Globant, a software company founded in Argentina in 2003, plans to continue its growth in Latin America and, as part of its strategy, has ruled out new acquisitions in the region and further afield. I have not.
Latin America accounts for approximately 22% of Grovant’s global revenues, with approximately two-thirds of its employees working in the region, serving both Latin American and global markets.
The last Latin American country to expand was Ecuador, which started operations in Guayaquil in 2021 and then opened an office in Quito.
The company has been very active on acquisitions in the last year, acquiring digital marketing firm Vertic, which allowed it to launch operations in Denmark. It also acquired Australian digital his commerce company eWave, Italian technology consulting firm Sysdata, and low-code company Genexus.
These acquisitions are aimed at expanding our capabilities with new products and services and expanding our international footprint.
In this interview, Diego Schargorodsky, Executive VP of the company, discusses BNamericas and the growth opportunities in the region.
Namericas: What opportunities do you see for growth in Latin America?
Shargolotsky: We want to be a leader in technology services in every country where we operate: 25 countries worldwide and 9 in Latin America.
We are a company born in the south of South America, especially in Argentina, where our founders are from, but we also have a strong presence in Chile and Uruguay. We are moving north.
We have a big challenge in Brazil. So we acquired a company that specializes in Salesforce. This is part of our global strategy. Because we did the same thing with our acquisition in Colombia. In this acquisition, Globant acquired a company specializing in digital marketing that complements the services it had in its core business.
We also acquired another digital marketing company in Mexico. This company has infiltration into other territories and has the capabilities of a creative agency, which we didn’t have.
We have decided to start our operations in Ecuador in 2021 and continue to grow there. We decided to launch a mixed operation in Quito and Guayaquil. We have talent for clients from Ecuador and the world.
What we have decided is the idea that if a place has a critical mass, it also has a physical presence. [Colombia, Chile, Peru and Argentina, respectively] …they are signs of a federal nature in all latitudes.
We also established operations in Costa Rica and opened an office in Monterrey [Mexico] …. Even during the pandemic we had our own place in Miami.
We will accompany you in your business development wherever you need it.
Namericas: Earlier you mentioned inorganic growth. Do you plan to continue with acquisitions?
Shargorodsky: yes. It’s a global project. Globant is very interested in continuing to grow in this way, but it is also our main driver.
We bought a company in Australia, bought another in Italy a few months ago, and also in Denmark. We try to reach out everywhere we think our services are in demand.
Namericas: How has this crisis affected hiring and growth at tech companies?
Shargorodsky: Rising costs are a temporary problem that technology companies are experiencing. This has reduced the level of activity and growth. First and foremost, there are those who are suffering from the consequences of a slowdown in growth models at the global level.
The second problem is that the tech company’s business ecosystem is suffering. Some companies have more problems than others, but the industry as a whole contributes to the consequences.
We have not been affected by layoffs and have never stopped hiring. There are still prospects for growth, maybe not as fast as last year, but there’s no going back.
In systole there is an opportunity. In situations like this, those who invest a lot in transforming themselves become stronger.
We continue to invest in technology, acquire companies, research and develop things like Generative AI and the Metaverse, and are serious about Web 3.0.
Namericas: Enthusiasm for the Metaverse seems to be waning. Some companies are shutting down the departments that were responsible for the metaverse. What future does Grovant see for that?
Shargorodsky: There are always things that stay and things that don’t. We worked with the Metaverse on staff onboarding. Virtual support for employees is important, even though it’s now done in person. This is an example of what stays.
We are also focusing on digital twins that are closer to the metaverse.
The topic of virtual shows hasn’t completely disappeared. In the world of entertainment, the metaverse is unstoppable and many consumer goods companies are supporting it.
Namericas: What about generative AI?
Shargorodsky: We started working with AI long ago because the ethical dilemma that technology poses will not appear in 2023.
Today there are more and more cases of activity optimization and even our own industry programming new software.
Namericas: What other use cases are there for generative AI?
Shargorodsky: Many uses are found and they are very diverse. I’ve also created music using AI.
There are some cases with clients who don’t want much to be known, but there are many cases on how artificial intelligence is used in determining credit risk.
We make extensive use of more traditional and more advanced analytical models, and are currently working on sophistication to include AI.
Namericas: What are Globant’s main goals in Latin America?
Shargorodsky: We will definitely strengthen our position in Brazil and Mexico. We need to grow more aggressively in these areas than ever before.
The second big goal is to diversify the services we offer. In some countries, we are fully immersed in everything we do, while in others, we specialize in some service offerings and need to provide greater depth across the company’s portfolio. I have.
Another objective is how we give back to the community we operate with what the community has given us. As such, we have a series of actions that relate to our social responsibility. We are working on all of this everywhere.
