Mexico has the largest IT industry in Latin America, with rapidly expanding tech talent pools, over $21 billion in exports, and a unique laboring culture that makes it a great place for IT organizations. The government is investing in, and multinational tech firms and VCs are heavily investing in the country's growing IT sector. Mexico has become a benchmark for assembling, aviation, and fintech enterprises globally, and American companies can capitalize on Mexico's surplus of tech talent, with the cost of talent acquisition being 30-40% lower than in the US or Canada. Kavak, one of Mexico's prodigies, has produced revenue even during the pandemic, grown significantly since its foundation, and aims to expand its business to emerging markets outside the region.
The largest IT industry in Latin America is located in Mexico. The country’s tech talent pools are rapidly expanding, graduating over 110,000 engineers each year. With over $21 billion in exports per year, Mexico is the 3rd largest IT exporter globally. With proximity to the US and relatively lower labor costs, this country has become a great place to take advantage of the highly-qualified workforce with a unique laboring culture that will make any IT organization thrive in this competitive business. This article will talk about the perks of hiring tech talent in Mexico and how to do it.
Mexico is a great attraction for foreign investment
Mexico's government is well aware of its workforce's excellent reputation, and that's why the region is now investing in STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and math) training. The country’s IT outsourcing industry has grown at an average 10% annual rate for the past years, and foreign companies are constantly seeking labor opportunities thanks to incentive programs and tax benefits.
Mexico has demonstrated its ability to support tech and economic growth in the region. Moreover, many international tech companies are creating bonds with Mexican organizations, mainly because of the surplus of talent pools. Tech giants like Cisco and Intel have already established headquarters in the region. Multinational tech firms and VCs are also heavily investing in the country's growing IT sector due to highly qualified employees with an excellent work culture.
Mexico’s Tech Hubs
The cities of Guadalajara and Monterrey are being named the Latin America Silicon Valley because private businesses, local government, and academic institutions are working along to position the cities as major IT hubs worldwide. Since 2012, IBM and HP have had a presence in the region, generating over $100 billion. And local startups like Jüsto and Konfío have received more than $150 million from investors.
The country is already home to 600,000 people who hold IT positions and 2,000 IT companies approximately. While some of those companies are established and well-known firms, most of them are startups. One of Mexico’s prodigies is Kavak, which has produced revenue even during the pandemic. This startup has grown since its foundation in 2016 at an average of 25% per month! Now, Kavak has a $4 billion valuation in the market.
Currently operating in Mexico and Argentina and close to starting operations in Brazil, Kavak is seeking expansion in all Latin America over the next 12 months and aims to expand its business to emerging markets outside the region. In April 2021, CEO Carlos García said: “Crossing the Atlantic is one of our ambitions. (...) We see a lot of markets in Europe, in Southeast Asia, and in the Middle East where we could have significant value.”
Top Talent in Mexico’s Universities
For the Mexican government, tech education is of the utmost importance. In order to be competitive at a global scale where technical proficiency is a requirement, Mexico has destined more than the 6% of its GDP towards the improvement of academic institutions since 2010. In contrast, countries like Russia, Switzerland, or Australia have destined lower investments towards their academic growth.
Not only the country produces diverse talent pools at a lower cost than you’ll find within the US, but also a lot of Mexican universities offer highly standardized STEM programs that rank higher than major US academic institutions. As a result, foreign investments are developing the offshoring IT industry in Mexico because the people they employ possess high skills to perform tasks that require a high level of technical expertise.
Proximity and Geopolitical Advantages of Mexico
First, the country’s time zones align with US work hours, enabling real-time collaboration compared to other tech hubs globally. The Mexican culture shares remarkable things with the American way as well. More than a country known for its hardworking people, approximately 12% of the Mexican population is bilingual, which means that over 15 million people speak English.
Even though there’s uncertainty with the diplomatic relations between the neighboring countries of the US and Mexico, private companies of each parties are very interested in keeping favorable conditions while doing business due to the profitable revenues they have been achieving while working together. As the US tech industry continues to grow exponentially, tech companies will keep looking for ways to supplement the demand of the tech workforce, and Mexico will have an essential role in this process.
Tech Infrastructure in Mexico
As stated by the Mexican Internet Association, the country will have 84.1 million internet clients by June 2021. Due to its impressive 4G (And future 5G) network, Mexico is positioning itself as a benchmark for assembling, aviation, and fintech enterprises globally. By the end of 2020, Mexico had more than 126 million dynamic remote lines, with 80% being in metropolitan zones, and thanks to the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), there’s a new window opening for the development of ICT (Information and Communications Technology) firms.
Nowadays, American companies have an incredible opportunity to capitalize on Mexico’s surplus of tech talent. The cost of talent acquisition is 30-40% lower than in the US or Canada. Nevertheless, companies like Teilur Talent manage the hiring process, from recruiting and payroll to international contract compliances. The organization's only job is to interview top candidates and pick the best fit for their culture and long-term goals, and Teilur Talent takes care of the rest.
If you're a CEO or Founder of an innovative startup that is looking for great tech talent, Teilur Talent is the right solution for you!
Teilur Talent is the top IT recruiting and staffing firm in Latin America and you can access to our exclusive network of top Engineers, Software Developers, Product Designers & Data Experts by clicking here.
