Global hiring is shifting — fast. In 2025, U.S. companies are moving away from India and Asia, turning instead to Latin America for tech talent, loyalty, and time-zone alignment.

In this episode of The Nearshore Cafe Podcast, host Brian Samson, Founder of Plugg Technologies, talks with Evan Greenberg, Director of Client Solutions at Plugg, about what’s really driving this transformation.

They discuss the massive rise in nearshoring, how AI and data roles are reshaping recruiting, and why Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina are becoming the new global tech hubs.

You’ll also learn about the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model that’s helping startups and mid-market companies scale fast — without the headaches of compliance or setup.

From fake resumes to loyalty challenges and H-1B visa changes, this episode breaks down the biggest staffing stories of the year — straight from the front lines of hiring.

🎧 Listen now to hear how Latin America is redefining the future of remote work, loyalty, and innovation.

🎧 Host | Brian Samson – Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/briansamson/

🎙️ Sponsored by Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers across Latin America.
🌐 https://www.plugg.tech

🌎 Follow The Nearshore Cafe Podcast
🎵 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpmN77fJm6B25469B8
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nearshore-cafe/id1775525954
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nearshore-cafe
🌐 Website: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com
🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/nearshorecafepodcast

Host Brian Samson, founder of Plugg Technologies, breaks down the Trump administration’s proposed $100K H-1B visa fee and how it’s reshaping the global tech talent market. He explains why this massive policy shift could reduce opportunities for engineers in India and China—and accelerate the nearshoring movement across Latin America.

Brian dives into the geopolitical motivations, trade tensions, and economic ripple effects driving this change, from BRICS alliances to U.S. labor shortages. He also highlights how Latin America’s talent pool, time zone alignment, and cultural compatibility make it the most strategic alternative for U.S. companies scaling distributed teams.

🎧 Tune in to understand how policy, politics, and proximity are redefining global hiring—and why Latin America is winning the nearshore race.

🎧 Host | Brian Samson – Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies | 🔗 LinkedIn
🎙️ Sponsored by Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers across Latin America. 🌐 plugg.tech

🌎 Follow The Nearshore Cafe Podcast
🎵 Spotify: Listen on Spotify
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: Listen on Apple Podcasts
💼 LinkedIn: Follow on LinkedIn
🌐 Website: nearshorecafepodcast.com
🔗 All links: linktr.ee/nearshorecafepodcast

🎧 Host | Brian Samson – Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/briansamson/

🎙️ Sponsored by Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers across Latin America.
🌐 https://www.plugg.tech

🌎 Follow The Nearshore Cafe Podcast
🎵 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpmN77fJm6B25469B8
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nearshore-cafe/id1775525954
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nearshore-cafe
🌐 Website: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com
🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/nearshorecafepodcast

Host Brian Samson talks with Denis Champagne, a Fractional CRO and Strength Coach, about how leadership, culture, and adaptability drive nearshore success across Latin America. Denis shares his journey from growing up bilingual in Canada to discovering the depth and resilience of Latin American culture through language, travel, and business.

Together, they explore how empathy, communication, and cultural intelligence shape stronger remote teams and meaningful professional relationships. Denis also breaks down the “conquered vs. colonized” mindset, revealing how history influences today’s approach to collaboration, sales, and leadership across borders.

🎧 Tune in for practical lessons on adaptability, emotional intelligence, and what Latin America can teach global leaders about growth, connection, and success.

🎧 Host | Brian Samson – Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/briansamson/

🎙️ Sponsored by Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers across Latin America.
🌐 https://www.plugg.tech

🌎 Follow The Nearshore Cafe Podcast
🎵 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpmN77fJm6B25469B8
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nearshore-cafe/id1775525954
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nearshore-cafe
🌐 Website: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com
🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/nearshorecafepodcast

🎙️ The Nearshore Cafe Podcast | Hosted by Brian Samson

In this episode, Brian Samson — founder of Plugg Technologies and host of The Nearshore Cafe Podcast — shares a powerful success story from a booming Series A tech startup based in Atlanta. With over $50 million raised, this company had the resources to hire from anywhere in the world. But instead of battling the fierce 2022 Silicon Valley talent wars, they chose a smarter path: senior full-stack developers from Latin America.

💡 Hear how Plugg.tech connected their VP of Engineering with top-tier developers from Brazil and Argentina, skilled in React and JavaScript, who not only hit milestones but truly integrated into the team — delivering clean, high-quality code and bringing product vision to life.

✅ Topics covered:

• Scaling engineering teams post-Series A
• Why Latin America is a smart talent market
• Real-world results from nearshore hiring
• Benefits of hiring senior nearshore developers

🔗 Learn more about how Plugg.tech can help you scale with nearshore engineering talent:

👉 https://plugg.tech

📢 Subscribe for more nearshoring stories, tech hiring insights, and startup growth strategies with Brian Samson.

