Inter-American Development Bank Awards Uruguay Loan for Services
October 28th, 2011
IDB launches first loan program targeted at outsourcing services in LatAm
By Patrick Haller
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) will provide a loan of ten million dollars, plus three million dollars that will be contributed by the Uruguayan government, in order to foster further development of the nation’s services sector. The IDB office focused on integration and the trade sector in the Southern Cone is based in Montevideo and this helped to promote the regular and fluid interaction between Uruguayan authorities and the IDB representative, and established a permanent dialogue from the very beginning of the loan process.
Uruguay Sourcing Gets Stronger, While IT Woes Become More Apparent
October 10th, 2011
By Patrick Haller
Is Uruguay really the paradise-like destination the country’s trade group, Uruguay XXI, sells it as? The combination of a well educated population, political stability, a solid infrastructure and attractive incentives paints an attractive picture, but other nations in the region, Chile for example, tout the same attributes.
Q/A: Argentina Tech’s Biggest Believer
August 8th, 2011
Kolodziej: "Most people involved in tech are fully fluent in English"
By Patrick Haller
Argentina’s tech sector is thriving, despite a less than stellar level of public sector stimulus. One of the most dynamic and tireless believers in Argentina’s potential is Vanessa Kolodziej – CEO of BA Accelerator, and a co-founder of the popular startup advocacy group, Palermo Valley. We caught up with Kolodziej to find out what’s really behind Argentina’s emergence.
Five Things That Might Scare You About Nearshore Real Estate
August 5th, 2011
By Patrick Haller
Nearshore countries say they want the IT and BPO jobs, but some are apparently not willing or able to provide the office space those jobs require. Dynamics vary from location to location, but finding the right facilities for your business is not typically going to be simple. Here are five risks you should be aware of when sourcing real estate in the region.
BY CHRISTEN CARTER
This year brings a number of beginnings for APAC Customer Services Inc. – it’s opening a new call center in Uruguay. A new CEO is at the helm and the company is expanding into the technology and financial services industries. Will the company be able to carry last year’s growth into a new year replete with changes?
“I think it’ll be a good year,” said David J. Koning, an analyst with Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc. He predicts that APAC will start the year with slower growth because of start-up costs associated with a new customer, but he sees a stronger second half that will allow APAC to finish the year with better-than-industry growth rates.
APAC handles customer call centers for a variety of industries ranging from retail to healthcare. Two of its largest clients include United Parcel Service Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. When …
By Tarun George
In 2004 when Tata Group boss Ratan Tata and then TCS CEO Subramanian Ramadorai started searching for a springboard into Latin America, they were skeptical of Uruguay. One visit to the country convinced them however, and today the TCS operation there has grown to more than 800 employees, and TCS Latin America is even larger. A late entry into the sourcing game, Uruguay has been making strides in IT services. But its limited labor pool is continually cited as the one obstacle that could derail its success in years to come. Concerns of scalability, decentralized leadership and state control of infrastructure and utilities lead us to believe that Uruguay still needs to define a clear outward focus on international sourcing. The country’s government is trying to do just that, but will it be enough?
