Argentina

More near shore than offshore

A new road
Innovation is the magic that takes place when people, teams and organizations are in touch and are committed with a project. In a globalize world teams that work together win. In Argentina there are people, teams and organizations ready to be close to your project.
Thanks to the offer of high value-added products and services, Argentina is opening a new road: get the world to know the country's competitive advantages and opportunities related to Software and Services. The positive change in macroeconomic conditions, together with the vision and capacity of a group of entrepreneurs, are fostering strategic alliances with international markets, and have developed a strong industry that is ready to offer a highly competitive proposal to the world.

Why Argentina?

• Highly qualified human resources
• State-of-the-art telecommunications and information technology infrastructure
• Leader in spanish-content products
• Argentina is in the same time zone as Eastern USA
• New laws for software industry development
• Highly competitive prices of products and services

Law of software development
This law set that software production must be considered as a productive transformation activity similar to an industrial activity in order to receive the tax, credit and other benefits established for the industrial sector by the National Government. This laws allowed to set the foundations to increase sector competitiveness.

Technology
The local telecommunication networks have been expanded and renewed during the last decade. All network technologies are now digital with almost 15 million lines installed. This means 45 lines/100 people, the largest operation in South America.
At the same time the latest telephone technologies and peripherals became available, including CRM and call center management software resources.
As a result of increased technological investment, state-of-the-art technology and infrastracture worldwide is available to local teleservice companies to provide voice, e-mail, chat, VoIP, web collaboration and other services.

Services
Call Center activities include a wide range of services such as: Telesales - Customer Care & Service - Default Management- Crisis Management - Polls - Interview Generation - Subscriptions - Help Desk- Data Survey- Fundraising - Interactive Internet Services and response to all sort of enquiries. More than 50.000 telephone operators are working now.

Experience and Trends
The expertise of most local providers include more than 10-year world class services to international companies. Local Call Centers have gained international experience thanks to their recent involvement in the Spanish-speaking market. As reported by the local newspapers, a number of multinationals such as IBM, AOL, Marriott Hotels and American Express have taken advantage of the local scenario to base their Call Center operations. Their telephone business operations have been moved to Argentina based on local service quality and costs. Thousands of Argentines are now making telephone calls abroad to offer business benefits.

Web services
In the last decade, many venture capitals invested in the velopment of Latin America scale dot.com companies from Buenos Aires.
Many of them have become regional e-enablers providing services to European and American corporations. IT marketing outsourcing services are a strong option no only because IT industry in Argentina was developed during .com golden years as the bigest in Latinamerica, but also cause enterteinment and adverticing industry is a traditional player global.
Buenos Aires is a regional hub for retail and entertainment Internet services and a potential global player for the marketing industry.

It services
Argentina presents a solid case for offshore software development and maintenance outsourcing. The main elements that support this statement are:

• Argentina boosts a large and well trained pool of software engineers. Its infrastructure is the best in the region. Highest level of tertiary education in Latin America. Leaders in mathematical development in Latin America.
• The country has become very cost competitive due to the January 2002 peso devaluation.
• Latin America in general, and Argentina in particular have geographical advantages to traditional Asian destinations. Its proximity to the US, and the fact that the time difference is almost negligible, eliminates many of the difficulties and hidden costs of offshore outsourcing. Teams in the US and in Argentina can interact naturally and frequently during the same working hours
• The three points raised above are fostering a very fast revolution in Argentina's software industry and it is expected that the country will become an important player in the offshore outsourcing business in the near future.
• Some organizations are already incorporating Argentina in their lists of possible destinations for offshore outsourcing
• Additionally, many multinational corporations have opened software factories in Argentina. Leading examples are Motorola, NEC, and IBM. And others are close to announce the opening like Siemens, Oracle and Intel.
• Realizing the potential impact in the country's economy, the Argentine Government has launched several initiatives to support the industry and to make sure to comply with international standars in terms of applicable laws such as intellectual property protection. New software law and 10 years strategic plan for the sector include concrete benefits for software companies.

Call centers services
Argentina's advantages as an option for remote operation of contact centers worldwide. The size and features of the local population enable easy access to highly-trained multilingual teleoperators with the ethical and service principles required for the role. This adds value to their careers as it enables access and additional experience in the labor market. Regarding their education, the media contents involved, their Internet skills and their trips abroad, local teleoperators are fully acquainted with Western lifestyles and culture.