Mexico D.F., December 10, 2008 - With the commitment to fully honor the agreement subscribed by both organizations to develop export entrepreneurs globally, the Tecnológico de Monterrey, a leading higher education institution in Mexico, and FedEx Express, the world’s largest express transportation and logistics provider, are unveiling an intellectual and physical infrastructure designed to implement the provisions of the “Educating the New Generation of Global Entrepreneurs” agreement.
The agreement’s intent is for both organizations to team up and support the development of a new generation of foreign-trade entrepreneurs through an essentially practical form of education, facilitating export-project generation, development and consolidation. The agreement is based on three action areas:
- Consulting – This area seeks to develop educational, technological, operating and market solutions for small to medium export companies by linking the infrastructure, knowledge and human assets of both organizations, the Tecnológico de Monterrey and FedEx Express;
- Student Practices – This area establishes a specialized professional practice program by involving Tecnológico de Monterrey students in export companies and organizations doing international business. Students would collaborate in project execution or fulfill employer-assigned functions;
- Incubators and Accelerators – The Tecnológico de Monterrey has a network of 33 incubators (29 technology-based and 12 high-technology promoters) and 6 business accelerators serving 136 companies in the nation. 30 social incubators and 30 Universidad TecMilenio incubators are set up to develop small and medium businesses (SMB) linked with FedEx Express.
FedEx – the first company to develop an SMB support program in Mexico – will significantly drive this innovative project through this agreement with the Tecnológico de Monterrey targeting new generations of entrepreneurs. This is made possible by FedEx’s global logistics network, which covers over 220 countries and territories. In addition, the “FedEx PyMEx Membership” program, recognized by the Organization of American States (OAS), has supported over eight thousand companies for the last four years, with the program’s unique benefits contributing to member companies’ economic growth.
In turn, the Tecnológico de Monterrey will boost benefits for new export companies by leveraging the institution’s infrastructure and experience. An incontrovertible proof is the CEDETEC-CEMEX (Centro de Desarrollo Empresarial y Tecnológico), an initiative which opened in 2005 and has been completely remodeled to gain a leading-edge position in science labs, engineering, architecture, design, computing, communications and journalism. This center houses a business incubator and accelerator in the Mexico City Campus. A knowledge transfer space is thus created, where a cross-disciplinary team of students, professors and researchers are able to develop projects in association with companies, public bodies, political authorities and the community at large.
Within the facilities provided by CEDETEC-CEMEX to achieve the agreement’s objectives, the following resources stand out:
The Centro Nacional de Exportación, providing specialized services to meet three key areas:
1) Company development through operating, technological, market and international logistic solutions.
2) Product development-focused services ranging from design, prototyping and packaging to brand registration and market studies.
3) With regards to international promotion, opportunities for trade mission organization, trade show participation, communication and media strategy design, identification opportunities and buyer acquisition.
- A negotiation room where companies are given interdisciplinary consulting services involving all branches of the business division, as well as business-to-business buying/selling and consulting on subjects such as marketing and finance, among others.
- Gesell chambers to carry out qualitative product studies before market launch, as well as research, concept and product tests, decision analysis, focus-group observation, in-depth interviews, tasting, market simulation, advertising pre-tests, perception studies and brainstorming, among others.
All of the above will drive SMBs to export high-value products to foreign markets, and generate development in Mexico.
Also, through its “FedEx PyMEx Membership” program and broad experience in export model consulting and training for SMBs, FedEx Express will strengthen the synergy with Tecnológico de Monterrey and achieve a new generation of foreign trade-focused Mexican entrepreneurs. With the opening of the CEDETEC-CEMEX laboratories, new resources will boost the three action areas of the “Educating the new global entrepreneur generation” agreement.
About the FedEx PyMEx Membership Program
The FedEx PyMEx Membership program is a comprehensive concept seeking to develop a service portfolio facilitating the insertion of Small and Medium Exporters into the global market, thus contributing to the development of both, exporters and the nation. FedEx Express developed this program through an agreement with the Mexican Treasury Department’s Undersecretaryship for Small and Medium Businesses.
FedEx first implemented its FedEx PyMEx Membership Program in Mexico in 2004, and now has 1,478 members from nine Latin American countries. Through free educational seminars, consulting services, online tools and many other benefits, the initiative helps small and medium business – which account for over 90 percent of all businesses in the region – and makes available the resources they need to expand exports and meet trade competition basics in the global market.
OAS-affiliate Trust for the Americas paid tribute to FedEx with an Honorable Mention in the Corporate Citizen of the Americas Award 2008 ceremony held in Washington, D.C. last November 20th. FedEx was recognized for its FedEx PyMEx Membership Program, which helps educate Latin American SMBs on export and global trade. The awards were presented by OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza.
Through this unique program, entrepreneurs are able to develop and route export projects that contribute to business growth and development, as it offers international trade seminars, logistic process consulting, free e-commerce tools and a range of support services.
FedEx Express’ Latin American and Caribbean Division serves over 50 countries and territories in the region, and has more than 3,400 employees committed to providing customer satisfaction day after day.
About the Tecnológico de Monterrey
Founded by a group of Mexican entrepreneurs led by Eugenio Garza Sada in 1943, the Tecnológico de Monterrey currently has 33 campuses, nearly 90,000 students and over 8,000 faculty members. It offers education programs in Latin America through its Universidad Virtual (Virtual University) and promotes educational systems, including Universidad TecMilenio and Prep@NET, with a view to supporting education in Mexico.
The Tecnológico de Monterrey has developed models and schemes aimed at supporting enterprising skills and generating new businesses where research triggers high-value-added companies as a competitive edge. The Business Incubator program is a reality in various Mexican states, and has resulted in three incubator networks that are pioneers in Latin America, that support the creation and development of businesses and that are classified as:
- Technology-based incubator network
- Intermediate technology incubator network
- Social incubator network
- Accelerator network
Technology-based incubators drive the transformation of innovative ideas and projects in high value-added businesses that generate new knowledge in advanced industries: agrobiotechnology, biotechnology, information technology development, pharmaceutical, biomedical engineering, energy, aerospace and automobile, among others.
Business accelerators develop and boost innovative, technology-based SMBs internationally to generate regional and national well-being and sustainability. They foster the transformation of high market potential companies in new sustainable businesses in the biotechnology and health, design and manufacture, information technology, telecommunications, energy and sustainable development industries, among others.