Should I Hire LatAm Finance Talent With Near?

Getting the hiring mix right is vital for companies, regardless of the development stage of their business. Many time-poor creative entrepreneurs aren’t necessarily experts in finance, bookkeeping, or venture capital—this is why it’s so important to find talented finance and corporate analysts to help with these critical business functions.

Many innovative US start-ups and established businesses are looking to Latin America (LatAm) to find the best finance talent to bolster their businesses. Finding the right financial experts to help you meet regulatory requirements (including tax compliance), manage your books, or raise equity to grow your business will help you more effectively compete in rapidly changing markets. 

In this article, we will look at how three companies successfully hired remote financial professionals from LatAm countries with the help of Near.

Case Studies

Case Study 1
Dry Line Partners LLC
Role Hired: Private Equity Analyst

Our first case study concerns Dry Line Partners LLC, which engaged Near to help them find a private equity analyst. Dry Line Partners is a small (relatively new) private equity firm based in San Antonio, Texas. Their business strategy focuses on B2B recurring revenue technology industries. The three partners at DLP have a great track record in mergers and acquisitions and public and private investment.

Dry Line could see that they needed to grow their firm with high-quality finance and entrepreneurial talent. So they went to Near to find the best candidate to add to their team.

Dry Line’s job attracted a talented private equity analyst from Argentina, Piero Manzone, who is now the newest addition to their team. Piero attended the Universidad de Buenos Aires, where he was awarded a Magister of Finance, and he worked for Capital Market Investment Advisory in Argentina for five years. This talented candidate also had a stint at Banco de Inversion y Comercio Exterior (BICE) for three years as a senior finance officer and senior analyst. Before that, he worked for Deloitte in Argentina.

Case Study 2
Finalis
Role Hired: Research Analyst 

Finalis, a tech investment banking platform based in San Francisco, came to Near to find a research analyst. Finalis is a white-labeled broker-dealer platform that advises on mergers and acquisitions and provides support to businesses with tech-enabled compliance support and research and analytics.

Finalis wanted to grow their research team quickly, and they posted job ads on LinkedIn but found they were not attracting high-quality applications. So they decided to give Near a try. 

With Near’s help, in just one month they hired the best candidate for their team—a former assistant professor of statistics from Argentina who had worked as a private equity research analyst at CRISIL.

Case Study 3
Dura Software
Role Hired: Corp Dev Associate

The hyper-niche B2B software company Dura Software is both a c-corp accumulator and operates a small software business with a permanent hold model. During their expansion phase, Dura decided they needed a skilled corp dev associate to add to their team. They approached Near after failing to attract suitable candidates using traditional hiring funnels, such as LinkedIn.

Dura was keen to hire someone from Mexico initially, and they wanted an accountant who also had sales operations experience and an analytical mindset. After talking with Near, Dura’s management decided to expand their candidate search to all of Latin America. Within two weeks of finalizing the job posting, Dura engaged an amazing, highly skilled candidate from Brazil.

These case studies show just how simple it can be for US firms and start-ups to source talented, highly qualified candidates across Latin America. And with Near taking care of finding, vetting, and screening the candidates on your behalf, all you have to do is select your ideal hire during the interview stage. 

Know Your Candidate

Education

Before selecting that perfect hire, you need to understand your candidate’s educational and work qualifications. There are many excellent MBA programs offered across a range of Latin American Universities. Here are some of the best according to FindMBA:

1. EGADE Business School Santa Fe, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico City, has been operating since 1995, and it was voted the second-best MBA program in Latin America by América Economía.
2. IPADE Business School is also located in Mexico City, and its alumni include Mexican media baron Emilio Azcarraga and telecommunications magnate Carlos Slim (CEO of Telmex, América Móvil, and Grupo Carso).
3. INCAE Business School, Campus Alajuela, Costa Rica, has been dubbed “Harvard of the South.” It offers a two-year MBA program in Costa Rica and a more intensive 15-month program in Nicaragua.
4. Universidad Austral - IAE Business School, Buenos Aires, Argentina. This school’s 11-month MBA program costs USD 38,000 and offers one of the best alumni networks, with some of its graduates now located across 25 countries.
5. Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile, is one of the oldest business schools in Latin America and has been operating for 150 years. This school has educated Chilean presidents and other prominent politicians and industry leaders. The school offers a 12-month MBA program, which costs around USD 25,000.
6. ESAN Escuela de Administración de Negocios para Graduados, Lima, Peru, is a private university. It’s MBA program is a joint venture with Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, and it has shown good results, with its graduates obtaining employment on average within three months following graduation.
7. CENTRUM Católica, Business School, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Lima, Peru was awarded triple accreditation by AMBA, EQUIS and AACSB (key business school accreditation bodies in Latin America).
8. Universidad Adolfo Ibanez, Santiago, Chile offers various MBA programs for local and international students. It offers a multinational MBA program partnering with other educational institutions in Barcelona, Silicon Valley, and Mexico City.
9. FIA Business School, São Paulo, Brazil is highly regarded and accredited by AMBA. Their MBA program is taught in English.
10. Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV-EAESP), São Paulo, Brazil, focuses on excellence in research as well as offering MBA programs. It has strong partnerships with educational institutions and industry around the world.
    

Of course, attendance at schools different from those listed above, need not be grounds to exclude an otherwise excellent candidate. The list above is used to demonstrate the quality of MBA education available in different parts of Latin America. When hiring, consider the nuances around subject areas and skill sets to find that person who is the right fit for your business.

Skills transferability

If you are after a banking analyst or other finance expert, you can find LatAm candidates who have years of experience working in any number of multinational banking corporations or one of the world’s Big 4 accounting firms such as Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Ernst & Young (EY), and KPMG.

The work experience that your potential candidates possess should be the equivalent of whatever you can expect to find from US candidates working in similar business environments. You can easily find experts in corporate finance, auditing, software, B2B, and SaaS from any number of Latin American countries who can work remotely for your business.

Salaries

Our US vs. Latin America Finance Salary Guide can give you an idea of what you would expect to pay for a finance expert based in LatAm, while our complete salary guide breaks down how the lower costs of living across LatAm translate into lower salary expectations. But as an example, by hiring an accountant from LatAm, you might expect to pay around USD 42,000, saving you USD 36,100 annually compared to an equivalent US-based accountant. 

Find Your Ideal Finance Experts With Near

Near is your one-stop shop to help you find and attract the best finance experts across Latin America. Our experienced recruiters will take the time to understand your unique needs and tailor their search to find just the person you are looking for. 

To discuss how we can help you hire the finance professionals you need to grow your business, book a free consultation call today.