Editor’s Choice: 12 non-profit organizations with a transformational mission

The efforts of most organizations in the business world are focused on improving efficiency in order to increase competitiveness and productivity in a highly competitive market. But some, like nonprofit groups, aim beyond realizing immediate benefits for a single organization, and instead help benefit one section of society.

Nearshore always adapting to important changes caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the impact of technological skills gap and geopolitical changes occurring in parts of Latin America and the Caribbean, regional public-private partnerships have implemented social initiatives to generate employment opportunities and increase the skills of regional talents. While essential for the industry, the role of nonprofits is often invisible.

Here’s our closer look at a variety of not-for-profit initiatives across the Nearshore. Some are government programs while others are from the private sector and civil society. We assessed criteria, including:

Training capacity: The impact of integrating new technologies, skills and business practices into the workforce.

Impact on under-represented communities: The ability to reach historically discriminated groups, such as the indigenous population, women and people of color.

Site: Presence in the fastest growing Nearshore markets.

Nearshore America’s Top 10 Nonprofits in the Nearshore

Amber / HEART Coding Academy

Launched in January 2021, it is Jamaica’s very first coding academy. A partnership between the Amber Group, the HEART / NSTA Trust, the Housing Opportunity Production and Employment (HOPE) program and the Art of Living Foundation. The Jamaican government has set a five-year goal of training 20,000 Jamaicans in software development.

Jamaica was take bold action towards building dynamic technology hubs in the island, attracting attention as a new location for software development outsourcing.

According to Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness, “The Amber HEART / NSTA Trust Coding Academy is a revolutionary first step towards realizing our vision of positioning Jamaica as a hub of technology and innovation.”

Virtual reality laboratory Eon Reality-University of the West Indies

Another Caribbean-based initiative, the Eon Reality Virtual Reality Laboratory and University of the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago is expected to reach around 5,000 people trained in fields such as engineering, tourism and various world services.

“This program has generated a lot of enthusiasm. We are now looking at how to turn this into real value for the industry. We met with organizations like the Jamaican Promotion Agency. We want to demonstrate what this can do to uplift skills and bring new practices into the workforce, ”said Dr Luz Longsworth, Vice Chancellor and Director of the Open Campus at Nearshore Americas.

Go Cali City Bilingual

Colombia is one of the fastest growing BPO markets in Latin America. The South American nation is becoming more and more attractive as American companies abandon offshoring practices and divest from certain Asian markets. Government incentives along with scalability make Colombia a solid location. Many programs and organizations are working to include more people in the workforce and to facilitate training and development.

The city of Cali in particular is emerging as one of the most strategic locations in Latin America for investments in global services, especially BPO and IT and software. One of the main flaws of the city and the Colombian BPO industry is the lack of bilingualism. Go Cali City Bilingual aims to strengthen foreign language skills in the official education sector of Cali.

The initiative is the result of a public-private alliance between different public and private universities, the Cali Chamber of Commerce, English language educational institutions and the mayor’s office.

Laboratories

Laboratoria works in Mexico, Peru, Brazil, Colombia and Chile to train women in technological skills to “shape a more diverse, inclusive and competitive digital economy”.

Founded in 2014, Laboratoria has now graduated over 2,000 women as front-end developers and UX designers, who have gone on to work in over 800 companies across the region. Its global partners include the IDB, Google and USAid.

The model is quite sustainable: women pay nothing to follow the bootcamp which shows an employment rate of 83%. Once a graduate finds a job, they reimburse the cost of the course in monthly installments so that Laboratoria can help another young woman graduate.

Educamás Foundation

Educamás Foundation strives to increase the retention and graduation rates of students in Colombia. It also partners with private sector organizations to provide the training and skills needed for the new working conditions.

“We have agreements with 18 educational institutions and a network of 30 associated companies. We are trying to quickly generate the right educational tools, employability and development for social mobility, ”said María Alejandra Baene, Executive Director of Educamás.

