From a business and personnel point of view, limited DEC recruiting may be necessary for extremely young or start-up operation. However, as industry history has demonstrated, DECs often do not survive long-term, unless they are also 1) Significant investors and/or 2) Senior makers of flight operations policy - Management Captains.
That poor slog of a DEC joining a rice or sand airline that is in the midst of a mid-life growth crisis will be resented by most other captains, all FOs(*) and may be lucky to stay around long enough to complete his(her) contract. As soon as a few company-owned and barely qualified FOs have the minimum hours, you get a polite thank you (or not) and perhaps a ticket home. Expat DEC's are a necessary business expense for a growing airline
and nothing more.
If you hire-on/fly as DEC for a new airline under your own national flag, retention beyond 3-4 years is likely dependent upon you level of stock ownership and your direct contribution to operational policy.
The smart DEC should expect exceptionally good money coupled with Zero love and even negative respect. And again my friends, that is a business and operations perspective, not a pilot's perspective. (I can fly, but yet again, I'm NOT a Big Shiny Jet driver...) In the end, all DEC offers are...
.