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McDermott, Scott

Internacionalización empresarial. Casos de Medellín / Scott McDermott, Santiago Umaschi

– Edición bilingüe -- Medellín: Editorial EAFIT; Alcaldía de Medellín – Ruta N, 2018.

266 p.; 19,5 cm. -- (Ediciones Universidad EAFIT)

ISBN: 978-958-720-555-8

1. Empresas internacionales – Medellín (Colombia) -- Casos. 2. Nuevas empresas – Administración.

I. Tít. II. Serie. III. Umaschi, Santiago. IV. Kit I, Sin, edit.

658.1149 cd 23 ed.

M478

Universidad EAFIT – Centro Cultural Biblioteca Luis Echavarría Villegas

Business Internationalization

Cases from Medellin

First edition: December 2018

© Sin Kit I – editor

© Ruta N Medellín

© Editorial EAFIT

Carrera 49 No. 7 sur - 50

Tel.: 261 95 23, Medellín

http://www.eafit.edu.co/fondoeditorial

Email: fonedit@eafit.edu.co

ISBN: 978-958-720-563-3

Editorial coordination: Carmiña Cadavid Cano

English version style edit: FNL Language Solutions

Design and layout: Ricardo Mira

An imprint of Javegraf

Universidad EAFIT. Regulated by the Ministry of Education. Recognized status as a University:

Decree Number 759, May 6th, 1971, Presidency of the Republic of Colombia. Legal entity recognition Number 75, June 28th, 1960, issued by the Government of Antioquia. Institutionally accredited by the National Ministry of Education until 2026, by Resolution 2158 issued on February 13th, 2018. Any reproduction, in total or in part, by any means or for any purpose, is forbidden without written authorization of the publisher.

Diseño epub:
Hipertexto – Netizen Digital Solutions

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Contents

Acknowledgements

About Pasaporte N Program

Medellin mayor’s office remarks

Ruta N Medellin remarks

ProColombia remarks

INALDE Business School remarks

FNL Language Solutions remarks

Team

Preface

Summary table

Case 1 - Satrack

Author: Scott McDermott

Case 2 - Industrias Médicas Sampedro

Author: Santiago Umaschi

Case 3 - Entumano

Author: Scott McDermott

Case 4 - Kenton

Author: Scott McDermott

Case 5 - LeadyouMed

Author: Santiago Umaschi

Case 6 - Link Digital

Author: Santiago Umaschi

Case 7 - conTREEbute

Author: Santiago Umaschi

Case 8 - Ingeneo

Author: Scott McDermott

Case 9 - IntraDigital

Author: Scott McDermott

Case 10 - Xinfiltrate

Author: Scott McDermott

Bibliography

About the authors and the editor

Acknowledgements

This book is a token of gratitude to Colombia and, particularly, to Medellin, which became my new home, for giving me the opportunity to learn, grow and share my limited knowledge and ability.

I wish to express particular appreciation to Corporación Ruta N (Innovation and Business Center of Medellin) and Universidad EAFIT for allowing me to learn about Medellin’s unique local culture and apply the experience I gained after living in the United Kingdom, mainland China and Macao, my hometown.

I am grateful to Eduardo Quiroz and my team for giving me the opportunity and for assigning the firm internationalization for Medellin’s innovative companies project under my responsibility, which was an entirely new project and continues to be challenging. The Pasaporte N program exists and became successful thanks to their leadership and support. The program not only benefited over 100 companies, but has also enabled students and policy makers to learn from the 10 cases included in this book and to be well positioned to achieve great success worldwide.

I also would like to thank Maria Alejandra Gonzalez Perez for her constant encouragement to publish articles and books on international trade during and after my teaching career as business professor at Universidad EAFIT. She has always been an inspiration to me and I will always be grateful to her for who I am now and will be in the future.

Last but not least, I would like to thank Santiago Leyva Botero – my husband and father of my two beautiful daughters. Without his intellectual and emotional support, none of this would have been possible.

To my parents and my brother who let me spread my wings in this world.

