A Taste of the Philippines – Sydney CEO Roundtable 2025: Scaling with Culture, Control, and Capability

Last week in Sydney, KMC Solutions hosted a private CEO roundtable at Takam, a contemporary Filipino restaurant known for its refined hospitality and bold flavors. The evening brought together an exceptional group of business leaders for an off-the-record dinner focused on the future of offshore talent, workforce transformation, and the evolving role of global teams in driving sustainable business growth.

More than a networking opportunity, the gathering formed part of KMC’s ongoing executive roundtable series across Asia-Pacific—an initiative designed to create intentional space for honest, solution-focused dialogue among leaders navigating the complexities of cross-border team building.

What an incredible evening we had at A Taste of the Philippines at Takam in Sydney. Hosted by our GM for Australia, Ivan Trajkovski, and Senior Strategic Manager Kristine Abella, the event was an engaging and interactive experience, bringing together current clients, future partners, and business leaders.

Over delicious Filipino cuisine, our clients shared their success stories of scaling their businesses through offshoring with KMC—highlighting how our solutions have driven real growth and operational efficiency. These conversations not only underscored the tangible value KMC brings to the table but also gave our future partners a glimpse into how we can support their journey to scale.

Attendees included senior executives from Jarvis, CCSG, and Innovo Technology, representing high-growth businesses across technology, professional services, and enterprise solutions. While all discussions remained under Chatham House Rule, several key themes emerged—shedding light on how today’s leaders are thinking about offshore strategy and what’s required to succeed in this next chapter of work.

A consistent theme among attendees was the evolution of offshoring from a cost-saving measure to a long-term strategic lever. Many leaders shared how what began as a tactical move had matured into fully integrated offshore teams delivering core business outcomes, shaping culture, and supporting scale with intention.

Today’s offshore workforce isn’t a workaround—it’s a high-performance engine driving innovation, speed, and alignment across global operations.

Executives discussed the limitations of legacy outsourcing and platform-only solutions. Disconnected teams, high attrition, and lack of engagement were cited as persistent challenges. These models, while convenient in theory, often fall short in environments that demand continuity, cultural fit, and results.

In contrast, a full-stack Employer of Record (EOR) approach—one that includes hiring, HR, payroll, compliance, and workspace support—was seen as a superior alternative. It’s not just about structure; it’s about building teams that behave like true extensions of your brand.

Retention surfaced as a top concern across the board. More than just an HR metric, it was framed as a business-critical measure of long-term success. Leaders emphasized that when companies invest in people—through well-being programs, growth opportunities, and employee experience—they don’t just retain talent; they gain loyalty, consistency, and compounded performance.

KMC’s human-first EOR model resonated as a practical solution, with several attendees noting how culture-led offshore strategies are now delivering measurable business returns.

With increasingly distributed workforces, the role of leadership and cultural continuity became a focal point. Executives shared that true offshore alignment requires more than onboarding—it demands constant reinforcement of values, presence, and intentional management across all sites.

The question posed was timely: Are your teams, wherever they are, experiencing leadership in a way that feels connected and clear?

Finally, the importance of operational agility was a common thread. In a business climate where timing often defines outcomes, leaders stressed the need for workforce solutions that are fast to deploy yet grounded in governance and quality.

A partner like KMC—capable of delivering full-stack support from recruitment and compliance to IT and office infrastructure—was viewed not as a luxury, but as a strategic enabler.

“Conversations like this matter—where leaders speak candidly about building teams that perform, stay, and truly align with their business.”

— KMC Teams

What’s Next

KMC will continue these CEO roundtables across Australia and Asia-Pacific, with the next dinner scheduled in Melbourne. These events are more than dinners—they’re part of a broader dialogue shaping how the fastest-growing companies build distributed teams that drive lasting value.