Facundo Tabares, Administration and Finance Director at AVEDIAN, explains how the firm succeeded in doubling its client portfolio in Colombia after implementing an ambitious project endorsed by ProCórdoba Agency, through its Fund for Export and the Internationalization of Cordobese Companies.
Avedian is a Cordobese firm that develops technology solutions for using Diagnosis Related Groups in healthcare facilities. At present, both clinics and health insurance companies waste 80% of the information they generate. Avedian's solution is compatible with existing systems. It absorbs the otherwise-wasted information and uses big data and artificial intelligence to manage it efficiently. This improves both clinical and economic results, and at the same time serves as a recruitment and payment tool.
Facundo further elaborated, "We are one of the three companies globally that provide a solution like this, and we offer numerous competitive advantages. Getting here took eight years of R&D. In developed countries, this technology has been applied for 30 years. In countries of the region, it was implemented 5 or 6 years ago. We identified the opportunity and adapted the solution for the information systems more widely used in the region."
Avedian exports 95% of its turnover to Colombia, Chile, Uruguay, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic. One its main clients in Argentina, on the other hand, is the Garrahan Hospital. The firm applied for assistance from the Fund for Export and the Internationalization of Cordobese Companies (in Spanish, FExIC). The project was accepted and this helped the company gain a stronger presence in its principal market: Colombia.
FExIC's objective is to partially fund projects that seek to increase exports, diversify or regain markets, or achieve the internationalization of Cordobese companies, through business plans or projects that lead to the increase in Cordobese exports and the generation of quality employment.
"What was the first step to open up the market in Colombia?"
"It wasn't easy. We started the process around 5 years ago with some preliminary talks, pilot tests and quite a few trips in between. We knew that, in spite of having a superior product, we were competing with a multinational company: 3M. We closed the first deal in late 2017. By early 2018 we already had 12 contracts in force with larger institutions in the region.
"Can you tell us about the project you submitted with your FExIC application?"
"At the beginning of 2019 we submitted a proposal which consisted in a study market conducted for regions of Colombia we had yet to explore, setting up a commercial office in Bogota, and hosting three events in strategic areas of the country identified through the market study. We also set out to certify to the ISO 9001 and 27001 (information security management) standards, and to produce audiovisual material."
"Were you able to carry out your plans?"
"The result far surpassed our expectations, because with the FExIC assistance we were able to double our client portfolio in Colombia. We were also able to certify to quality standards. Having certified to the 27001 standard is a source of pride for us, and it represents a major leap forward, because we work with valuable and sensitive information. We are one of the 50 companies in Argentina to which the Argentine Institute of Standardization and Certification has given the certification."
"Which are the next steps considering the context?"
"All our efforts are directed to the COVID-19 crisis. In the face of the pandemic, our health system, characterized by historic structural weaknesses, is now facing enormous challenges, as is our country in economic terms. This brings to the fore how important an efficient healthcare system is, and how it is a major driving force in a country's development, which is usually taken for granted. What we do enables institutions to manage resources efficiently and get better results, not only in economic terms, but also in relation to clinical aspects. One of the many benefits of our technology is the possibility to free beds faster, a major asset considering how many beds will be needed. Avedian is working so that Argentina can modernize its health information systems integrating data from the different subsectors to obtain unified and comparable statistics. We are in contact with different actors in the public and private sectors."
The FExIC program is for SMEs from all productive sectors. In 2020, applications are open all year long. Thanks to the ProCórdoba's support, firms whose applications qualified for FExIC are now seeing the results of their internationalization and job creation efforts.
