IKEA, the renowned Swedish multinational furniture and home decoration company, has chosen our Metropolitan Area of the Aburrá Valley to continue its expansion in South America.

With the opening of its third shop in the country, located in Envigado, the company is committed to contributing to the economic and social growth of the region, generating employment and boosting the local economy.

The new shop in Viva Envigado will generate approximately 300 jobs, which will mainly benefit residents of Medellín, Envigado and nearby municipalities. This effort is part of a broader hiring plan, which is expected to create around 1,100 jobs with the opening of shops in Bogotá, Cali and Medellín, and the operation of the company’s e-commerce platform in Colombia.

Cristina Zambrano, executive director of the Medellín Cooperation and Investment Agency (ACI), highlighted the impact of IKEA’s arrival in the region: ‘The Cooperation and Investment Agency of Medellín and the Metropolitan Area is proud of the opening of IKEA in Viva Envigado. This iconic global company is coming to our region not only to boost the economy, but also to generate quality jobs and offer design products at affordable prices for all households. With this third shop in Colombia, IKEA reaffirms its commitment to our territory, and from the ACI Medellin we will support them to continue trusting in our company.

IKEA is characterised by its strong commitment to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Currently, more than 45% of its team in Colombia is made up of women, 17% of its team is made up of people over 50 years old, and close to 50% of its team is made up of young people under 30 years old.

The company offers job opportunities that cover a wide range of profiles and experience levels, allowing both students and seniors, and people with or without retail experience, to develop a professional career.

With more than 400 shops worldwide, the Swedish company has set an ambitious goal of becoming an environmentally positive company by 2030, focusing on circularity through the use of renewable and recycled materials, elimination of waste and an innovative approach to product design.

The company’s expansion project in South America includes an investment of approximately USD $600 million, which will allow the opening of nine shops within 10 years, as well as the development of e-commerce channels in each country.

In Colombia, IKEA opened its first shop at Mallplaza NQS in Bogota in September 2023 and its second at Mallplaza Cali in May 2024. With the arrival of IKEA in Envigado, the company continues its commitment to the country, contributing not only to the dynamisation of the economy, but also to the creation of jobs and the promotion of inclusion and labour diversity.

The U.S. medical billing and practice optimization services company, Health Prime, announced the expansion of its global presence with the opening of operations in Medellin and Cali, and the expected generation of one thousand jobs in Colombia.

This company, founded in 2004 and which has already invested close to US$2 million in the country, has established itself as a leader in revenue cycle management, providing advanced solutions for operational and financial efficiency in the healthcare sector.

The Secretary of Economic Development of Medellín, María Fernanda Galeano, highlighted that the arrival of Health Prime to the city is a significant milestone, not only for the amount of investment it generates in the technological infrastructure sector, but also for the creation of quality jobs for the citizens.

“The presence of this North American company boosts the economic and social development of our region, reaffirming our city as an attractive destination for international investment,” said the official.

Health Prime’s vice-president for Latin America, Jorge Lobo, indicated that the multinational allocates the resources of its operation to technological infrastructure and personnel training, among other aspects. This move establishes Colombia as a key destination for investment in the medical billing services sector.

“The expansion of our business in Colombia underscores the importance of this emerging market to our overall strategy, offering significant opportunities for both the company and local talent. The company seeks to continue growing and consolidating its position as a leader in the medical billing services sector in the region,” he emphasized.

With its presence in Medellin, Health Prime seeks to leverage local talent and competitive operating costs in Colombia and reach 2,000 employees in Latin America, reinforcing its commitment to economic development and job creation in the region.

The Mayor’s Office of Medellín, in collaboration with the U.S. company Rockwell Automation, has launched a series of motivational meetings for ninth-grade students in the city’s educational institutions. This initiative seeks to broaden the vision of young people, equipping them with the tools necessary to become professional developers and programmers in the near future.

Rockwell Automation, a leader in industrial automation and digital transformation, is partnering with Medellín as part of the “Smart School” program within the 2024-2027 Development Plan “Medellín Te Quiere”. This program promotes inspiring learning environments through the provision of technological and digital tools.

This alliance aims to raise vocational awareness among ninth-graders and spark their interest in engineering and programming.

“We continue to advance our comprehensive strategy for digital skills and creative industries training for all students. Today, we are hosting an event in collaboration with Rockwell Automation to train students from public schools,” said Luis Guillermo Patiño, Secretary of Education.

