Fiserv, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISV), a global provider of financial services technology solutions, has announced that a software solution developed during the third annual Fiserv Costa Rica ProgramATHON will aid the development of thousands of small- and medium-sized (SME) businesses in the country and throughout Latin America.
More than 200 young software developers have taken part in the creation of the application that will be donated to FUNDES Latin America — an organization that promotes SME competitiveness through corporate and government programs. The application, Voice of the Consumer (VOC), supports SMEs by capturing customers’ preferences and opinions, analyzes them to gain insights, and responds to feedback in meaningful ways.
ProgramATHON is a component of Fiserv Gives Back —the company’s corporate social responsibility approach to make a positive social impact on the communities where we live and work, through financial contributions, in-kind donations, and volunteer service. More than 70 Fiserv associates volunteered to help conceptualize, plan and execute ProgramATHON 2016, promoting employment for young people in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
Corporate social responsibility for Fiserv is a reflection of what we do every day, which is creating innovative technologies to improve people’s financial lives,” said Francisco Alba, director and country manager, Costa Rica, Fiserv. “ProgramATHON provides opportunities for those who are passionate about technology, challenging them to grow their skills in order to positively impact economies in the region.
Fiorella Blanco, FUNDES
Some 5,000 SMEs will directly benefit from this solution,” said Fiorella Blanco, Business Development regional manager for FUNDES. “The VOC App will help organizations better understand their customers, enabling them to take actions to make their business more competitive in the market.
At the opening ceremony, Costa Rica minister of science and technology, Marcelo Jenkins, remarked that demand for IT professionals in the country is drastically outstripping supply, and that the initiative is aligned with government goals to encourage more young people to pursue careers in technology.
Fiserv has operated for 12 years in Costa Rica, successfully innovating in financial services technology to enable best-in-class results for our clients,” added Alba. “In order to continue to do that, we need to be able to attract the best talent in the industry, some of whom demonstrated their expertise during ProgramATHON.