Key Summary
- U.S. companies face high labor costs, talent shortages, and operational risks that traditional offshoring no longer solves.
- Nearshoring to Colombia offers cost efficiency, cultural alignment, and operational continuity with skilled, bilingual professionals.
- Colombia excels with growing BPO and tech sectors, strategic location, modern infrastructure, AI-ready talent, and government-backed incentives.
- Acting fast in 2026 secures top talent, stronger employer brands, and long-term growth momentum.
From Alternative Solution to Strategic Priority
Traditional offshoring has been the number-one choice of many businesses in Western countries hoping to avert crises that they often face, such as salary inflation, benefit costs, limited talent options, and hiring freezes. However, this is not the only matter they need to address, because there is also the challenge of efficiently reducing logistical, trade, and geopolitical risks.
Nearshoring provides a solution. Once a cautious alternative, it has become a strategic priority for U.S. companies pursuing growth, stability, and closer operational control. In 2026, that momentum is undeniable, with Colombia at the forefront.
Read further to learn more why nearshoring to Colombia for U.S. companies is a smart move.
What is Nearshoring and Why it’s a Game Changer for U.S. Companies
Nearshoring is a form of offshoring wherein businesses recruit employees from neighboring countries such as Colombia to complete services at a lower cost. This business strategy works best for companies because it offers logistical benefits and similar culture at an affordable price.
As companies expand, more employees need to be hired, leading to unexpected expenses. Others ventured into offshoring, hoping to address the crisis, but this alone no longer solves these challenges.
Nearshoring helps solve the matter since it offers a balance of cost efficiency, operational resilience, and cultural alignment, but only if the location is right and can truly integrate with U.S. teams. Increasingly, executives across healthcare, SaaS, fintech, e-commerce, and professional services are landing on one clear conclusion:
Nearshoring to Colombia for U.S. companies offers significant advantages, as it gives strategic location, competitive costs, highly skilled workforce and time-zone alignment with North America.
Why Colombia Stands Out Among Nearshoring Destinations
Colombia has invested heavily in workforce education and its business environment, creating a deep talent pool in finance, healthcare, technology, customer experience, and operations. Cities like Bogotá, Medellín, and Barranquilla are hubs for multinational teams, with rising English proficiency and experience working with Western countries.
Nearshoring to Colombia for U.S. companies means building dedicated teams that operate as an integrated part of your core business.
Here are the top reasons Colombia is a smart choice:
1. Colombia is the Latin America’s Second Fastest-Growing BPO Market
When the term “BPO” is heard, the first two things that come to people’s mind are the Philippines and India since these countries have dominated the spotlight in the BPO industry. Today, Colombia is steeping into the stage as a strong competitor.
According to VUI Colombia, the BPO industry in Colombia contributes to the 3.5% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and generating more than 752,600 direct jobs, leading to the industry’s 6% growth.
The country now ranks as Latin America’s second fastest-growing BPO and IT services market, driven by:
- Strong foreign direct investment
- A modernized digital infrastructure
- Pro-business government policies supporting outsourcing and technology exports
For U.S. executives, this growth translates into ecosystem maturity: better vendors, deeper talent pools, and proven operating models that reduce execution risk.
2. Matured Infrastructure and Strategic Location
Colombia is located in the heart of the Americas and shared time-zones with countries such as the United States, Canada, Brazil and Mexico. Additionally, the country boasts cities with modern secured facilities, ideal for a BPO set-up.
This provides the following advantages:
- East Coast, Central, and even West Coast teams can collaborate in real time
- No overnight handoffs or delayed decision-making
- Easier integration of workflow, standups, and live client support
- Multiple cities that offer flexible commercial office buildings designed for call centers and BPO teams.
- High speed internet and modern secured facilities
This proximity makes Colombian nearshore teams feel less like “outsourced resources” and more like true extensions of your internal workforce.
Additionally, Acis, in its report titled “Colombia ranks among the five most reliable countries in the world for BPO operations,” stated that Colombia’s robust infrastructure scores 91.2% and safety 85.1%, helping it secure the fifth position globally in BPO confidence rankings.
