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How Venture-Backed Startups Harness Talent & Grow by Hiring LATAM Developers

by Mari Hochnedel    |    January 31, 2023    |      7 min read

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With innovation moving at a phenomenal pace, startups have no time to waste in ‘now hiring’ mode. In today’s changing business landscape, companies found that hiring remote LATAM developers is a unique and fast-growing opportunity to tap into a rich talent pool that can catapult them into the next stage of development. 

And with tech innovation needed in every sector, the war for tech talent is fierce. Talented software developers are difficult to find, and startups often struggle to compete for talent— especially when a tech talent shortage has them in low supply. Hiring Latin American software developers might be the answer. 

VC firms back companies with innovative potential and the capacity to bring the product to fruition. A venture-backed startup is working against the clock to deliver on its ideas. The pace of digital transformation and the need for robust digital infrastructures depends on talented software developers to build these systems. Growing your team in Latin America is not only possible, but it offers a solution to your company’s rapid expansion. 

When a company needs to expand and create quickly without increased risk or expenditures, hiring developers in Latin America presents an opportunity to capitalize on the growing tech talent supply in the region and build committed remote teams. 

Here’s how hiring remote LATAM developers helps companies scale and grow operations. 

Venture-Backed Startups in the 20th Century & Today 

America has always been the land of innovation, where ideas can begin in someone’s basement or garage and flourish to become household names. The top companies of the last twenty years—affectionately known as FANMAG (Facebook, Apple, Netflix, Microsoft, Amazon, and Google)— were all venture-backed. 

Self-driven innovation and entrepreneurship are not only an integral part of the American economy but an indispensable component of the American ethos. The entrepreneur embodies many of America’s quintessential ideas of invention, rugged individualism, and persistence. And in the last few decades, the rise of entrepreneurship in technology and big tech companies has captured the business world and the collective imagination alike. Venture capital funding plays a role in growing these ideas. 

The reality is venture capital plays a significant role in the U.S. economy. Venture capital tends to follow dominant and promising industries. It is a way of funding that began around 1946, often credited to Harvard Business School professor Georges Doriot. 

VC firms provide funding for emerging companies with the hope of seeing substantial returns. Their role is to challenge innovators to incubate and feed their ideas to reach a mature level that takes them to the next stage of development. 

Why is the Latin American Tech Ecosystem Attracting New Investment? 

Venture-backed startups look for the most effective way to grow their companies and deliver on their promises. When it comes to the tech industry, this means obtaining the best talent that fuels operations without weighing things down with high costs or hiring lags. The pandemic shone the light on Latin America’s potential as a formidable competitor and talent hub for startups and VC firms. 

In 2021, Latin America was the fastest-growing region for venture capital with investors putting in $19.5 billion to investments. 

According to CB Insights, over $20 bn of venture capital funneled into 952 deals in Latin America in 2021. According to their data, investment in the region has increased tenfold since 2015. Latin America is also home to a growing number of unicorns. This newfound interest has created a burgeoning tech ecosystem across the region, fueling innovation at the company and the individual level. 

Bloomberg Linea asked recent investors in the region’s startup boom why there is so much interest in Latin America today. One investor responded that the talent in the region is phenomenal and houses entrepreneurs with experience in big startups and companies. 

These numbers indicate the confidence and interest the region is attracting in the United States and abroad. Let’s take a closer look at why this is the case. 

#1 LATAM’s Growing Tech Talent Pool 

LATAM has done a good job in producing talented software developers and engineers. The U.S.’ closest neighbor, Mexico, for example, graduates about 130,000 software engineers every year from prestigious institutions. CodersLink works with a talented network of software developers that are highly trained in today’s most in-demand coding languages and technology systems. Mexico’s tech ecosystem is competitive and growing. 

Brazil graduates about 430,000 and Argentina around 134,000 software engineers per year. These numbers have created a growing LATAM tech ecosystem that is eager to grow and connect with the most innovative companies around the world. 