In this initial phase of the program, 3,000 students are expected to be inspired through awareness-raising sessions held at various strategic locations. The selected venues include: the Institución Inem José Félix de Restrepo in Commune 14-El Poblado; ITM University Institution – Fraternity Campus, serving Communes 8-Villa Hermosa, 9-Buenos Aires, and 10-La Candelaria; Institución Universitaria Pascual Bravo in Communes 5-Castilla, 6-Doce de Octubre, and 7-Robledo; Centro de Innovación del Maestro – Mova in Communes 1-Popular, 2-Santa Cruz, and 3-Manrique; and Comfenalco Antioquia Guayabal in Communes 15-Guayabal, 16-Belén, and the San Antonio de Prado district.

“This project is very important because it provides us with clearer guidance on our career goals. I am very interested in engineering, and thanks to this program, I have a better understanding of what I can achieve,” said Juan José Torres Vélez, a student at I.E. INEM José Félix Restrepo and a participant in the first meeting.

The strategy will be progressively expanded to the city’s educational institutions.

For María Fernanda Galeano, Secretary of Economic Development, “This initiative will develop digital skills that will help consolidate students’ professional futures. We are focused on attracting foreign direct investment and connecting companies with our city’s development through job creation and, in this case, through social development via training and educational opportunities.”

For two days, entrepreneurs and representatives of companies from Puerto Rico visited Medellín to learn more about its business ecosystem, in order to invest and generate commercial agreements.

This mission was organized by the Department of Economic and Commercial Development of Puerto Rico and ACI Medellin, allowing businessmen from that Caribbean island to learn about economic and legal aspects, and to envision business opportunities in the region. Public and private sector actors from the capital of Antioquia participated in the meetings, outlining investment alternatives and possible bilateral trade agreements.

According to Nicolás Rodríguez, ACI Medellín’s Investment Director, “our city is experiencing a rebirth in terms of foreign investment and commercial ties with the entire world. Proof of this is the visit with 21 companies from Puerto Rico, who came very determined to know the legal, economic and human talent aspects to establish their operations in our city and also to open business opportunities with local and regional companies”.

The agenda focused on investment alternatives between Medellín and Puerto Rico. Among the panelists were the Secretary of Tourism, José Alejandro González; the Undersecretary of Business Creation and Strengthening, Juan David Molina; the Director of Investment of the ACI Medellín, Nicolás Rodríguez Aristizábal; and the Secretary of Tourism of Antioquia, Margarita Restrepo; representatives of Cementos Argos and KPG also participated, among others.

For Soraya Morón, Assistant Secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Economic Development, “we met in Medellín with Puerto Rican businessmen who have a great opportunity to collaborate with Colombian businessmen. After a visit we made in 2021 we realized that there are many opportunities for collaboration between Puerto Rican and Colombian entrepreneurs to magnify these long-term relationships. There is a connectivity between both territories that we cannot miss, not only in tourism but also in economic development and that is why we are here”.

The Caribbean island has invested US$2.9 million in the region between 2008 and 2023.

The mission also included some entrepreneurs from Puerto Rico who are already based in Medellín, such as Jonathan Centeno Serrano, CEO of Brainmood, a company specialized in software development. “The experience we have had of establishing the company in Medellin was very good, we are very grateful with the energy of the paisas to work. The people are very friendly and offer incredible attention, so I would like to invite all those who want to set up their company in Medellín to do so, since they have all the resources in the city”.

Medellin has not been alien to the interest of Puerto Rican investors. According to historical figures, the island has invested 2.9 million dollars between 2008 and 2023, thanks to three companies that settled in the region, generating close to 100 jobs.

The multinational TaskUs of American origin, specialized in digital services, digital CX solutions, artificial intelligence and content security, has generated 400 jobs in the Medellín District.

The multinational supports the most innovative companies in the world, with special emphasis on companies in the United States.

TaskUs celebrates one year of having established itself in Ruta N where it adapted a space called The Gallery in which collaborative and modern work oriented towards innovation stands out. This is the third headquarters that operates in Colombia and the first for the capital of Antioquia.

For María Fernanda Galeano, Secretary of Economic Development of Medellín, “the opening of this TaskUs headquarters in Medellín represents a significant milestone for our District, not only in terms of employment and economic development, but also as a key impetus to strengthen our ecosystem. business. The opening of The Gallery on Ruta N marks the beginning of a strategic collaboration that will benefit both the local community and the company, reaffirming Medellín as an attractive destination for international investments.”