3. Bilingual, College-Educated, and Professionally Trained
As stated in the Tech Industry In Latin America: 2023 Market Report, over 13,000 engineering and IT students graduate from the universities each year with strong representation in:
- Engineering and computer science
- Data analytics and applied mathematics
- Business, finance, and healthcare administration
Colombia produces high-skilled and educated employees that are proficient in English and dominates the tech hub, making it an ideal country for nearshore strategy.
For U.S.-based executives, this means fewer communication barriers, faster onboarding, and teams that can engage directly with stakeholders, customers, and internal leaders.
Partnering with Connext gives you the opportunity to work with creative talent from Colombia while maintaining full control.
4. Ideal Talent for Regulated and High-Growth Sectors
Colombia’s talent profile aligns particularly well with the industries driving nearshoring demand:
Demands and needs of each industry
- Healthcare: Revenue cycle analytics, data engineering & reporting, interoperability (HL7, FHIR) support, healthcare, IT and administrative services
- SaaS: Software development & QA, DevOps & cloud support, data engineering & analytics and customer success & technical support
- Fintech: Data analytics & risk modeling, fraud detection support, compliance and reporting operations and backend engineering & QA
- E-commerce: Data analytics & customer insights, platform development & maintenance, customer support & operations and digital marketing analytics
How nearshoring in Colombia helps each industry
- Healthcare: Colombia produces a growing pool of data engineers, analysts, and healthcare-trained professionals supporting U.S. healthcare systems.
- SaaS: Consists of strong line-up of software engineers, QA testers and cloud professionals who are experienced with modern SaaS stacks (AWS, Azure, Python, JavaScript, React, data pipelines.
- Fintech: Colombia boasts a wide talent pool consisting of employees expert in finance, accounting, data analytics and technology, making it a suitable option for serving global institutions.
- E-commerce: Has strong talents in data analytics, digital marketing, customer support and e-commerce operations with high English proficiency and strong cultural alignment with North American consumers.
Nearshoring to Colombia for U.S. companies translates into practicality and efficiency, thanks to a highly skilled, English-proficient workforce. This talent base delivers top-quality services at lower costs, enabling companies to scale seamlessly.
Working with Connext gives you the confidence to run an organization knowing that you will co-manage with highly experienced professionals with expertise aligned with your current business needs.
5. Colombia’s AI and Digital Ecosystem Is Accelerating Fast
Colombia acknowledges AI’s potential to revolutionize industries throughout the world and continues to rise in the tech world, which reflects on how its academic institutions are expanding programs in key technology areas, offering:
- Artificial intelligence and machine learning
- Data engineering and cloud architecture
- Cybersecurity and automation
According to a press release published by MinCiencias titled, “Colombia consolidates its regional leadership in Artificial Intelligence thanks to the scientific collaboration led by MinCiencias”, Colombia ranks among the four front-runner countries in Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Latin America and the Caribbean.
In addition to this, ILIA 2025 report claims that Colombia is among the four countries with a robust data center industry, along with Brazil, Chile, and Mexico, solidifying its position in the technological industry.
With its growing AI-ready talent equipped with advanced technology and highly skilled workforce, Colombia continues to rise and prove that it is a smart location for nearshoring.
6. Government-Backed Tech and Outsourcing Incentives
More companies are choosing Colombia for outsourcing solution, especially in the tech sector. This led their government to actively support its growing outsourcing sector and has made technology and digital services a national priority. Incentives include:
- Support for export-oriented IT and BPO services
- Vat exemptions on exported services, including IT and customer service
- Public-private partnerships focused on innovation and workforce readiness
These policies reduce long-term operational risk for U.S. companies building nearshore teams.
7. Lower Cost Compared to U.S. Hires
Companies that rely on domestic hiring often face high salary costs and additional hidden expenses, leading to overspending on roles that could be performed efficiently at a more affordable rate.
Nearshoring in Colombia can address this issue seamlessly, as it offers:
- 40–50% lower labor costs compared to U.S. hires
- Lower cost of living supports competitive salary expectations
- Reduced overhead and hiring expenses enable cost-efficient scaling
As stated in International Living’s article, “Cost of Living in Colombia,” the cost of living in Colombia is significantly lower than in neighboring countries—covering housing, food, and transportation, which directly contributes to lower salary expectations.
