Help your team grow with your needs. Courtesy photo

Finding quality IT staff while remaining on time and on budget has traditionally been a challenge for most mid-size companies, but the expansion of Kibernum to Texas is about to change that.

"Today, it is hard and expensive to find staff in the U.S., and even more so in Texas," says business development advisor Emilio Armstrong, of Armstrong Worldwide Group. "Since the market has a high demand on IT, software developers, and cybersecurity staff, nearshoring in the same time zone with the U.S. is the solution."

Kibernum has over 30 years of experience in information technology and is the largest staffing firm in Latin America. They have 1,600 active developers and support staff and 30 partners worldwide.

Among the many services provided by its professionals, who are passionate about innovation and technology, are software development, IT consulting, human resources for IT development, and IT Academy.

"At Kibernum, there is a need to install talent around the world and deliver technology solutions," says CEO Marcelo Solari. "Today, we are in a position of a global company and it makes us very proud. We are in a period of full expansion in the U.S., in one of the most important IT markets in the world, and particularly in Texas, one of the states with the greatest technological projection.

"We are confident that we will continue to be a true contribution to the IT market with the global talent that we offer, with flexible capabilities that we install in our clients, and insert ourselves into their ecosystem to support them in their digital evolution."

Why else should companies consider partnering with Kibernum? Here are five compelling reasons:

1. Qualified help only when you need it
The IT industry is red-hot, with employees constantly job-hopping to accept better offers. So why invest time and money hiring and training full-time staff when you're not sure how long they're actually going to stay?

The smarter choice is to work with a staffing solution like Kibernum, which provides workers who are already qualified and trained in the areas you need to fill. They can proudly boast only 3 percent staff rotation, compared to the industry staff rotation average of around 15 percent.

2. A more cost-effective rate
Nearshoring staff means you can pay an hourly rate that makes sense for your project, while the employee is dedicated to only working on the tasks you assign. No excess, no wasted time.

3. Grow with the demands
Whether you're pushing forward new projects or scaling back, Kibernum makes sure that the team size grows with you.

4. Working on U.S. time
Sometimes hiring outside help means contending with different global time zones, but all Kibernum staff operate within standard American business windows.

"All our services have a global seal," says Solari. "Remote work allows us to have talents that, regardless of their geographical location, prioritize the one that meets the profile that responds to the real need of the client to achieve their digital evolution. Once we find the candidates, we support them in the adaptation process, generating the necessary closeness in the midst of the remote culture that identifies us."

5. Low overhead
If the pandemic prompted smaller office spaces, don't worry: You do not have to accommodate Kibernum workers in-office.

"Your information technology team has a very important role to play in the success of your operation as a whole," says business communication adviser Carolina Selvidge, from Facehug. "It's not only about speed versus quality anymore — it's about agility and innovation. Any business that is going to survive the test of time requires a regular dose of experimentation. A cost-effective way of achieving that right now is Kibernum's safe nearshore opportunities."

Kibernum's current clients include Citibank, RSA, Walmart, DHL, Smart Start, Houston Food Bank, and Liberty Mutual.

Kibernum USA is an associate member at the Greater Houston Partnership, and Armstrong Worldwide Group is a member of the Energy 2.0 committee, which together creates a great partnership for local companies looking for support.

Read more here, then see how Kibernum might be the smart move for your company by contacting Emilio Armstrong at emilio@armstrongwwg.com.

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Houston startup funding surpasses $1B in 2025 despite national slowdown

by the numbers

Houston-area startups raised more than $1 billion in venture capital during the first half of 2025 — almost double the haul for the first half of last year.

According to the new PitchBook-NCVA Venture Monitor, Houston-area startups raised $417.2 million in the second quarter of this year, compared with $281 million during the same period last year. In the first quarter of 2025, local startups collected $607.5 million in venture capital, compared with $281 million during the same period a year earlier.

Based on those figures, Houston-area startups picked up slightly over $1 billion in VC during the first half of this year, compared with $535 million in the first half of 2024.

Nationally, startups gained almost $70 billion in VC in the second quarter, down 25 percent from the same period a year ago, the PitchBook-NCVA Venture Monitor says.

Nizar Tarhuni, executive vice president of research and market intelligence at PitchBook, explained that “the VC landscape continues to navigate a fragile recovery” and is constrained by economic uncertainty.

However, startups in certain sectors are poised to attract a great deal of attention and venture capital over the next several years, according to the report.

“Companies operating in AI, national security, defense tech, fintech, and crypto — sectors aligned with the administration’s priorities — are attracting disproportionately more investor interest, and this trend will likely continue throughout President Donald Trump’s term,” the report says.

The AI sector accounted for 64 percent of VC deal value in the first half of 2025, according to the report.

Houston space companies land $150M NASA contract for vehicles and robots

space simulations

Houston-based MacLean Engineering and Applied Technology Services LLC, known as METECS, has received a five-year contract from NASA to develop simulations and software services for space-based vehicles and robots, with a maximum value of $150 million.

Two other Houston-area companies, Tietronix Software Inc. and Vedo Systems LLC, were assigned as subcontractors for the award.

"This award is a strong testament to NASA’s continued trust in the quality of our work and their confidence in our ongoing support of the human spaceflight program," John MacLean, president of METECS said in a release.

According to NASA, the awardees are tasked with providing:

  • Simulation and software services for space-based vehicle models and robotic manipulator systems
  • Human biomechanical representations for analysis and development of countermeasure devices
  • Guidance, navigation, and control of space-based vehicles for all flight phases
  • Space-based vehicle on-board computer systems simulations of flight software systems
  • Astronomical object surface interaction simulation of space-based vehicles
  • Graphics support for simulation visualization and engineering analysis
  • Ground-based and onboarding systems to support human-in-the-loop training

The contract is called Simulations and Advanced Software Services II (SASS II), and begins in October. This is the second time METECS has received the SASS award. The first also ran for five years and launched in 2020, according to USASpending.gov.

METECS specializes in simulation, software, robotics and systems analysis. It has previously supported NASA programs, including Orion, EHP, HLS, Lunar Gateway and Artemis. It also serves the energy, agriculture, education and construction sectors.

Tietronix Software has won numerous awards from NASA. Most recently, it won the NASA JSC Exceptional Software Award (2017). Some of its other customers include Houston Independent School District, Baylor College of Medicine, DARPA and Houston Methodist.

Video Systems offers software for implementing human-rated, AI and autonomous systems, as well as engineering services to address the needs of spaceflight and defense. The company has previously worked with NASA and METECS, as well as Axiom Space and defense contractor Lockheed Martin.

The three companies are headquartered near NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.