TaskUs has active vacancies and is looking for bilingual professional profiles for its headquarters in Medellín. Those interested can apply [ here ]

“We are happy to be in Medellín, at TaskUs we invest in people’s learning and development. “This includes helping employees perform well in their current role, equipping leaders and potential leaders with the skills needed to advance their careers, and providing self-paced online learning resources available at any time,” declared Pablo González, Vice President of Operations at TaskUs Colombia.

Since 2008, ACI Medellín has managed USD 763 million in foreign direct investment from 98 investment projects in the United States, especially companies in the technology services sector.

PwC and ACI Medellin have teamed up again to generate a valuable document called Doing Business, which will be of support to foreign companies that want to know all the advantages that our District has to receive their companies.

The high economic performance, the connection with the country and the world, the qualified talent, and the good quality of life, are reasons that invite foreign investment to choose Medellín as the ideal destination to set up their operations.

PricewaterhouseCoopers- PwC, is a professional services firm with presence in 150 countries that provides auditing, consulting, legal and tax advisory, transactions, corporate finance and human resources consulting services specialized in each sector.

We thank this important partner for joining us in the preparation of this important document in Spanish and English, which will undoubtedly be very useful not only for foreign investment but also for local entrepreneurs who want to know specialized data on each sector.

Click on the image to download

Manpower Group and ACI Medellin publish this joint report with all the advantages offered by the district of Medellin to attract BPO companies to the territory. The high availability of qualified, young and bilingual talent, low operating costs, and a favorable environment for the establishment, scalability and operations of the outsourcing business are some of the factors that help the settlement of world-class companies in the city.

In the report you will find the essential definitions to understand this sector, along with statistics on talent in all regions of the department, salary ranges and other key data for decision making for companies that are thinking of setting up in this region.

Free Trade Zones in Antioquia, are a fundamental part of the public and private gear to attract Foreign Direct Investment because their location, benefits, infrastructure and ease in costs have made these spaces, an engine for the development of local and regional economy.

Today we share a report prepared by ACI Medellin, in collaboration with the Free Trade Zone of Urabá, Rionegro and Zofiva, to better understand the benefits of the free trade regime in our country offering competitive costs for the arrival of foreign investment.

In the coming weeks we will be sharing some explanatory videos that will be hosted on the website and YouTube account of the ACI Medellin with the spokespersons of each of the Free Trade Zones of Antioquia.

We share a report of the Ukrainian company N-iX, installed in our city, where they talk about the competitive advantages of the most important countries in the region such as Brazil, Argentina, Mexico and Colombia. Additionally, they focus on the city of Medellin which is valued very positively as an attractive city for investment due to its costs, quality of life and human talent.

N-iX, a global software solutions and engineering services company, has published an in-depth report examining the tech landscape of Latin American countries, including Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Uruguay, Costa Rica, Chile, and others.

Latin America has a tech talent pool of almost 2 million professionals. As a result, the region’s growing tech industry and talent pool make software development outsourcing an attractive option for businesses looking to tap into the region’s potential. The comprehensive report analysis aims to assist senior executives, tech and business leaders seeking software development partners, strategic sourcing destinations, and development centre locations.

As N-iX has an R&D center in Medellin, Colombia, the first part of the report is dedicated to Colombia. 

In 2021, Colombia ranked third in the region after Mexico and Brazil in terms of IT market size, with $10.2B.

By 2025, Fedesoft, the Colombian Federation of IT and Software Industries, wants software to account for 5% of Colombia’s GDP. Since the ICT industry in the country has begun to diversify, the sector is expected to grow in the coming years. Along with telecommunications, Colombian and Colombian-based companies are engaging in software development and AI-aided consulting.

The country ranks 13th on the Global Services Location Index. Colombia marked the strongest advance of any country in the 2016 GSLI, moving up 23 spots to 20. This was driven by a combination of improvements across the board in financial attractiveness, largely fueled by depreciation of the peso, and solid gains in IT and BPO experience.

The constant innovation and dynamic development of Colombia’s technology sector attracts companies looking to partner with Latin American software developers. Between 2015 and 2019, IT services exports increased by an average of 3%, reaching $229.1M. As a result, the country is now a gateway to international markets, including the United States (33%), Ecuador (14.1%), and Mexico (8.3%).

To access the full report, please, visit N-iX website.

