Professional Affiliation

Executive Editor, Latin Trade Group, CEO of Editora Latin Trade

Expert Bio

Santiago Gutiérrez is Latin Trade Group’s Executive Editor and CEO of Editora Latin Trade, a 23-year old news and information service. Previously, he worked was journalist for the Andean Region for Debtwire, an affiliate of the Financial Times Group and director of Dinero.com. He has received numerous prestigious awards for journalism, such as the Simón Bolívar National Award for Journalism, the Anif Economic Journalism Award, and the Citigroup Journalistic Excellence Award. In addition to his work in journalism, Gutiérrez has served on the boards of several private sector firms in Colombia. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Minnesota.

Wilson Center Project

Corporate Innovation in Latin America

Project Summary

The one word that summarizes the reasons for economic underdevelopment in Latin America is "productivity." In the 1970s, the average worker in Latin America was 82 percent as productive as the same worker in the United States. Thsi gap has only increased with time. Today, Latin America's average worker is closer to 55 percent as productive as a U.S. worker. How can Latin America overcome this condition? My research focuses on innovation as the answer to that question. My research aims to find out why firms--especially large ones--are not adopting new technologies at a faster pace, and how to incentivize innovation as common practice in the southern hemisphere.