As we progressively enter the commoditization era of certain business software applications and consumer technology products, many tech companies and tech entrepreneurs are looking to capitalize on this trend by strategically entering specific emerging growth markets. In particular, Latin America is becoming of increased interest for tech companies and tech entrepreneurs alike, which consider LATAM as an evolving digital market landscape poised for growth.

The region is currently experiencing the right mix of business and consumer needs, population growth, increased private and public sector technology expenditure budgets, as well as an increased technology adoption culture. According to a 2013 Latin America Digital Future report by Comscore, results showed that latin america online population grew faster than any other global region in the past year, rising 12 percent to 147 million visitors. It also concluded in its findings that Brazil leads the way with online advertising.

I recently worked with a Google global premier partner organization and have seen first hand the investments made in Brazil. The digital marketing organization opened its regional LATAM headquarters in Sao Paulo last year to increase market penetration and offset lagging revenues from the over-crowded and hyper competitive North American market. Consumers in Latin America are also embracing mobile technology and social networking platforms at an extremely rapid pace. In fact, half of the Top 10 worldwide markets that spend the most time on social networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, are in Latin America. The amount of money spent on online advertising in Latin America is also expected to rise to more than $4 billion in 2014.

These statistics are not too alarming for industry and global economics experts such as IDC, Gartner, and the World Economic Forum, which have been following technology advancements closely in Latin America over the last decade. The increased consumption of mobile devices, laptops and improved infrastructures of high-speed WAN (wide area networks) and WiFi capabilities is allowing for Latin America to quickly adopt new technologies and embed them into different industries and sectors.

It is interesting to note that within the region Brazil and Mexico lead the adoption of enterprise level business applications, such as Database Warehousing, Virtualization Platforms, and Cloud-based CRM and ERP systems. These two countries also lead the digital consumer growth segment of the region. A reaction to the proliferation of mobile and WiFI enabled technologies that are gaining traction in the SMB (small to medium business) digital media space in LATAM, is that many digital media and consumer media organizations are increasing their presence in the region. They are providing digital advertising service platforms to a region due to the influx of penetration and usage data that points to LATAM consumers increasingly becoming digital adopters and or the new wave of digital natives.

For example, online advertising is on the rise in Brazil, growing 97 percent the past year to 130 billion display ad impressions delivered in March 2013. Netflix, Inc. was the largest display advertiser in Brazil and Mexico with 2.7 billion and 463 million ad impressions delivered during the month, respectively. (Source: comScore Ad Metrix)

According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), via Latin Link, smartphone sales across Latin America hit 16.6 million during the first quarter of 2013, which is an increase of 53 percent from the same period during the previous year. For the second quarter of 2013, fellow research firm Gartner reported a 55 percent increase in smartphone sales. The only other region to encounter strong smartphone sales outside of Latin America was the Asia-Pacific block. Specific markets in Latin America contributed to the strong smartphone sales in the region. As Latin Link research shows, Brazil saw an 89 percent smartphone sales increase during the first quarter of 2013 while the same period saw a 61 percent increase for Mexico. Chile saw a smartphone sales increase of 34 percentage points while it was projected Peru saw a staggering 98 percent sales increase for all 2013.

Another trend in Latin America is the Google Android operating system for smartphones and tablets. According to StatsCounter, Android dominated market share figures is Latin America against rivals such as Apple iOS, BlackBerry, Microsoft, and Symbian. Android's strength was shown the most in Argentina with 63 percent of the market share for StatsCounter's data collection between April and June 2013. The rival operating systems accounted for less than 10 percent of the market share, respectively. Elsewhere, Android accounted for 50 percent of the Brazilian market share while Colombia garnered 43 percent. KantarWorldpanel's data show Android topping the mobile operating system ranks in Mexico, notably in June 2013, with 62 percent. ( Source: Latinpost.com)

The other main players in LATAM, are Chile, Colombia, Argentina, Ecuador and Peru whom respectively in terms of investment projects make up alternative consumer and business markets in the región for technology investors . Chile in particular has designed a successful private and public sector technology initiative partnership that is being utilized as a model in LATAM.

The initiative is called Start-Up Chile, and it began in 2010, and was a partnership program created by the Chilean Government, executed by Corfo via InnovaChile, that seeks to attract early stage, high-potential entrepreneurs to bootstrap their startups in Chile, using it as a platform to go global. The end goal of the accelerator program is to convert Chile into the definitive innovation and entrepreneurial hub of Latin America. This is the shared mission by the Government of Chile and is a primary focus of the Ministry of Economy. In 2010, the pilot program brought 22 startups from 14 countries to Chile, providing them with US$40,000 of equity-free seed capital, and a temporary 1-year visa to develop their projects for six months, along with access to the most potent social and capital networks in the country. These selected entrepreneurs were approved by an admission process conducted by Silicon Valley experts and a Chilean Innovation board that focuses ardently on global mindsets and worldwide potential. In 2014 the program has a goal to have 1,000 participants in the accelerator program.

What do all these adoption technology advancements and foreign direct investment opportunities mean to tech-savvy entrepreneurs? Well, one thing that it should mean to a tech-savvy entrepreneur is to begin to seriously consider Latin America as a viable market for their tech venture. The market has not reached saturation, it is nicely positioned for growth and in terms of market entry barriers it has few that warrant to not enter with a solid business strategy.

What is the best recommendation, among many before considering to enter this market. First of all it is important to choose a digital or business intelligence consultancy either in-country or here stateside to launch your LATAM tech venture. A tech venture in Latin America will require that you as the technology company or tech entrepreneur understand thoroughly the region and its business landscape. Doing business in Latin America has cultural and language intricacies and labor laws that are important to consider before creating and executing your business plan into this region.

