Staff augmentation from Latin America to Israel
By Pablo Wahnon
Outsourcing IT services, such as software, has been growing steadily. Techunting added a key market like Israel, which brings globally recognized quality assurance.
“Startup Nation“, as Israel is often called, is a key player in the digital age in every sense. Numerous large American companies have acquired Israeli startups to strengthen themselves and remain competitive. Whether in Biotech, Security, Artificial Intelligence, or Communications, their innovation impacts multiple areas.
However, everything changed on October 7. The country, focused on growth and developing more science and technology to add value to the world, had to start fighting to keep its borders safe. As the armed conflict escalated, many young people were called to the front lines, including many technical teams working in renowned tech companies.
“Long before this, far from that country, the phone rang. It wasn’t an email; they called me directly”; recalls Marcelo Teselman, COO of Techunting.
From its inception, Techunting focused on nearshoring, taking advantage of the close time zone with the United States to provide software outsourcing services. They supply companies with the specialized programmers needed for various tasks. These “coders”, are in high demand, and finding and retaining them is often a significant challenge. Many companies prefer to outsource these services to third-party companies like Teselman’s.
Techunting’s Leadership Javier Martinez Rubio, CEO, and Marcelo Teselman, COO of Techunting.
The call came from Audiocodes, an Israeli company creating key software and IT services for businesses and communication service providers. “Before calling us, they had done extensive research to understand who we were and our reliability. They spoke with other unicorns, clients, and technology leaders. They also saw my commitment to Jewish culture from my studies at ORT. Audiocodes not only wanted to meet their talent needs but also wanted integration with the culture of Israeli companies, including their holiday calendar and other aspects”, explains Teselman.
Entering the Israeli market was not in Techunting’s immediate plans, but the opportunity allowed them to showcase that Argentine talent could meet the highest technical demands. “Today, when a client sees that we work with Israel, they perceive a quality offer beyond what ISO standards indicate, which we also hold. “The war, on the other hand, increased the needs of Israeli companies, and Argentina now has a great opportunity to forge a strategic alliance between the two countries.
Techunting was founded by Javier Martinez Rubio, its CEO, and Marcelo Teselman, based on their mutual knowledge from working in the IT world. Both had a passion for technology and for managing and forming work teams, which they combined at Techunting. The company is based in the United States, but its operational staff is mainly in Argentina, with teams in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and marketing resources in Miami and Madrid.
Argentine software outsourcing companies are gaining recognition abroad. A path initiated by Globant, which is now listed on Wall Street with a market cap of around USD 10 billion, and followed by other companies like Techunting, offering more specialized services and direct client engagement. “We are in the Top 5 in Clutch´’s ranking for the US and Latin America, which is very significant in our market,” highlights Teselman.
Techunting’s Growth
“The market values that we are from Argentina; it’s not just about being cheap but also about our competitive rates, commitment, and especially the flexibility of our talent to do more than just what’s asked. It’s about adding value by showing clients new alternatives or things they hadn’t considered,”says Teselman.
A key for these organizations is talent management. Retaining coders and IT support personnel requires detailed knowledge of their needs. “Our HR collaborators and our strategy of staying close to our team since the beginning are critical”, Teselman points out.
COVID-19 provided a conceptual boost for companies offering “staff augmentation“ services, integrating external employees into software and services, as companies realized remote work was feasible.
However, this presents a challenge in maintaining corporate culture and consolidating the team. “We work hard to spread our culture among our talent and also with our clients’ cultures, using various methods, even something as simple as having a coffee cup with the client’s logo. Understanding culture is central for talent to add value and be part of the solution, not the problem, adds Teselman.
An example of understanding needs emerged during the Qatar World Cup. Gabriel Lorenzatti, working for one of their clients, DMI, made a special request: he wanted to fulfill his dream of seeing a World Cup he believed would be historic. “We knew Gabriel, his capability, and commitment to work. It’s crucial today that sometimes it doesn’t matter where you are, but that you’re enthusiastic. We didn’t hesitate to grant Gabriel’s request and discussed it with DMI, who also trusted our decision”; comments Teselman.
The result was a double reward. Argentina won the World Cup.
Gabriel Lorenzatti saw Messi, and his work was of high quality. So much so that he won an award as DMI’s best programmer. “This shows the importance of aligning with our talent’s needs. It’s not just about doing the job but doing it excellently,” emphasizes Teselman.
The company’s outlook for this year shows significant growth. “For example, in Audiocodes, we are adding 30 more people to the 16 we already had working. We are on a growth path of 70 to 80% annually.
Once we established a robust culture and had successful cases across various clients and industries, we felt solid enough to move to the next stage. Entering Israel, the most challenging market in terms of high-tech quality and succeeding, fills us with confidence. We know we can compete in the big leagues that seek quality, commitment, and leadership,” concludes Teselman.
This article is an excerpt from Forbes. You can find the original article here.
