A.T. Kerney's Index of Leading Nations for Global Services: Latin America Beats Out Eastern Europe

A recently released index for this year has revealed that Latin America has trumped Eastern Europe in terms of global services.

Nearshore Americas noted that five countries in the region led in the A.T. Kearneys' top nations for global services.

The consulting firm reportedly measured the countries based on their business environment and availability of skilled workers.

Brazil ranked fourth, followed by Mexico which was on the 8th spot, then Chile (9th), Costa Rica (19th) and Colombia (20th).

Below is a complete list of the 2016 GSLI Rankings and Changes from 2014, as per the official A.T. Kearney website:

Colombia, along with Trinidad and Tobago, is reportedly among "the brightest hotspots," despite the threats of machines replacing manpower in the countries.

The country is also the biggest jumper, climbing 23 spots from its previous ranking. This is considered to be a great leap in the advancement of the global services in the country.

According to Nearshore Americas, outsourcing firms are attracted to the depreciating peso, and the increasing workforce in the Latin American country.

It was also mentioned in the same report that the results of the index revealed Latin America has more available talent than Eastern Europe.

A.T. Kearneys' global ranking has particularly noted Costa Rica's great location, noting that "Ticos have the resources to weather the storm of robotic process automation (RPA), a transformational tech tool predicted to kill thousands of outsourcing jobs in the years to come."

According to PR Newswire, this RPA system will automate the current tasks of many back-office employees.

However, the same report explained that the "Business Process as a Service" (BPaaS) has become a disruptor for the RPA, since it promises to quickly deliver outcomes using a "standardized interface."

Co-author of the study, Johann Gott, noted that Latin American countries still have great potential for global services.

"The implications on the accessibility of services and employment in these countries are massive. On the client or receiver end, BPaaS dramatically lowers the entry barriers to business data management, opening the floodgates to smaller and newer companies," Gott said.

He added that they have also observed a shift in the job skills requirement for the top 55 countries they ranked for outsourcing.

PR Newswire said the metrics of the study centered on three categories -- business environment, financial attractiveness and people skills and availability.