC?
No. It is a good size for a first center if the team owns real work, such as a product area or a data function. It is too small only when it is a loose group of hires with no plan.
Should we use an employer of record first?
Yes, if you need people before your entity is ready, or you are still testing the India plan.
Do we need our own office for a 20 to 40 person team?
Not at first. Managed workspace lets you add desks as the team grows, without a 3 to 5 year lease or a fit-out project.
Plan your first 20 to 40 people
Bring your roles and a target start date. We'll talk through your roles, the first pod, and whether to start on an entity or employer of record. You'll talk to the people who would run it.
Talk through my first team