The article author is Gianni Quintana, MIBA Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship, class of 2001. He can be reached at gquintana2014@gmail.com Sources ( latinpost.com comscore.com, startupchile.org, and spider3m.com ).

Change is a personal choice and all of us have the freedom to bring about positive changes in our lives. However, we do not always realize that we have this "freedom to choose and change", as we are often strongly socialized to simply keep going through our lives based on past conditioning. Consequently, as adults we become satisfied with "what is" rather than moving toward “what can be”. As such, we all could use a “check up from the neck up” every now and then.

As working adults, we are not always using our natural child-like creativity and dreams to achieve our goals. We simply go on living life based on status quo. As children, 95% of 5-year olds are creative but as adults we give up this ability since only around 5% of 44 year olds are considered creative. Once there was a creative little 5-year old girl drawing and her Dad asked her what are you making? She said I am drawing God. He said but nobody has seen God. She replied, "They will after I get done with the drawing." She was not going to allow outside barriers to get in the way of what she was going to create. This is the confidence we need as working adults to move toward our goals.

While speaking at an international conference, I met a 29 year-old man named Wahid working in Kabul of Afghanistan serving tea and taking care of guests at a guesthouse. He said, "Dr. Bahaudin, you are so lucky to have this opportunity to read and write books, and to travel around the world giving speeches." He also mentioned he would love to read and write poetry. Yes, I am lucky, I said, and why aren’t you reading and writing poetry if you want to do it? He said he did not go to school and did not learn how to read. I asked, why aren’t you learning how to read and write now? He said he is too old now and it would be very difficult. Of course, anything worthwhile is likely to require some work and may appear difficult at first. If bringing about changes were easy, then everyone would have everything they ever wanted or desired. However, just because something appears extremely time-consuming and difficult does not mean it is, and it certainly does not mean that it cannot be done. The poorest human being is not the one who has no money, but rather the poorest person in this world is the one who has given up and has no dreams.

At the young age of 29, Wahid considers himself too old and has given up the motivation to learn and become functionally literature. Despite the current difficulties, he prefers the uncomfortable status quo versus the unknown heavens that reside just beyond the perceived hillside. He believes that life will be easier if he simply accepts the status quo for himself, yet wants his children to study and go to school. He hopes that life will be different for his children and grandchildren. He did not realize that he too can choose to be lucky and make his 30th and 31st years of life a little better by bringing about the needed changes one task and one improvement at a time. I told him that in the evenings and weekends I used to work as a dishwasher when I was in high school and college. I worked, went to school, and eventually got more opportunities and choices to do what I enjoy. However, I am still learning and changing in order to continue doing more of what I enjoy doing in the future. Wahid can change and increase his luck in life by learning to read, by reading poetry, and eventually writing poetry. I told him that by moving towards what you want to be, you serve as a role model for your children. If you do not have the motivation or energy to learn and improve your life, why would your children do anything different? Parents should try to become what they want their children to aspire toward and know that they have what it takes to succeed.

If you want to change your life, then you must want it badly enough. If you truly want something, first find out exactly what it is that you want and then decide on the one or two changes needed in your life right now in order to satisfy your desire. Start now as tomorrow may not give you the opportunity. Live what is within your desires and capabilities! If you want a big strategic or goal-oriented change in your life then you should do it immediately and flamboyantly; an example of this would be when one has found the love of his life and wants to marry her. When he is certain about marrying her, then most people do it by planning and organizing for the engagement and/or wedding ceremonies, and then they immediately make a public commitment in a flamboyant manner. As part of the process, these grooms would lead the journey by taking personal responsibility and controlling the circumstances to make sure there is a successful and enjoyable event for his upcoming bride, friends and family members.

Change is not easy but the strategic and desirable rewards will come if one is persistent in planning and exerting sufficient effort toward a desirable outcome. The Chinese Bamboo tree takes four years of hard work and it grows only a few inches. However, in its fifth year, it grows nearly 90 feet tall within about six weeks' time. Be patient, but as you wait, engage in consistent and goal-driven actions based on your dreams. Good things usually come to those whose actions are strategically goal-oriented and remain patient; but it comes faster to those who hustle while they wait.

To change your life toward the achievement of your strategic goals, you need to plan for what you want by clearly thinking through all of your important values and goals while clarifying your immediate objective. The first principle of successful change management is deciding to make a change and having powerful reasons for doing so. Then organize all the relevant resources needed to accomplish this change. If needed, get help from friends, colleagues and professionals in the community and other experts. Once you have properly planned and organized the right resources, then you can lead by initiating the change and immediately taking the first step toward your objective. At the meantime, stay ready to control the entire process by making the needed adjustments in every situation and event to make sure you reach your destination.

As part of the controlling function of managing behavioral change, you can always try substitution by replacing an undesirable habit with a better activity that makes a productive use of your time. Furthermore, you can use visualization and imagineering to see yourself successfully doing the desired activities for your life. Finally, hold tight and be persistent in holding on to the change or in doing the new activity for about thirty consecutive days in order for it to become a habit or part of your routine. As usual, review your goals and objectives at the end of each week and every month, and assess how successfully you have achieved it or how well you are progressing toward them. Remain patient, reflective and, at the meantime, try to hustle at each opportunity. Learn from the experience and make the needed adjustments to make sure you are successfully moving toward the destination.

Bahaudin G. Mujtaba, D.B.A., is Professor of Management at Nova Southeastern University and author of "Managerial Skills and Practices for Global Leadership" book (ILEAD Academy, 2014). Bahaudin can be reached at: mujtaba@nova.edu