CANIETI, Mexico’s Prestigious ICT Chamber, Appoints a New President

The IT industry veteran, who played a key in expanding Softtek’s operations across Latin America, has stated that he will focus on giving internet access to all Mexicans and developing a skilled talent pool for the success of the country’s growing information technology (IT) industry.

Carlos Funes Garay, a senior executive of Softtek, has been named President of Mexico’s National Chamber of the Electronics, Telecommunications and Information Technology Industry (CANIETI), an influential industry body that represents Mexico’s IT and telecommunications industries and works with government to drive ICT policy.
Funes will be president for a three-year period starting this week. The IT industry veteran, who played a key in expanding Softtek’s operations across Latin America, has stated that he will focus on giving internet access to all Mexicans and developing a skilled talent pool for the success of the country’s growing information technology (IT) industry.
“We are living in a different world today,” he told members this week in Mexico City, during CANIETI’s special annual meeting.
“Technological disruption is impacting our lives. Internet of Things (IoT), 3D printing, virtual reality and artificial intelligence (AI) are changing the way we produce goods and deliver services.”
He stressed that he will focus on building resources and making Mexican technology companies more competitive and successful, helping the country accelerate the transformation of the telecom sector derived from structural the reforms of 2013.
CANIETI closely coordinates with the federal government on framing strategies for the improvement of the industries it represents. With more than a thousand members, it is a public interest, autonomous institution with legal status and capital of its own.
In his speech, Carlos Funes conceded that developing a skilled talent pool and expanding the internet access is a challenge the country is facing. Nearly 50 million Mexicans still have no access to high-speed internet, according to local media reports.
“This is a priority,” he said, adding that “it is necessary to work on the deployment of infrastructure, especially 5G networks and fiber optic cables.”
Carlos Funes has been serving Softtek for more than 30 years after joining the software company in 1988.  He was instrumental in making Softtek a strong player in Latin America’s IT services sector.
“Among his greatest contributions to Softtek are accomplishments such as broadening the organization’s presence by entering new markets, bringing local clients to more than ten countries in the Americas, Europe and Asia,” Softtek stated in its website.
In 2011, he was named the chief executive for the company’s Mexican operations. Funes graduated as a Systems Engineer from the Instituto Tecnológico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM), and holds a Master’s in Business Economics from the same institution.
Funes replaces Mario de la Cruz, a senior executive with Cisco in Mexico, who has been credited with advancing the CANIETI agenda on many fronts, including cybersecurity, social inclusion and expanding the scope of opportunities for Mexican IT entrepreneurs.
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