Fundación Suarez Andrade Madre Teresa de Calcuta (Montería Te Llama)

The Foundation welcomes “Monteria Te Llama», A job-generating program linked to the BPO industry. This project was born out of a soup kitchen for vulnerable people in the city of Monteria in Colombia.

The aim is to provide young people with training and employment in call centers.

“The results are clear. Konecta and its client Bancolombia have decided to bet on it and today we have 650 young people with jobs and new prospects in life ”, recently told Nearshore Americas Maria Milene Andrade Garcia, social worker and coordinator of the initiative .

Cincinnatus Craft Institute

Located in the Dominican Republic, the Cincinnatus Institute of Craftsmanship (CIC) is the brainchild of the husband and wife team behind Intellisys D. Corp, which provides self-directed and integrated technology talent to global businesses.

The Institute trains young people in the Dominican Republic who have shown promise in the field of technology, but who may lack the resources to properly pursue a career in the field. A lack of electricity or insufficient education are two of the many reasons talented young people cannot keep their promises, Christian Corcino recently told Nearshore Americas.

CIC uses blended and experiential learning to shape young people for professional careers and offers extensive help to ensure that each young person has a full formal high school history so that there are no obstacles on the way. their way.

Impact Sourcing Initiative to Advance the Integration of Venezuelan Refugees in Colombia

This impact sourcing initiative by Refugee tent partnership, IAOP, the Global Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) Association, and BPrO, the Colombian association BPO, which offers jobs to Venezuelan migrants in the Colombian BPO industry, comes in response to the influx of Venezuelan refugees in Colombia.

An estimated 5.4 million Venezuelans have left their country of origin since a political and economic crisis became acute. Colombia, which has become the fourth largest BPO jurisdiction in Latin America, with a market size of around US $ 23 billion.

“The BPO sector is one of the main industries in Colombia and is growing rapidly; We felt that there was a huge opportunity for BPO companies to show their support for Venezuelan refugees and redouble their efforts to integrate them, ”said Yaron Schwartz, head of the BPO initiative on the tent partnership for the refugees.

Vai na Web

Vai na Web is a self-proclaimed digital talent training platform in Brazil. Founded in 2017, the initiative has trained young people from across Brazil in advanced digital programming. Their aim is to reduce inequalities, generate decent jobs and reduce the gender gap in the country.

“We educate vulnerable young people with the skills and competencies necessary to meet the challenges of the digital economy and to achieve fulfilling and rewarding careers. We are preparing the next generation of workers fueled by diversity and inclusion. Vai na Web is a smart solution for businesses that need to speed up their web and mobile deliveries while contributing to socially responsible approaches, ”said Aline Fróes, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Vai na Web.

Fundación Pro Educación & Empleo

Guatemala is another country that is emerging as an attractive BPO location. The country has businesses o??offering a wide range of services ranging from customer service and telemarketing to more specific outsourcing services such as collections, subscriptions, helpdesk, database maintenance, data feed and outsourcing of financial and administrative services.

In this context, the Fundación Pro Educación & Empleo is dedicated to talent development and training. The inclusion of women in the workforce is also an important component of its work.

TalentoTotal

According to their mission statement, the nonprofit “aims to make the business landscape in Latin America more competitive and inclusive by accelerating the careers of high performing women and men of African and Indigenous descent (ADI) from under-represented communities “.

TalentoTotal helps talented people increase their leadership skills and take further education cycle, especially MBAs and law degrees.

TalentoTotal has offices in several markets in Latin America, including Colombia and Brazil, as well as two sites in the United States.

Avasant Foundation

The Avasant Foundation is an international leader in impact sourcing. The organization has created thousands of jobs around the world, particularly benefiting disadvantaged youth.

The Avasant Foundation has established partnerships with the Inter-American Development Bank and various governments in the region, including offering training in STEM and ICT. The Foundation has advised several countries such as Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and the Dominican Republic to attract global BPO companies.