Speakers:

• Raul Katz, PhD, Director, Business Strategy Research, Columbia Institute for Tele-Information (CITI) & Adjunct Professor, Columbia Business School
• Jorge Ruiz, Global Digital Acceleration Head, Citi
• Hugo F. Villegas, President, Latin America, Medtronic
• Roberto Wagmaister, CEO, Grupo Assa (gA)
• Carmen González-Sanfeliu, Vice President for Latin America & Caribbean, Intelsat (Discussion Leader)

Despite rapidly evolving technologies, productivity in Latin America hasn't budged in the last 10 years, said Columbia's Raul Katz at a forum in Miami on December 10. A panel of experts discussed barriers, such as leadership gaps and talent development, keeping Latin American companies from adapting.

Download the Grupo Assa presentation.

Costa Rica is not only bringing Central America together as one voice on climate change, says President Luis Guillermo Solís, but it's also expanding relations with Africa and the Middle East to develop regional industries within the Caribbean and Latin America. "You have to add diplomacy to trade policies. You can't do one without the other and be successful," said the president, who sat down with AS/COA President and CEO Susan Segal while in New York City for the UN General Assembly. Solís said that regional efforts to work together on trade and tourism help Costa Rica to join in on strategies in the works. "This is the case with partners such as Colombia and will be the case, I hope, when the Cuban tourism market becomes completely normalized," he said.

Solís talked about a $300 million project to expand broadband for educational purposes, as well as efforts to boost math and science education. "We have not been teaching children to enjoy math and science and we have to," said the president.

He also spoke of of his efforts to support gender diversity on a multilateral level, saying: "It is already time for a woman to run the United Nations."

Speakers:

• Diego Dzodan, Vice President Sales Latin America, Facebook
• Gustavo Grobocopatel, Chairman, Grupo Los Grobo
• Martin Migoya, CEO, Globant

Business leaders representing Facebook, Globant, and Grupo los Grovos discussed innovation opportunities in Argentina. Martin Migoya said that “innovation is an atitud,” and highlighted Argentina’s capabilities for development. The panelists remarked the country’s growing reliance on the internet and social media. Facebook's Diego Dzodan noted that 24 million Argentines use Facebook regularly and 86 percent of the population has internetGustavo Grobocopatel explained that the growing gap between rich and poor is linked to the flow of information and the tech revolution. Migoya discussed the difference between "talent" and "skills."

• Learn more about our 2015 Latin American Cities Conference in Buenos Aires.

Speakers:

• Eduardo Gutiérrez Gómez, General Manager, IBM Chile
• Fernando López Iervasi, Country Director, Google Chile
• Carlos Murillo, Country Manager, Pfizer Chile S.A.
• Fernando Larrain Aninat, Director of Development, Diego Portales University (moderator)

Chile needs to develope its innovation and technology sectors. While 78 percent of Chileans access the internet regularly, small- and medium-sized businesses are missing out on the benefits of using technology in the day-to-day. “The companies that place technology at the heart of their business are more competitive,” said Fernando López Iervasi in a panel at the 2015 Latin American Cities Conference in Santiago. Meanwhile, speakers from IBM and Pfizer gave examples of how their corporations are investing in research and high-tech programs.