Mexico Business Forum Held its First Virtual Edition

This week, Mexico Business Forum 2021 held its first virtual edition where speakers from Facebook, Amazon, Siemens, IBM, SAP, Honeywell, General Electric and Oracle, among many others, addressed the main technological trends impacting companies and their customers. 

This and more in your weekly tech roundup!

Mexico Shows Promise to Become Latin America’s Tech Hub

During the second day of Mexico Business Forum 2021 Virtual Edition, panelists discussed the accomplishments made by local tech startups and the challenges remaining to make the country a technological powerhouse. 

One of the first milestones of the region’s ecosystem was the first round of capital that exceeded US$100 million, made by the Mexican fintech startup Clip in 2019 and led by Softbank. “This made international funds look at Mexico for the first time. This was a validation of the value of the market in the country and opened a window for others,” said Vincent Speranza, Managing Director and Latam Regional Adviser at Endeavor Mexico.

Boosting Female Participation in Directive Positions

The fight for gender equality has been raging for decades. While some progress was made, the COVID-19 pandemic slowed down the growth and career ambitions of many women. At Mexico Business Forum 2021, panelists discussed different strategies to work towards promoting gender equality in Mexico. “There is a great area of opportunity to support women in leadership positions by creating initiatives and actions that will take advantage of the skilled and talented women that are willing to work in the post-pandemic era,” said Nazareth Black, CEO of Zacua.

Panelists emphasized the importance of taking these steps in a post-pandemic era. “Companies must provide necessary support for the demanding positions that women face at home and work by sharing equal recognition and offering flexible time for their male partners,” argued Anasofia Sanchez, Head of LatAm at Waze. Read more here!

Top MBN

I Don't Want to Say It But ... I Told You So: They Got Hacked by Fernando Thompson, Founder & Chief Innovation Officer at TBSEK

Thompson discussed imminent risk scenarios for Mexico’s tech sector, particularly regarding cyberattacks. He explains that to prevent cyberattacks it is necessary to work at the micro-level (with CEOs, COOs, CIOs and IT departments) and at the macro-level (with governments and corporations).

Thompson pointed to the US Colonial Pipeline, which was recently hit by a ransomware attack that rendered computers useless and servers inoperative. Mexico faced a similar situation in 2019 when hackers compromised PEMEX’s servers. Read more here.

What Is Expected of a Product Manager in the Tech Boom?: Maite Muñiz, Co-Founder of Truora

Muñiz talks about the transition product managers are currently undergoing as markets are ever more competitive and consumers have even greater expectations, making product managers in Latin America more in demand than ever. Product managers have to understand the problems of clients and users and communicate them to stakeholders, explained Muñiz. They also need to be comfortable when dealing with uncertainty, to move fast, to have teamwork skills and to trust their teams. Read more here!