Sin Kit I image /

@SinkiMaria / Editor

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All the cases are the results of Pasaporte N, an internationalization comprehensive program designed and implemented by Ruta N between 2013 and 2015, which comprised the following stages: 1) Awareness-raising,1 2) Internationalization strategies, 3) Trade agenda, 4) Plan Padrino (Sponsor plan), 5) Case documentation, and 6) Research projects on innovative companies’ internationalization.

Pasaporte N was only made possible thanks to the University-Industry-Government cooperation, a concerted effort of allies like INALDE business school, Universidad de Medellín, Inventto Group, Consultoras para el Desarrollo de Capital, Boston College, Northsouth Consulting, Procolombia, the Chamber of Commerce of Medellin (CCMA, as it stands for in Spanish) and the willingness of more than one hundred companies to internationalize.

 

Are you…

• an entrepreneur and have global vision?

• lost about how to open and conquer new markets?

• already selling abroad, but you are constantly thinking about how to benchmark, improve and transform your business and want to sell more?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions,

welcome to a world that will help you learn

the insights, challenges and potential solutions

recommended by business people during

their international business operations.

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Medellin mayor’s office remarks

The future is in our roots

One of the things we feel proud of is the entrepreneurial character of our people. When we wonder about its origins, we find brave farmers that years back learned to pave the way to face adversity. There, in those apparently impassable routes of the mountains, lies our capacity to overcome all the possible obstacles in life.

I say this because I am convinced that to know our destination, first we need to understand where we come from. And this is essentially a book about the present and the near future. It contributes to promote bilingualism, to scale the impact of Medellin in the world and to close the gap of incomprehension of business internationalization. Our purpose is to open ourselves to the world, diversify offers and markets without forgetting what we went through to get here and always bearing in mind that we know how to get up after falling on a tough road.

When we listen to others, we learn about ourselves. Thus, these ten cases included here about the internationalization of business in Medellin, compound a catalog of challenges and wise moves that will allow business owners, entrepreneurs, and students to learn about the opportunities they have abroad.

We believe in the sustainable and competitive entrepreneurial network of Medellin. We acknowledge this network was forged on the bravery of our private sector which, even in the worst times, always believed in our city. We already have the key. We have it inside, in our roots. We are entrepreneurs and resilient by nature. Now we just need to use that spirit to get ready, be more strategic, and open frontiers.

Federico Gutiérrez Zuluaga

Mayor of Medellin

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Ruta N Medellin Remarks

Ruta N is honored to present the Business Internationalization: Cases from Medellin book to the world.

We firmly believe that Medellin needs to be connected to the world in order to be an innovative city. Our new companies’ internationalization is crucial to catalyze innovation and be more competitive as part of the business growth process.

Undoubtedly, firm internationalization could be a very challenging task. Although the opportunities to grow and to sell more to a very limited number of customers abroad may be attractive, the risks of wasting time, investment and efforts could be perceptible.

In order to minimize these risks and increase opportunities, we are pleased to share these 10 cases of firm internationalization in Medellin with you, my dear readers. Learning from experience is the best way to reduce risks and maximize the success rate of your process of internationalization.

As an entrepreneur, lecturer, and director of Ruta N, I invite all of you- students, entrepreneurs, business people, and policy makers- to enjoy this learning process. This book clearly illustrates the fact that “products made in Medellin, Colombia” may become internationalized. In addition, this is the perfect time to support the development of Ruta N´s Market Access Network and this book is mainly intended for

Medellin growth!

Alejandro Franco

Executive director, Ruta N Medellin

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ProColombia Remarks

Ruta N has been an innovation incubator for Medellin and the country. It is a platform that allows the development of entrepreneurial projects and the growth of national and international companies.

This is the reason why Ruta N has become a great ally for ProColombia. Thanks to this alliance, ProColombia has found more room to promote the internationalization of companies in Antioquia. By approaching this ecosystem of new businesses, we have been able to promote among them the benefits of commerce with foreign markets. This taking into account that companies already installed in this incubator have an advantage compared to the others: an emphasis on research and development, two of the pillars needed to be successful in international markets.

