Howdy turns Latin American talent into recurring growth
How She Scaled Howdy From $400 Left to $50M in Recurring Revenue | Entrepreneurship | How We Profit | E11
The episode shows how a staffing company survived a near-collapse, used venture capital selectively, and built retention into its international growth model.
- 1Howdy pairs recruiting, HR, logistics, and workspace support with a 15% margin on dedicated Latin American teams.
- 2Jacqueline Samira describes surviving COVID, raising $21 million, and using high-touch marketing to reach growth-stage technology companies.
- 3The company is adapting to AI by training professionals in emerging tools while treating technical talent as a broader, more flexible market.
Don't miss
Jacqueline recounts reaching a point during pregnancy when COVID-era losses left her with almost no money, before Howdy recovered and scaled.
The brief
Jacqueline Samira built Howdy to solve a specific hiring gap: U.S. technology companies needed dedicated Latin American teams working in compatible time zones, with more support than freelancer marketplaces offered.
Howdy’s model combines recruiting, HR, logistics, and workspace services, charging employee costs plus a 15% margin while weekly billing helps protect cash flow as teams scale.
The company came close to running out of money during COVID, then joined Y Combinator and raised $21 million while weighing faster growth against investor control and ownership.
Retention became a growth engine: technical mentors and account managers improve team performance, encourage referrals, and create opportunities to expand beyond initial technical placements.
Howdy now uses psychology-based recruiting and regional talent networks while preparing workers for AI-driven engineering, treating new technology as a force that can widen the talent pool.
Featuring
Mentioned
Y Combinator
United StatesListen to the full episode and explore every guest, topic, and moment on PodLume.