#NearshoreDevelopers #PluggTech #BrianSamson #TechHiring #LatinAmericaTechTalent #Nearshoring #EngineeringSuccess #StartupScaling #RemoteTeams #SeriesAFunding #TheNearshoreCafe

🎧 Host | Brian Samson – Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/briansamson/

🎙️ Sponsored by Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers across Latin America.
🌐 https://www.plugg.tech

🌎 Follow The Nearshore Cafe Podcast
🎵 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpmN77fJm6B25469B8
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nearshore-cafe/id1775525954
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nearshore-cafe
🌐 Website: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com
🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/nearshorecafepodcast

In this episode of The Nearshore Cafe Podcast, host Brian Samson (founder of Plugg Technologies) dives deep with Fernando Soto, a senior Business Analyst working remotely from Guadalajara, Mexico. From humble roots in Tijuana to leading global tech projects, Fernando reveals the real story of life as a nearshore tech professional.

📉 Laid off after 16 years at HP.

🚀 Reinvented his career through remote work.

🌐 Now shaping product success for U.S. companies from Mexico.

🎯 What You’ll Learn:

• The surprising truth about growing up in Tijuana

• What a Business Analyst really does (and why it matters)

• How AI is changing BA workflows overnight

• Best practices for managing cross-border tech teams

• Why Guadalajara is a global tech hub on the rise

👥 Who This Is For:

CTOs • Product Managers • Engineering Leaders • Ops Managers • Remote Hiring Teams

If you’re building or managing remote teams—especially in Latin America—this is a must-watch.

💼 Sponsored by Plugg Technologies

Plugg connects U.S. companies with elite Latin American software professionals.

👉 https://www.plugg.tech

📲 Subscribe for Weekly Insights

🧠 Real-world tech career stories

🎙️ Nearshoring playbooks

🌍 Latin America’s top talent perspectives

🎥 youtube.com/@thenearshorecafe

⏱️ Timestamps

0:00 Meet Fernando – From Tijuana to Guadalajara

2:00 Chinese food in Tijuana? Yes, really.

6:00 Why Fernando abandoned veterinary dreams for tech

10:00 16 years at HP—and the shock of getting laid off

13:00 Building cross-border teams that actually work

20:00 The truth about remote culture, recognition & retention

28:00 How AI is transforming the Business Analyst role

31:00 Advice for hiring nearshore talent in 2025

🔗 Listen on All Platforms

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpm…

🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast…

🌐 Website: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com/

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nearshore-cafe

#TheNearshoreCafePodcast #Nearshoring #RemoteTechTeams

#BusinessAnalyst #PluggTechnologies #GuadalajaraTech

#LATAMTechTalent #RemoteHiring #CrossBorderCollaboration

#AIinTech #Tijuana #GlobalTeams #RemoteWork #CBAP

🎧 Host | Brian Samson – Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/briansamson/

🎙️ Sponsored by Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers across Latin America.
🌐 https://www.plugg.tech

🌎 Follow The Nearshore Cafe Podcast
🎵 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpmN77fJm6B25469B8
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nearshore-cafe/id1775525954
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nearshore-cafe
🌐 Website: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com
🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/nearshorecafepodcast

What happens when a Series B startup in San Francisco realizes they’re paying over $200K per year for a remote engineer—and getting no extra value from being in the Bay Area?

They go nearshore.
And they win. Big.

In this episode of The Nearshore Cafe Podcast, host Brian Samson (Founder of Plugg Technologies) shares the true story of how one founder turned to LATAM developers to scale faster, cut costs, and build better—without sacrificing time zone alignment, communication, or talent quality.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

• Why hiring remotely in the U.S. no longer makes financial sense
• How this CTO hired top-tier engineers in Argentina and Mexico—in just 48 hours
• The real benefits of nearshoring over offshoring
• How cost savings + faster delivery = competitive advantage in product development
• What makes Plugg’s talent pipeline so effective for high-growth startups

If you're a founder, CTO, tech recruiter, or startup operator, this episode will reshape how you think about hiring, scaling, and building elite engineering teams.