This is the reason why we want more groundbreaking companies that promote research and development, and deliver a genuine added value through their services and products. We believe this encourages competitiveness, not only in Colombia but abroad as well. We acknowledge the support Ruta N has given to the entrepreneurs in this matter.

Moreover, international buyers recognize the talent and knowledge of Colombian companies in the creative industries and IT areas. This sector and their talent are making an impact in traditional industries, while taking them forward to what we know as the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Besides, they also belong to the Orange Economy, one we want to support with greater decisiveness for them to export their services.

Almost 70 percent of the installed enterprises in Ruta N have had contact with ProColombia. Our challenge is to keep on supporting them and continue to advise them until we serve all of them. In this task we hope to keep working hand in hand with Ruta N, overcoming the barriers that may exist between the Colombian companies and the international markets.

Flavia Santoro / President, ProColombia

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INALDE Business School Remarks

For INALDE Business School, as an ally of Ruta N Market Access Network and operator of the first phase of Passport N program, it has been and will be an honor to be part of the inter-institutional team that worked on the achievement presented in this book.

The cases included therein show the background and context of each company, as well as the challenges and problems that need to be solved, which turns to be an optimal academic material that can be studied by students in different sessions. It can also serve as reading material for other executives, entrepreneurs and business people who wish to contrast their own experience with the experience of those who play a leading role in these successful companies. The practical learning contained in this book has a high value and impact for strategic planning of a company that seeks to be or is already internationalized. The cases end with triggering questions that encourage the reader’s practical reflection.

The case method has been the basis for the improvement of the managerial skills that we seek in our programs. We are very enthusiastic about the high quality of this book and its contribution to the innovation ecosystem of Medellin. In addition, we consider that these cases will be a point of reference and benchmark for other cities and countries.

Ernesto Barrera Duque

Regional Director

Innovation Professor

INALDE Business School

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FNL Language Solutions Remarks

Innovation for a more bilingual society

The challenges we are facing,

and the innovative solutions being implemented at FNL

Medellin and a large part of Colombia, thanks to the effort done by different corporations, entrepreneurs, some state policies and entities such as Ruta N, have been evolving in the stats and figures we currently have on such important aspects as tourism, foreign investment, city events, and the confidence of the international community in general. These milestones that have been constantly achieved, transforming us into a city with amazing indicators, specifically in the accelerated growth we have had, not only has high impact financial returns, but have also helped us grow in other industries such as those related to tourism, education and without a doubt, the whole economy in general. However, it has also forced us to think about the solutions needed to solve related challenges, such as the level of bilingualism, especially of those linked to tourism, the thousands of international events being held and all the startups and entrepreneurs that logistically and operationally nourish these industries.

At FNL Language Solutions, a company committed for over two decades to the customized design of bilingual solutions for more than 175 companies and thousands of executives in our country and the region, we have a very strong and comprehensive vision of the importance that innovation has in achieving the goal of constantly narrowing the gap that currently exists in the multilingual level of our society. Bearing in mind that it is in the lowest strata where the least favorable indicators are found and that they are also the ones that feed the hotel, catering and restaurant industries, tour operators, service and technology suppliers, and those related to the BPO, ITO and KPO endeavors, we have specialized our company in the continuous search of means that allow these people to continue growing in the acquisition of other languages, especially in their level of English.

It is not a secret that basic and even higher education have not yet been able to comprehensively and inclusively create a homogeneous level of bilingualism, guaranteeing our new generations job opportunities that also allow us to improve competitiveness with other countries in the region, which have managed to excel in this matter. For this reason, and thanks to the innovation processes that we have included in our corporate projects, we have managed to design a series of programs that, with a low level of investment, have helped our students and the community in general improve their communicational skills in this language, through self-guided activities and the integration of specific techniques. We have also initiated a series of plans focused on these same communities, which are ultimately benefited by these high-impact innovative solutions, without the need of long processes with the traditional school system.