Europe’s Economic Woes Push Spain’s Everis Deeper into the Americas

By Luke Bujarski

The gloomy economic situation in Europe has not stopped Spain’s Everis from turning obstacles into opportunities, both overseas as well as on the European continent. However, with clear operational and cultural ties to Latin America, Nearshore Americas predicts that this IT consulting and services giant will be making big strategic moves to expand its regional presence here, particularly as it finds the path of least resistance in serving markets in Mexico, Brazil and the US from its Chilean center. We sat down with Patricia García, General Managing Partner with Everis Chile to understand how a Spanish-born player is scaling up, despite Europe’s mounting economic turmoil.

With over 1,000 employees in Chile and a new office in Washington DC, Garcia confirmed that expansion through the America’s will not be slowing down anytime soon.

NSAM: What is the five-year growth forecast for Everis and how would you prioritize Latin America as part of your global strategy?

Garcia: Latin America will continue to play an important role Everis. In fact, Chile was our first office opened outside of Spain. These markets have room for continued growth in strategic sectors such as industry, public sector, banking, telecommunications and mining, to name a few. Everis currently has 10,000 professionals worldwide, distributed in 14 countries in Europe, Latin America and the United States. Chile’s office represents 10% of our staff.

NSAM: What about the United States?

Garcia: Everis began operations last year in the United States by opening its first office in Washington, as part of our global growth strategy. We see it as a natural expansion due to the size of the market and the possibilities presented here.

NSAM: How will your Nearshore locations in Latin America play into your overall strategy to serve local and US clients?

Garcia: For Everis Chile, the United States is a strategic market and we expect to provide comprehensive services to current and prospective clients. Specifically, our delivery center in Temuco (Araucania Region) will generate a lot of opportunity to serve US customers. Our successes in Temuco represent the decentralization of the Chilean global services market (away from Santiago), and of course, a real opportunity for growing our business both domestically and internationally.

NSAM: What services and solutions have the highest growth potential for Everis Latin America? BPO, IT services, consulting?

Garcia: All of the sectors in which we participate have grown in recent times, and we expect this trend to continue. In addition, we note with interest the development of our new business unit focused on innovation in mobile applications, particularly as they relate to the environment and sustainability.

NSAM: Which Latin American country holds the most promise for Everis and why?

Garcia: Each country in the region has its advantages. Clearly by volume, Brazil and Mexico are of key importance but we see a favorable scenario across all of Latin America. This includes Chile due to a stable economy, high quality professionals, and leadership of Chilean companies that have gone outside of the local market to become conglomerates on a global level.

NSAM: As a Spanish company, how has the recent economic turmoil in Europe affected your operations globally?

Garcia: We are a multinational company with extensive knowledge of the markets that we operate in. Our global growth over the last decade has been steady, both in revenue and in the number of professionals. Regarding the current situation, we are cautious before making premature judgments. We believe that the current economic challenges are also an opportunity to find added efficiencies, particularly in the area of technology-enabled services.