Why Outsourcing

Our lives and our workplace were changed forever in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This virus struck the world and left in its wake permanent change that affected all our lives. We as individuals learned a great amount from this pandemic as it taught some of us how to work more efficiently from home. 

As many departments were sent home to work, companies came to the realization that they no longer needed as much physical workspace as before. Reinitiating the worlds economy is going to take a lot of hard work and financial maneuvering. Many institutions will be pressed to find alternatives that will be both cost effective and easy to scale. One of the most attractive options for companies large and small will be outsourcing talent from Latin America. This will be the one of the U.S.’s and Canada’s beacons of hope towards a quick, efficient and cost-effective, economic recovery. 

Outsourcing is not new to some in the corporate world, as it has been an effective avenue for forming global partnerships for decades. But what does outsourcing mean in the context of a post-Covid world? Let’s dive deep into reasons why outsourcing can offer quality-focused solutions with a high value proposition while offering high cost-effectiveness. Contact us for more info.

Let’s start with the most obvious reason why outsourcing is even an option for US/Canadian companies looking southward towards the Latin American region. First off, Latin American companies surpass India and China when it comes to English proficiencies. It is not uncommon, for example, to find a Latin American who has done most, if not all, his academic studies in his home country but has done his University level studies in the United States or Canada. There is also an array of bilingual primary and secondary schools across all of Latin America. Furthermore, English language learning centers are also found in large numbers throughout the region offering language proficiency programs for those who do not have a more academic option. In addition to this, and because of the political instability that has plagued many countries in Latin America, it is not unlikely to find talent that has spent a good amount of time in the United States or Canada. 

There are also some historical paradigms that have defined language in some areas. For example, the whole east coast of Central America is full of native English speakers. These are large areas that have spoken English for centuries and are a product of British colonization. The legacy of English in Latin America extends its academic and colonial past as English is often the preferred way to do business. The most educated persons in Latin America are almost always fluent in English, as it also represents a status symbol and a way of life. On a larger scale, Latin American governments have identified the importance of learning English and have started investing heavily in the last 10 years by developing an array of English training centers throughout the region. 

Another quite obvious attraction to outsourcing to South America is that the time zones are either very close to or similar to that of United States and Canada. This significantly reduces time difference and represents a great advantage when comparing to India and China, whom have a much larger time zone differences. The time difference when working with Latin America allows for a more streamlined communication where response times between teams are faster and as a result you have a far more synchronous workplace.

In addition to time zone similarities, both U.S./Canada and Latin America have been strongly influenced by European civilizations. Although there are certainly large cultural differences between the two, one will find almost identical work styles and business approaches between these two regions. This makes it easier for professionals from both sides to create and collaborate. Latin Americans are also known to have a tendency for communicating more openly and directly. This usually leads to a more creative approach towards problem solving. 

Nearshoring is a novel term that is used to describe outsourcing when it is done closer to national borders. Places like Mexico and the entire Central America region, for example, have many direct flights to the United States into hubs like Atlanta, Houston, Miami, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York.  Depending on flights, this can result in a 2- to 4-hour commutes, allowing companies the ability to easily visit their teams or bring up talent to their home office. It only requires a short flight away. Contact us for more info.

Companies are becoming more and more diverse. At present, this is reflected in how they recruit their personnel. Companies waking up to a more interconnected world are beginning to realize the importance diversity plays in creating a better and more well rounded company culture. Overall, diversity and inclusion brings different experiences and backgrounds together while simultaneously creating high performance and innovative environments. Hiring someone from another country brings with it new ideas and philosophies that cater to a diverse environment and help companies stay ahead of the curve.

Another aspect to consider is the growing level of Internet connectivity that helps businesses hire remotely. This is something that we could only dream of a decade ago. For most of Latin America, it just wasn’t an option to offer the talents of a virtual graphic designer or round up a team of bilingual speakers to handle the back end of a customer service campaign. Countries in Latin America had Internet, but bandwidths were extremely low and there were constant connectivity problems. This is no longer true, as many of Latin America’s largest cities are connected to the Internet via fiber optic networks. This allows for clients from the U.S. and Canada to have several professional hiring options that can work for them remotely. The sky’s the limit when it comes to job creation in Latin America. If it can be done remotely, than there’s probably a talent out there that can be hired to add value to your company.

Social impact is something that is quite evident when hiring remotely from abroad. Hiring remotely in the underdeveloped world represents greater stability to the family nucleus as the breadwinner is granted greater access to health and education for his family. This will ultimately grant less incentive to emigrate northward to the US or Canada. Overall the social impact that comes from hiring in Latin America constitutes a corporate mission that goes beyond just making money to one that also strives to do good for society. More on Social Impact 

Outsourcing is not only an extremely attractive possibility for companies looking to expand and scale their operations, it is also ideal because it offers high value at much lower costs. Nearshore outsourcing is on the rise as countries in Latin America look to encourage free trade between north and south. Outsourcing is steadily gaining speed as call centers and other outsourcing activities have grown almost exponentially. This is a new frontier that comes with a low risk to entry. Hiring cost is lower when compared to U.S./Canadian local hiring options. Trying to outsource from Latin America will either create an interesting cultural experience, or a loyal remote employee that can be trained, supervised, and grown to scale up operations. Outsourcing is a true value proposition that is full of opportunity with very little downside. Contact us today for more information.