Software development is one of the predominant sectors with the potential to cause explosive growth due to geographic advantages. This is especially true as foreign companies seek to increase their digital presence in the pandemic’s wake. This is the case in Latin America, a fertile ground for creating a development center in a geographically strategic location for both European and US companies looking to develop software overseas.

Let’s dive into the key features of Latin America that make it the perfect place to expand your team and improve your entire business.

Qualified people 

One reason for the increase in the number and quality of software developers in Latin America is the region’s robust education programs and initiatives. Many countries provide free college education, particularly in computer science, technology, engineering, and related fields.

Consider the case of Uruguay, which emphasizes equitable access to technology and adds this to all aspects of its approach to CS education. Also, Chile proposed a more robust CS curriculum for primary students, including robotics and block-based programming.

To see how this is happening in most LATAM countries, look at the following chart about the growing percentage of graduates In Science And Engineering over the percentage of total tertiary graduates.

(Source: The World Bank – TCdata360)

Workday Overlap 

LATAM has a convenient time zone (GMT-6 to GMT-3) for working with the US market, making it excellent for keeping in touch with software developers. Management comes naturally with an entire working day that overlaps US time zones. People can attend meetings simultaneously and be at the table during meaningful product development conversations with customers; there is never a significant decision that LATAM teams miss because of the time difference.

Even though LATAM people can work with European countries such as Spain and UK, LATAM people can work efficiently, becoming an operational workforce from GMT-8 to GMT+2. This is especially important to achieve fast time-to-market due to responsive collaboration between active positions and developers.

English proficiency

According to the 2021 edition of EF’s English Proficiency Index (EPI), LATAM countries show a moderate to high level of proficiency, with some leading the region and ranking 30th in the world, such as Argentina. Howdy vets their software engineers for language proficiency to ensure all are fluent in English so there will never be any communication barriers between you and your team. 

Government incentives

Many government and nonprofit programs incentivize tech companies, organizations, and other businesses to hire interns, encouraging citizens to pursue careers in the field. Also, several countries have amended their tax systems, with significant benefits resulting. Colombia, for example, is aggressively promoting foreign investment by offering tax breaks, Free Trade Zones (FTZs), and other hiring and investment benefits. And the same happens with Uruguay.

Chile, for example, relies on private companies and nonprofit partners for expertise in teacher training and student engagement activities. In Argentina, this year, the government also launched the second stage of “Argentina Programa,” a program that plans to train 60,000 young programmers so that they have equal access to jobs in the software sector.

Cultural familiarity 

Cultural fit should be one of the major concerns when choosing to expand your teams abroad.

Generally, US companies will face less cultural conflict in LATAM than in other parts of the world. Luckily, Latin American people have many cultural elements in common with the American people. Lower cultural barriers mean better communication from the start and a faster, more robust connection between your company’s in-house team and the outsourced team of software developers.

It is beneficial to share workplace expectations regarding deadlines, communication styles, remote work policies, and quality standards to maximize partnership. Also, they share the same work ethics, type of mentality, approach to problems, and intellectual curiosity.

LATAM people watch the same shows, listen to the same music and watch almost the same sports as US people (maybe more Soccer and less Baseball 😉). But also, it’s suitable just for small talks before meetings or breaks. But it all comes together, and sharing the same culture with the US is an essential benefit for the LATAM software development industry.

Howdy is the Ideal Partner to Help You Get Started:

Look no further than Howdy for a dependable partner to help you hire and manage software engineers in Latin America. 

• Robust Infrastructure: Your remote software engineers can be located in one of our seven offices located in US time zones, allowing us to provide a level of employee retention, team culture, and communication that no other “hiring” platform can match. 
• Proven Track Record: We have built up an impressive track record of success, with a 98% satisfaction rate among our developers.  
• Complete Management: In addition to helping you hire and manage software engineers, we offer various other services designed to help your business succeed. These include compliance, procurement, payroll, taxes, and benefits. Around-the-clock support means you can always reach us when you need assistance. 
• Mentoring Support: Our local mentoring teams dedicate themselves to helping your team members feel happy and productive in their work, resulting in developers with long tenure and low turnover. These teams consist of experienced engineers who are an extension of your teams, providing valuable on-the-ground resources and technical support to developers. 

Register today to start building your team.