Given the substantial salary gap between Colombia and the U.S., nearshoring provides a practical solution for companies looking to scale operations without overspending.
8. Ideal Time Zone
Colombia’s time zone (UTC−5) aligns closely with North American Eastern Time, allowing Western countries to communicate and collaborate in real-time without extreme delays. This overlap supports efficient business, outsourcing, and travel while avoiding complications from daylight saving changes.
Conclusion: Why Acting Fast Matters in 2026
Talent markets are tightening, and early movers secure top professionals while strengthening their employer brands. Delaying decisions leads to higher costs, limited talent, and rushed implementations, while decisive action brings stability and momentum.
Nearshoring to Colombia is no longer experimental, it’s a proven strategy. Unlike traditional outsourcing, embedded teams focus on people, not projects: professionals are hired for specific roles, align with company culture, and work exclusively for the client, providing continuity, adaptability, and long-term value.
Colombia has earned its place as a leading nearshoring destination through talent investment, cultural alignment, and operational readiness. In 2026, the question is no longer whether nearshoring makes sense, but how quickly companies can execute effectively. Partnering with the right staffing model, like the solutions Connext offers, allows U.S. companies to prioritize speed, integration, cost efficiency, and long-term growth. Building the right team today sets the foundation for tomorrow’s success.
Why Work with Connext
Connext specializes in helping U.S. companies recruit and retain top-tier Colombian talent across operations, healthcare support, finance, and advanced IT roles. Through a co-sourcing model, Connext embeds nearshore professionals directly into client workflows, systems, and culture.
Clients leverage Connext teams not just for efficiency, but for transformation. Nearshore professionals support process improvement, digital initiatives, and scalability goals, acting as true extensions of internal teams rather than external vendors, allowing the company to stay in control of their business.
FAQs: Nearshoring to Colombia
Nearshoring is hiring teams in nearby countries, like Colombia to handle business operations, offering cost savings, time-zone alignment, and cultural compatibility compared to traditional offshoring.
Colombia offers a highly skilled, bilingual workforce, modern infrastructure, competitive labor costs, AI and tech-ready talent, and government-backed incentives, making it a strategic and low-risk choice.
Unlike outsourcing, nearshoring builds dedicated teams aligned with your company culture and goals, rather than just completing tasks. This ensures long-term continuity, faster integration, and stronger collaboration.
Healthcare, SaaS, fintech, e-commerce, and professional services all benefit from Colombia’s talent pool in software development, data analytics, customer support, finance, and regulatory-compliant operations.
Labor costs are typically 40–50% lower than in the U.S., with additional savings from reduced overhead, operational efficiencies, and lower cost-of-living-related salaries.
Yes. Colombia produces AI, cloud, cybersecurity, and data engineering talent, with many professionals already experienced in global tech stacks and U.S.-based projects.
Talent markets are tightening. Early movers secure top professionals, strengthen employer brands, and gain operational momentum, while delays risk higher costs and talent shortages.
Connext embeds Colombian professionals into your workflows, making team integration fast and seamless.
Yes. Connext connects U.S. companies with skilled professionals in healthcare, fintech, IT, and more, fully aligned with your operations.
Yes. Connext lets you maintain full control while supporting and embedding your nearshore team seamlessly.
Yes. This offers a strategic location, ideal time-zone, wide pool of experienced talents and lower cost.
Related blogs:
https://connextglobal.com/rapid-onboarding-without-headcount-maintaining-team-cohesion-and-morale/
https://connextglobal.com/strategic-advantages-of-colombia-time-zone-for-nearshoring/
References:
https://connextglobal.com/how-to-start-nearshoring/
https://connextglobal.com/what-to-expect-in-2026-with-offshoring/
https://connextglobal.com/industries/banking-and-finance/
https://vui.gov.co/news/the-bpo-industry-in-colombia-an-unstoppable-engine-of-growth
https://src.n-ix.com/uploads/2023/08/03/b8c8e759-6e70-4da7-9d5b-c118b153d3ea.pdf