To learn more about N-iX’s software solutions and engineering services, visit N-iX Team Extension in Latin America page.

Today there are 75 engineers working in the company, and the promise is to reach up to 100 jobs that improve the quality of life of the inhabitants of Medellín. Accelirate operates in different sectors such as banking and financial services, accounting, insurance, healthcare, hospitality, industry, retail, oil and education. It offers technology and digital transformation solutions to all of its clients in these sectors.  

This company is a leader in robotic processes and artificial intelligence products and services in the US. It has presence in Pakistan, India and the United Arab Emirates. Now it is coming to Colombia.

For the president of ProColombia, Carmen Caballero, “the arrival of companies like Accelirate contributes to the purpose outlined by the National Government for the promotion of technology transfer, incorporation of technical progress and development of human capacity. Together with the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, we continue working to promote the competitive advantages of the country and our talent so that more global companies choose Colombia as a business location with productive bets and the creation of qualified jobs”.  

Accelirate’s vision is to offer robotic process automation (RPA) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) services, and cutting-edge digital transformation solutions in various industries. “Our services include deployment of RPA platforms, management and monitoring of robotic software operations for our clients, and business consulting focused on identifying and mapping key business processes for automation and AI opportunities,” explained CEO Ahmed Zaidi.  

That’s not all. The company has inclusive and innovative workspaces where employees can be very creative and come up with the best ideas. This, in the words of Accelirate members, is a sign that the company values and attends to the needs of its employees. In addition to the workspaces, Accelirate is committed to training its employees in technical and social skills in order to offer the best to its clients. The idea is that they can grow, learn and solidify their knowledge as they advance in the company.  

Juan Camilo Mergesh, executive director of ACI Medellín, said: “Our city has become a center of development and innovation recognized by governments and companies from all over the world that come to see and copy our development model. Like Accelirate, today many companies come to improve the labor landscape by offering quality employment and providing quality of life to people and their environment. Our job as part of the District’s public conglomerate is to continue supporting these companies so that their growth is continuous”.  

And the key question: Why did they come to Medellín? From Accelirate they told us that the city offers them quality talent of development engineers and knowledge in automation technologies, which greatly differentiate them from those in other regions. 

They also added that Medellin is a strategic point for their development plans and that the stable financial market in the region was one of the reasons why they landed in the city. At this point they recognized that Medellin is recognized as a Software Valley worldwide, so it is a strategic point in its evolution.  

To achieve this they need their company to be recognized as an American company that offers comprehensive digital solutions, which go far beyond optimizing a process such as buying new software or eliminating paper from organizations. “It requires having a comprehensive vision of how your organization manages resources, this is the cutting edge and we are number 1 in the subject,” concluded Zaidi. 

The arrival of this and other companies to the CTI ecosystem of the District of Medellin reinforces the commitment of the Ruta N Corporation to improve the quality of life of the city’s inhabitants with jobs and well-paid job opportunities that can project their professional careers.  [more info]

This business process outsourcing company, born in Calcutta, India, currently has a presence in 14 countries on all continents, working for 250 clients from all sectors of the economy and in all languages. In 2021 they arrived in Medellín with the objective of establishing an operations center that today has 100 employees and expects to reach 500 in total by the end of 2023.  

One of its added values is the diversity and adaptation of its labor policies to its employees. They accept older adults over 55 years of age as well as young people who speak a second or more languages; they promote study and entrepreneurship, so it is normal to find people who are studying an undergraduate degree or working on their ventures, which requires the company to be flexible with the schedule.  

Raymond Moreno, HR Global Executive, affirms that “Medellin has the characteristics they need to grow the business and continue operating with clients from all over the world. The city has bilingual talent and within the senior segment we find adults who apart from mastering a second language are responsible, disciplined and organized to fulfill their duties.”

With more than 30 years of history in the industry, Fusion has developed a deep understanding of customer needs and preferences across a wide range of sectors, including healthcare, finance, telecommunications and other verticals. 

Juan Camilo Mergesh, executive director of ACI Medellín, assures that “foreign investment coming to Medellín seeks to generate social transformation beyond profitability. For this reason, companies like Fusion BPO, today come to promote employment in people over 55 years of age who have the profile and skills of a second language to serve customers around the world. We seek that every investor who comes to our district is willing to become an agent of change at all levels and thus make Medellin a model city in the region.  

For those interested in accessing job offers from the company can check the Instagram account where they post vacancies. [ here ]