#126- One-Way Ticket to Bogota: Eric Tabone on 18 Years Building a Nearshore Recruiting Business

Episode Summary What started as a post-graduation trip to Bogota in 2008 turned into 18 years abroad and three companies. Eric Tabone, Managing Director of Nearshore Business Solutions, joined Clark to break down what nearshore actually means, why the myths about Latin America are holding US companies back, and how recruiting agencies can use the LATAM talent pool to scale faster and smarter. Clark and Eric cover the full picture: the origin story of someone who arrived in Colombia not speaking a word of Spanish and built a career and family there; why hiring someone in Latin America is no more complicated than hiring across US state lines; how the cost math works; and what the AI operations role looks like inside a modern recruiting firm. The conversation also gets into the recruiter mindset: why ten targeted calls beat a hundred cold ones, why AI grammar is killing authenticity on LinkedIn, and how to think about content as a long game rather than a one-and-done exercise. For any recruiting agency owner wondering whether nearshore is right for their team, or trying to figure out how to scale without blowing up their overhead, this is the episode to start with. Highlights 00:00 - Sponsor intro 00:40 - Welcome and intro to Eric Tabone, Managing Director of Nearshore Business Solutions 02:08 - What nearshore is and why it is having a moment right now 04:32 - The driving forces behind US companies looking to Latin America 06:22 - Myths about Latin America that are holding companies back 07:34 - Why hiring in LATAM is no more complicated than a domestic hire 08:20 - Clark's experience hiring in Mexico City for Digital Recruiter 10:34 - The cost formula: cut the US salary in half 11:14 - How a nearshore hire enabled more domestic hiring at Digital Recruiter 12:14 - Eric's origin story: a one-way trip to Bogota and 18 years later 14:33 - What throwing yourself into the unknown teaches you about resilience 16:28 - Why recruiting is a mental game as much as a skill game 17:14 - Recruiting is not rocket science: showing up, being savvy, and being consistent 19:05 - Where AI fits in recruiting and where humans still have to lead 20:39 - The AI operations role and how Eric's team builds candidate profiles in five minutes 22:27 - How to actually execute an AI project without it dying on the vine 23:41 - Vibe coding and getting to 80% before handing off 27:10 - What makes clients succeed or fail with content and AI 28:02 - Ten quality calls vs a hundred cold ones: what effective activity actually looks like 31:30 - The chip-away content strategy: 150 posts in a year, one idea per post 34:29 - Who should reach out to Eric and what to expect from the conversation 37:40 - Final advice for listeners and an open invitation to Bogota Eric's Bio Eric Tabone is the Managing Director of Nearshore Business Solutions, a firm that connects US companies with remote professionals across Latin America and the Caribbean. Originally from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Eric moved to Bogota, Colombia in 2010 with no job and no Spanish, and never left. Eighteen years later, he has built three companies in the region and become what he calls the unofficial ambassador of Colombia to the world. Nearshore Business Solutions works with US businesses to source, recruit, and employ talent from Mexico to Argentina, including the Caribbean islands. The model helps companies scale faster and cut costs by as much as 70%, while giving LATAM professionals access to US-based roles that represent a genuine step up in their careers. Eric specializes in services, operations, AI, tech, and sales roles including SDRs and BDRs, and works closely with recruiting agencies looking to build out their teams or offer nearshore solutions to their own clients. Connect with Eric on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ericrtabone Check Out Our Sponsor at: https://signaturebackoffice.com/ For more information about Digital Recruiter, click HERE https://linktr.ee/thedigitalrecruiter