Transparency
How We Score the World
Our 5 Non-Negotiable Rules
GemmWork's editorial process operates independently of its affiliate relationships. These rules are enforced without exception.
No placement fees
We do not accept payment to rank a service higher. Ever.
No pre-publication review
Affiliate partners never see our scores or analysis before publication.
Score immutability
GEMM scores are algorithmic. No manual override is permitted.
Parallel analysis
Every affiliate partner's official claims are presented alongside our independent analysis on all comparison pages.
Negative findings published
If our analysis finds a risk or limitation, it is published — regardless of affiliate status. See Brazil's compliance stickiness rating (High) as an example.
Key Takeaways
GemmWork earns affiliate commissions from some of the services we recommend. Our scoring is calculated independently using the GEMM framework — not based on those relationships. We do not accept placement fees, sponsored rankings, or advertising from any EOR provider or talent platform.
How GEMM Scores Are Calculated
Every country recommendation in GemmWork is generated by the GEMM scoring engine — a deterministic algorithm that calculates a weighted composite score across 6 variables. No human editorial judgment is applied to the rankings. The same inputs always produce the same outputs.
| Variable | Weight | Definition | Why This Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost Efficiency | 25% | Salary savings vs US equivalent. (US Salary − (Local + EOR Fee)) / US Salary | The primary driver of global hiring decisions. Most companies begin with cost. |
| Cultural Proximity | 20% | English proficiency, timezone overlap vs EST, US business culture alignment | Communication failure is the #1 cause of remote team breakdown. |
| Compliance Stickiness | 15% | Ease of exit — severance law, EOR limits, misclassification penalties | Exit costs are systematically underestimated at hire time. |
| AI Workflows IQ | 15% | AI tool adoption rate + Agentic Workflow Readiness (AWR). Formula: TP×0.4 + AWR×0.6 | AI-native roles now represent the majority of senior tech hiring. |
| PE Risk (inverse) | 15% | Permanent establishment risk under OECD 2025 rules. Higher score = lower risk | A single PE event can cost more than 3 years of EOR fees. |
| Data Risk (inverse) | 10% | Data privacy law exposure (GDPR, DPDP, LGPD). Higher score = lower risk | Relevant for ~30% of use cases; weighted lower to avoid over-penalizing. |
These weights adjust automatically based on your inputs. See adjustment rules →
How Weights Adjust Based on Your Inputs
The default weights above apply to most company profiles. GemmWork's engine automatically adjusts weights based on specific inputs:
These adjustments are applied automatically in the GEMM Navigator. The adjusted weights are shown in your results PDF report.
Our Affiliate Relationships
GemmWork participates in affiliate programs. When you sign up for a service through our links, we may earn a commission — at no additional cost to you. Below is a complete list.
| Partner | Commission | Use Case | Our Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deel | $500 + $1,000 | EOR hiring, any country | Independently scored |
| Remote.com | 10–15% rev share | EOR alternative to Deel | Independently scored |
| Toptal | $2,000/client | CON/FRC talent sourcing | Independently scored |
| Oyster HR | $300–500 | EOR for budget-conscious | Independently scored |
| Firstbase.io | 10% | EOR exit → US entity setup | Independently scored |
| Wise | ~$40–50 | Cross-border payments (talent) | Independently scored |
| Payoneer | $25 | Alternative to Wise | Independently scored |
| NordVPN | 40–100% 1st mo | Data security for remote workers † | Independently scored |
| DocuSign | $25–100 | Contract signing for CON/FRC | Independently scored |
† NordVPN: Recommended only for talent-side users handling client data across jurisdictions.
All links to these services route through gemmwork.io/go/[partner], which records the click before redirecting. We never receive placement fees, and our GEMM scores are not visible to any partner before publication.
Data Sources and Freshness
| Data Type | Primary Sources | Last Verified | Next Review |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salary data | Near, South, Howdy, Mismo | Annual (2026) | Annual |
| EOR pricing | Direct verification with providers | August 2025 | August 2026 |
| Employer tax rates | Official government sources, EY, KPMG | August 2025 | August 2026 |
| Severance / exit costs | Local labor law, EOR documentation | August 2025 | August 2026 |
| PE risk rules | OECD Model Tax Convention, EY, KPMG | April 2026 ✓ | Within 48hrs of change |
| Data privacy laws | Official government sources, Garrigues | April 2026 ✓ | Within 48hrs of change |
| AI talent metrics | GitHub, Kaggle, Coursera, HackerRank | Semi-annual | Semi-annual |
| EF EPI (English) | EF Education First | Annual | Annual (Oct) |
dateModified timestamp. This is enforced — not aspirational.