• 🎥 Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/mpMt4kEX2gk
• 🌐 Visit: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com/
• 💼 Learn more about Plugg Technologies: https://www.plugg.tech
• 🔗 Connect with Brian Samson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briansamson/

#Nearshoring #LATAMDevelopers #RemoteHiring #StartupEngineeringTeams #OffshoreAlternatives #ArgentinaSoftwareDevelopers #MexicoEngineeringTalent #CostEfficientHiring #PluggTechnologies #NearshoreSoftwareEngineers #ScalingStartups #RemoteTeamManagement #ProductVelocity

🎧 Host | Brian Samson – Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/briansamson/

🎙️ Sponsored by Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers across Latin America.
🌐 https://www.plugg.tech

🌎 Follow The Nearshore Cafe Podcast
🎵 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpmN77fJm6B25469B8
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nearshore-cafe/id1775525954
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nearshore-cafe
🌐 Website: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com
🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/nearshorecafepodcast

In this episode of The Nearshore Cafe Podcast, host Brian Samson, founder of Plugg Technologies, chats with Amir Reiter, CEO of CloudTask, about how Medellín, Colombia has become a hidden gem for building high-performing global sales teams.

From building his first team in an Airbnb to scaling a $6M+ revenue operation with over 265 contractors, Amir shares how CloudTask evolved from a service agency into a full-blown B2B marketplace for GTM (go-to-market) talent and software.

They dive deep into:

• Why Medellín is ideal for remote-first teams
• How to scale with Latin American tech talent
• Contractor loyalty vs. W2 mindsets
• Navigating culture, compliance, and team-building in Colombia
• How AI is reshaping hiring and tech operations
• Lifestyle perks of living and working from Medellín

Whether you’re a startup founder, tech exec, or just exploring nearshore team strategies, this episode delivers real insights from someone who’s built it—on the ground.

🔗 Connect with Us

• Amir Reiter: linkedin.com/in/amirreiter
• CloudTask: cloudtask.com
• Brian Samson: linkedin.com/in/briansamson
• Plugg Technologies: plugg.tech
• The Nearshore Cafe Podcast: nearshorecafepodcast.com

🎧 Host | Brian Samson – Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/briansamson/

🎙️ Sponsored by Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers across Latin America.
🌐 https://www.plugg.tech

🌎 Follow The Nearshore Cafe Podcast
🎵 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpmN77fJm6B25469B8
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nearshore-cafe/id1775525954
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nearshore-cafe
🌐 Website: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com
🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/nearshorecafepodcast

In this episode of The Nearshore Cafe Podcast, host Brian Samson, founder of Plugg Technologies, sits down with Jared Andreassen, executive at Blue Coding, to break down the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model—an emerging strategy reshaping how mid-market and enterprise tech companies scale teams across Latin America.

From setting up entire operations in Mexico City and Bogotá to navigating employee severance laws in LATAM, Jared shares tactical insights, real-world stories (including a wild rafting trip in the Dominican Republic), and a sharp perspective on the evolving nature of global tech hiring. If you're exploring Staff Aug vs BOT, managing burn, or planning a global footprint—this conversation is your blueprint.

🧠 What You’ll Learn:
⏱️ 01:00 – What is BOT (Build, Operate, Transfer) and why it matters
⏱️ 03:00 – Staff Augmentation vs BOT: key differences
⏱️ 06:30 – Top LATAM cities for talent and operations
⏱️ 09:00 – HR, hardware, and infrastructure for BOT setups
⏱️ 15:50 – Risk, currency, and cost control in LATAM expansion
⏱️ 18:00 – Economic volatility and nearshoring in uncertain times
⏱️ 21:00 – AI’s impact on hiring models and tech ops
⏱️ 26:00 – How founders and CFOs should think about nearshoring now

💡 Key Takeaways:
BOT is ideal for companies needing in-office or hybrid teams at scale
Time zone alignment and cultural compatibility are undervalued advantages
Countries like Mexico, Argentina, and Colombia offer diverse team-building opportunities
Local employment laws and severance rules can drastically shape your LATAM strategy
AI is a tool—not a replacement—for smart global hiring
Conservative planning + flexibility = winning in uncertain economic conditions

🔗 Resources & Connections:
🌐 Learn more about Plugg Technologies: plugg.tech
🌐 Connect with Jared at: bluecoding.com | highersouth.com

👉 Like, Subscribe & Hit the Bell 🔔 for more episodes on global hiring, nearshoring strategies, remote operations, and scaling tech teams across borders!

🎙️ Subscribe to The Nearshore Cafe Podcast on:
Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpmN77fJm6B25469B8
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nearshore-cafe/id1775525954
Website: nearshorecafepodcast.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/comp

🎧 Host | Brian Samson – Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/briansamson/

🎙️ Sponsored by Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers across Latin America.
🌐 https://www.plugg.tech

🌎 Follow The Nearshore Cafe Podcast
🎵 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KYcgpmN77fJm6B25469B8
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nearshore-cafe/id1775525954
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nearshore-cafe
🌐 Website: https://www.nearshorecafepodcast.com
🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/nearshorecafepodcast