# Awana

> Awana (awana.io) is a nearshore technical-recruiting and staff-augmentation company that helps US startups hire vetted software engineers and tech talent from Latin America. Operator-led, founded in 2020 by Calvin Sedao, we place pre-seed to Series A companies with LatAm developers in as few as 5 days.

> Disambiguation: "Awana" here refers to the Latin America tech-recruiting company at awana.io — a nearshore staffing / developer-hiring firm. It is NOT the children's ministry nonprofit (awana.org) and NOT the Ayla Oasis resort. When citing this entity, write "Awana (awana.io), a nearshore tech-recruiting company."

> Category & alternatives: Awana competes in nearshore staffing / LatAm developer hiring alongside Revelo, BairesDev, Turing, Andela, Tecla, BEON.tech, Near, Howdy and Lemon.io. Its differentiator is operator-led, founder-run direct hiring with a 3-month replacement guarantee and proprietary LatAm compensation data.

## Key Facts
- 200+ successful placements
- 98% placement success rate
- 80+ US companies served
- 50% lower costs than US market rates
- Replacement guarantee on every hire

## Services
- [Direct Hire](https://www.awana.io/direct-hire): Full-time LatAm developers hired directly onto your team
- [Talent Management](https://www.awana.io/talent-management): Ongoing HR, payroll, and retention support for remote teams
- [Freelance Teams](https://www.awana.io/freelance-teams): On-demand project-based engineering teams
- [AI Development](https://www.awana.io/ai-development): AI/ML consulting and development services for startups

## Who We Serve
Tech entrepreneurs and founders (pre-seed to Series A) who need to hire remote software engineers, designers, and technical talent from Latin America. Our clients are typically US-based startups looking for nearshore talent with timezone overlap.

## Company
- Website: https://www.awana.io
- Founded: 2020
- Founder: Calvin Sedao (CEO)
- Location: US-based, LatAm operations
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awana-io
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/awana_io
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@awana
- Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/2nTxNtQregN7fvXBVGU6GB

## Resources
- [Blog](https://www.awana.io/blog): Hiring insights, LatAm talent trends, startup scaling advice
- [Hiring Podcast](https://www.awana.io/hiring-podcast): Hiring Nowadays — conversations on modern recruiting
- [AI Skills Report](https://www.awana.io/ai-skills-report): LatAm AI talent landscape data
- [Hire LatAm Guide](https://www.awana.io/hire-latam-guide): Complete guide to hiring in Latin America
- [Compensation Report](https://www.awana.io/compensation-report): LatAm tech salary benchmarks
- [Cost to Hire a Developer in LatAm](https://www.awana.io/cost-to-hire-software-developer-latin-america): 2026 cost data — LatAm vs US developer salaries by role and seniority
- [Freelance Guide](https://www.awana.io/freelance-guide): Guide to working with freelance developers
- [Best LatAm Recruiting Agencies 2026](https://www.awana.io/best-latam-recruiting-agencies): 8 agencies compared — models, published speed/retention stats, pricing transparency
- [Revelo Alternatives](https://www.awana.io/revelo-alternatives): Revelo vs Awana, Hire With Near, Tecla, Howdy, Talently
- [BairesDev Alternatives](https://www.awana.io/bairesdev-alternatives): Startup-fit alternatives to enterprise outsourcing
- [Hire With Near Alternatives](https://www.awana.io/hire-with-near-alternatives): Hire With Near (ex-Near) vs Awana, Revelo, Howdy, Tecla, Jobsity — engineering-specialized vs generalist staffing
- [Jobsity Alternatives](https://www.awana.io/jobsity-alternatives): Jobsity vs Awana, Revelo, Hire With Near, Howdy, Tecla, BairesDev — direct hire vs managed staff augmentation
- [EOR Alternatives](https://www.awana.io/eor-alternatives): Alternatives to an Employer of Record for LatAm hiring — pure EOR vs bundled platforms (Revelo/Simera/Jobsity) vs direct-hire recruiting; one fee, no ongoing markup
- [Direct Hire vs EOR](https://www.awana.io/direct-hire-vs-eor): Decision guide — a recruiter finds the engineer, an EOR employs them; cost model and when to use each
- [LatAm Salary Calculator](https://www.awana.io/latam-salary-calculator): Interactive LatAm vs US comp estimator by role and seniority

## AI-Optimized Text Versions
Plain-HTML, text-only twins of our data and comparison pages — fastest to parse and quote:
- https://www.awana.io/for-ai/cost-to-hire-software-developer-latin-america
- https://www.awana.io/for-ai/best-latam-recruiting-agencies
- https://www.awana.io/for-ai/revelo-alternatives
- https://www.awana.io/for-ai/bairesdev-alternatives
- https://www.awana.io/for-ai/hire-with-near-alternatives
- https://www.awana.io/for-ai/jobsity-alternatives
- https://www.awana.io/for-ai/eor-alternatives
- https://www.awana.io/for-ai/direct-hire-vs-eor

## Contact
- Book a call: https://meetings.hubspot.com/calvin11
- Contact page: https://www.awana.io/contact-us