Automation for LATAM Startups
Latin American startups face unique challenges. Here's how automation can be your competitive advantage.
Sebastian Vallejo Startups in Latin America operate in a unique context. Fragmented markets, dispersed talent, and the constant pressure of competing against global companies with 10x bigger budgets.
But there’s one advantage that few are leveraging: intelligent automation.
The Real Problem
Most LATAM startups I know have the same issue: talented teams trapped in repetitive manual work.
- Sales reps copying data between CRMs and spreadsheets
- Operations managers sending the same emails 50 times a day
- Founders checking metrics across 5 different dashboards
This isn’t a talent problem. It’s a systems problem.
The Opportunity
Automating doesn’t mean replacing people. It means freeing your team to do work that actually matters.
Real cases I’ve seen:
- A 5-person sales team producing like a team of 15
- A founder recovering 10 hours per week from administrative tasks
- A support team responding 3x faster with the same people
Where to Start
- Identify the bottleneck: What process consumes the most time?
- Document the current flow: You can’t automate what you don’t understand
- Start small: One well-built workflow is worth more than 10 half-done ones
- Measure the impact: Hours saved, errors reduced, speed gained
The Time Is Now
Automation tools are more accessible than ever. n8n, Make, and Zapier have democratized capabilities that only Fortune 500 companies used to have.
The question isn’t whether you should automate. It’s how fast you can start.