#2 Proximity and Cultural Connections 

In contrast to other markets like Asia and India, setting up shop in Latin America means connecting to a talent pool that is in closer proximity to the United States. In practical terms, this means overlapping time zones and more cultural similarities that allow for faster integration. Developers in Latin America are also usually fluent in English. Our research showed that 40%-50% of the IT population in Mexico has an advanced English level and 35-40% have an intermediate level. 

#3 Large-Scale Adoption of Remote Work 

The pandemic accelerated an already growing trend of remote work. After COVID-19, it seems that the entire business landscape went through a significant overhaul and is adapting to new structures. Among these, is the flexi-work and remote work models that have facilitated the possibility for diverse teams working across borders. 

Ready to hire top tech talent?

How One Venture-Backed Startup Grew Its Team by Using Mexican Software Developers 

At CodersLink, we’ve helped companies make the best of their funding by taking their operations to the next stage of development through talent recruitment and staff augmentation. For example, Parlevel Systems, which provides innovative vending technology tools for the food and beverage industries, worked with CodersLink to grow its operations. 

As the company experienced considerable growth, it needed to deliver on its product’s development without crumbling existing momentum. This meant having to almost instantaneously expand talent search, sourcing, payroll, and benefits management. Once they received financial backing, the pressure was on for them to quickly scale their operations. 

Through CodersLink, they found an all-in-one solution that could help with all of the various aspects of growing their operations effectively. CodersLink augmented the company’s existing development team using elite remote software developers. At the same time, we provided payroll and benefits management through a flexible staff in Mexico. 

CodersLink’s established network of a vetted talent pool means a level of flexibility.  Parlevel could access this pool of skilled tech workers and developers as their operations required it. 

Help With Finding and Hiring the Right Talent 

Finding the right talent is at the top of most companies’ priority lists. Working with companies like CodersLink, allows a company to tap into a vetted talent pool, thereby reducing hiring costs. 

The Results? 

Parlevel found a solution to manage their quick expansion and were able to retain several developers to join their team long-term. They streamlined several other essential tasks such as running payroll, benefits, and taxes through one single invoice that reduced overall operational costs. 

Hire Remote LATAM Developers and Grow Your Company

How does hiring remote LATAM developers help companies take growth to the next level? In a nutshell, countries like Mexico have an increasing level of talent, and here’s why they present benefits to hiring companies. 

  • A good software developer’s salary in Mexico is often 40-60% less than a developer’s salary in the United States. Read our full tech salaries report for in-depth salary comparisons. 
  • Trade agreements such as USMCA facilitate working with countries like Mexico. These trade agreements offer security, established regulations, and protections for both sides. 
  • Build dedicated remote teams by using qualified and skilled software developers. 
  • Find a recruitment agency that assists with payroll, benefits, taxes, and other legal and logistical challenges of hiring abroad.  Having these aspects taken care of eliminates the stress and risk of performing these duties in-house. 

How CodersLink Helps Companies Grow and Scale Operations  

Integrating remote tech teams or remote software developers is not free from logistical challenges. Coderslink specializes in providing solutions for these challenges and common pitfalls. Are you ready to build your software development team in Latin America? 

Learn about the options companies have when hiring remote developer teams in Latin America. 

We tailor our services to help companies connect with the right talent based on their immediate and long-term goals. We provide software outsourcing, staff augmentation, and help with Build, Operate, Transfer services. 

Get started with CodersLink today. 

 

    

Tech Salaries 2023

Mexico tech salaries report 2023: the top IT salary guide for Mexico and Latin America

The battle for tech talent is in full swing. This comprehensive report serves as a multi-dimensional look into the unique and growing tech hiring market in Mexico and Latin America. The Mexico Tech Salaries Report 2023 serves as a useful salary guide and benchmarking tool for companies looking to stay competitive and snatch up the region’s best developers, engineers, and tech talent.