It has just over 51,000 square meters, but Costa Rica has become a benchmark for technology and innovation in Latin America.
Although they still maintain the warmth of their exquisite coffee and delicious fruits, since the early ’90s, the “Ticos” evolved towards the manufacture of microchips and then towards the creation of advanced technology and services, taking advantage of the talent of an educated and bilingual population.
It is precisely this last point and its strategic location on the continent that makes it a key country for Imagemaker’s globalization.
Thus, in September, Felipe Balma, the new Regional Manager for Central America, joined the maker family with the purpose of turning the operations of the region into a key point for the company.
The 33-year-old Costa Rican studied business administration and has worked in large multinationals such as Coca-Cola and Kimberly-Clark. Lately, he started his own business in close collaboration with the network of national artisans. In addition to his dedication to work, he is passionate about good cinema and riding a bicycle through the green mountains of his country, however, his favorite hobby is spending time with his family, especially with his wife.
Felipe Balma tells us about the relevance of the Central American isthmus and its neighbors in Imagemaker’s strategy:
What role does Central America play in the company’s globalization?
The region has two very important roles for Imagemaker. The first is administrative support to the organic growth that the company has had. This is leveraged on two key points, the first is to enjoy the talent of national technology developers, who have a solid training base and advanced English compared to the region, which allows us to be a very important support to boost operations in the United States, one of the key markets Imagemaker is targeting. In addition, the country offers a Free Zone regime figure, which allows us to enjoy tax benefits and at the same time contribute workforce to Costa Rica.
The second key role is aimed at expanding the business in an area that, thanks to the cultural diversity between countries, creates an interesting challenge to face. We are currently studying the realities and needs of each country and we are targeting clients that are already part of Imagemaker in Chile such as Walmart and Scotiabank.
Why was Costa Rica chosen as the center of operations for the region?
The leaders of the company have had a visionary view of this project taking into account the potential that the country has. Costa Rica has systematically invested resources in education, especially in the technological area, and health, which today translates into a qualitative leap in national capacities.
This opens up opportunities for the country and generates spaces for reciprocal cooperation, having innovation as an engine of development, capable of generating and sustaining long cycles of growth over time by creating value for society. It is no coincidence that large companies such as Intel, Google, and Amazon have centralized operations in Costa Rica.
The entire Maker team trusts in this project and we are pointing important chips to its success.
What are the next strategic steps in Central America?
We are very excited about what is to come. We want to physically open offices in the future, containing a wide variety of developers and recruitment manager profiles for all company locations. The vision is for it to be a central office for internationalization and to ensure the delivery of better customer service for key markets such as the United States.
