蓝莓视频

Two ambitious School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) alumni were bold enough to start a venture amid a tumultuous global economic environment.听听

鈥淲hen we started Viva, we immediately got in touch with our long-standing mentors and fellow University of 蓝莓视频 alumni,听Upkar听Arora and Steve Balaban, who have served as invaluable advisors,鈥澨齭ays听Khan,听co-founder听of听Viva.听

The AFM graduates were driven to solve the problem of lost productivity within听companies听by tapping into an underutilized network of听LatAm听talent. They were inspired by听, the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize winner who founded the microfinance organization Grameen Bank, which empowers women in Bangladesh to听start听businesses听with听microloans. Similarly, their startup Viva focuses on providing employment opportunities to women in听emerging economies. The startup鈥檚 mission of increasing the participation of women in the workforce听tackles听the听,听which is to achieve gender equality and to empower all women and girls.听

It was co-founder Khan鈥檚 experience with Deloitte Consulting and听听that exposed him to the unique challenges faced by the听labour听force听in听LatAm听鈥� particularly women听who are听often听held back in their careers due to a lack of meaningful job opportunities.听

鈥淭hrough my work in Latin America with multiple education-focused not-for-profit organizations, I听saw听firsthand the challenges听students face when entering an education system that leads to limited employment opportunities. When there is no light at the end of the tunnel, why enter the tunnel in the first place? Current circumstances have exacerbated this situation, particularly for women in Latin America, where employment has fallen disproportionately more for women than for men. If we don鈥檛 take action now, the gender gap for economic participation will听further听widen,鈥澨齂han听says.听

Former work turned future opportunity听

While co-founder Tatar drew upon his experience with听UberEats听and several startups, where he learned how to effectively onboard, train and mobilize global talent through a hands-on playbook methodology,听he also brought a wealth of knowledge on听leading听productivity tools and how to leverage them.听

"Through corporate roles, we鈥檝e both worked with executives at startups and large enterprises. The recurring theme that we鈥檝e seen is that executives are overloaded with听non-executive-level听work. If we can give these executives some of their time back while increasing their output, we will听have solved a large, oftentimes invisible problem,"听says听Tatar,听co-founder听of听Viva.听

The employment opportunity that Viva provides comes at a stressful time for women in Latin America, as the pandemic has only worsened their career prospects with job insecurity and lay-offs affecting more women than men. According to the听, Latin America鈥檚 economy took an especially hard hit from the pandemic compared to the other emerging markets of听Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East,听and Africa. The 2021 economic recovery is also expected to be relatively weak, which will further widen the income gaps across regions.听

On the flip side, the pandemic also delivers an opportunity to rethink the traditional ways of working. Remote work done by Viva鈥檚 virtual analysts is now much more common and preferred, which can assist women to improve their circumstances. As outlined by听: 鈥淓nabling women鈥檚 potential fully and equally with men promotes sustainable, balanced, inclusive growth, improves the representation of women within institutions and intergenerational development outcomes, and is also thus crisis-cushioning.鈥澨�听

To recruit talent, the Viva team draws upon the deep relationships they have听built with communities in听several countries including Nicaragua, Venezuela, Guatemala, Argentina听and Ecuador.听The team then screens through the hundreds of applicants for virtual analyst roles.听Successful applicants are hired and trained through a听robust听eight-week training program听so they can hit the ground running with a matched client听from听day one.听听

鈥淏eing a听virtual听analyst听at Viva听represents a great opportunity for women in Latin America like me,鈥澨齭ays听Marisol, a听current听virtual analyst at Viva. 鈥淚t has helped me develop my skills through constant training and听feedback. Collaborating with teammates from different countries has also been a unique learning experience. I鈥檓 passionate about helping clients and giving them back valuable time while helping them grow their business.听I look forward to my continued career growth with Viva.鈥澨�听

And so far,听their clients are reporting听an increase in听productivity听鈥斕齱ith some claiming that since they have hired听a听Viva virtual听analyst,听they have saved听three hours per workday and their overall output has increased.听

鈥淥ur mission is to be the leading virtual analyst service, providing an听unrivalled听experience for听our听clients, colleagues and communities,鈥� Tatar says.听鈥淥ur client impact and social impact are interdependent听鈥斕齱e aspire to continue to push both of these agendas forward听in 2021.鈥澨