You’re looking at a stack of resumes from Latin America.
Half of them look identical. Generic responsibilities. Vague English claims. No mention of remote work.
The other half actually tell you something useful.
The difference between a good hire and a bad one often comes down to five things you can spot in 60 seconds.
Let me show you exactly what to look for.
Scan for Remote Tools First
Open the CV.
Do you see Slack, Zoom, Asana, Notion, Trello, or Google Workspace mentioned anywhere?
If yes, keep reading. If no, move to the next candidate.
It’s that simple.
A CV that never mentions these tools tells you the candidate has no experience with a remote work setup.
What Good Remote Experience Looks Like
“Managed customer support team using Zendesk and Slack across 4 time zones”
“Coordinated product launches with distributed engineering team via Jira and Confluence”
“Ran marketing campaigns for US clients using HubSpot, Asana, and Monday.com”
These aren’t just tool names. They’re proof.
Compare that to “worked remotely for 2 years” with no other details. That tells you nothing.
The 10-Second Remote Check
Look for any of these phrases:
- Distributed team
- Asynchronous communication
- Time zone overlap
- US/European clients
- Remote-first company
One or more? Keep going.
None? Skip to the next CV.
Check English Level in 30 Seconds
Don’t read the whole thing yet.
Just scan the first paragraph and any bullet points.
Are the sentences clear? Is the grammar clean? Can you understand it easily?
If you’re catching obvious errors in the first three lines, that’s your answer.
What to Look For
Good candidates state their English level explicitly:
“Advanced English (C1)” “TOEFL 110/120” “5+ years working exclusively with US clients” “Bilingual (English/Spanish)”
Bad candidates say “fluent in English” and nothing else.
Test Their Communication Style
Read their professional summary.
Can they explain who they are in 3-4 sentences?
Or is it a wall of buzzwords like “results-driven professional seeking challenging opportunities to leverage synergistic solutions”?
Clear writing in a CV means clear writing in Slack. Unclear writing means you’ll be confused for months.
Look for Numbers, Not Duties
Scroll to their work experience.
Count how many bullet points have actual numbers in them.
If most bullets are just “Responsible for…” or “Managed…” with no metrics, that’s a weak CV.
Good vs Bad Bullets
Bad: “Handled customer support tickets”
Good: “Resolved 50+ tickets daily with 95% satisfaction rate”
Bad: “Managed social media”
Good: “Increased Instagram engagement 340% in 3 months, generating 28 sales calls”
Bad: “Worked on development projects”
Good: “Built payment integration processing $2M+ monthly, reducing transaction errors by 67%”
Numbers prove competence. Duties just prove they showed up.
Portfolio Links Matter More Than Descriptions
Developers need GitHub links with actual code.
Designers need Behance or Dribbble with real projects.
Writers need sample articles or a portfolio site.
If their CV is all words and no proof, be skeptical.
Check Time Zone and Availability
This takes 5 seconds but saves massive headaches.
Look for: “Based in Mexico City (UTC-6), available 8am-4pm EST”
That one line tells you:
- Exact location
- Their time zone
- When they can work
No time zone mentioned? That’s sloppy. Ask before you go further.
Infrastructure Check
Latin America has excellent internet in cities but spotty connections in rural areas.
Strong candidates mention this upfront: “100 Mbps fiber, backup 4G connection”
If they’re applying to remote work and never mention their internet, assume they haven’t thought it through.
Employment Type Clarity
Full-time? Part-time? Contract? Freelance?
It should be stated clearly in the summary or first section.
“Seeking full-time remote position” or “Available 30 hours/week for contract work”
If you can’t tell what they’re looking for, you’ll waste time on calls that go nowhere.
Role-Specific Red Flags and Green Flags
For Developers
Green flags:
- GitHub link with commits from the last 30 days
- Specific tech stack: “React 18, Node.js, PostgreSQL, AWS”
- Open source contributions listed
- Personal projects or side work
Red flags:
- No code samples anywhere
- “Experienced in multiple programming languages” with no specifics
- GitHub exists but is empty
- Only lists tutorials or course projects
For Customer Support
Green flags:
- “Native Spanish, Advanced English (C1)”
- Lists support tools: Zendesk, Freshdesk, Intercom
- Metrics: “Maintained 4.8/5 CSAT score across 1,000+ tickets”
- Mentions handling US customer expectations
Red flags:
- English level not mentioned at all
- No support tools listed
- Only local company experience
- No customer satisfaction metrics
For Marketing and Content
Green flags:
- Campaign results: “Generated 450 leads at $12 CPA”
- Tool proficiency: Google Analytics, Ahrefs, Facebook Ads
- Portfolio of published work
- International audience experience
Red flags:
- Generic duties: “managed campaigns”
- No metrics or results
- No writing samples
- Only Spanish-language examples for English roles
For Project Managers
Green flags:
- “Agile/Scrum certified”
- Cross-border team experience
- Async stakeholder management mentioned
- Tools: Jira, Asana, Linear, Notion
Red flags:
- No methodology mentioned
- No distributed team experience
- Vague “coordinated projects”
- No collaboration tools listed
Common Latin American CV Mistakes
Photos and Personal Info
If the CV has a headshot, birthdate, marital status, or ID number, they haven’t adapted it for international hiring.
That’s normal in Latin America but inappropriate for US/UK/AU roles.
Not a dealbreaker, but signals they’re new to international markets.
Unknown Local Companies
“Worked at TechSolutions Colombia” means nothing to you.
Good candidates add context: “Largest fintech in Colombia, 500+ employees”
One sentence turns a mystery into credibility.
Responsibilities Without Context
“Managed team of 5” could mean anything.
Better: “Led 5-person support team across 3 countries, handling 200+ daily customer inquiries”
Context makes experience real.
Course Overload
15 Udemy certificates but 8 months of work experience?
That’s learning, not doing.
Courses are fine. But experience trumps education every time.
What Great CVs Do Differently
The Perfect Opening
“Full-stack developer with 6 years building SaaS products for US startups. Expert in React, Node.js, and AWS. Based in Buenos Aires (UTC-3), overlapping 9am-5pm EST. Available for full-time remote positions.”
Four sentences. You know exactly who they are and if they fit.
Skills Organized by Category
Remote Tools: Slack, Zoom, Notion, Asana (5 years) Development: React, Node.js, PostgreSQL, AWS (6 years) Languages: English (C1), Spanish (Native)
Clean. Scannable. Honest about experience levels.
Bullets That Show Impact
“Reduced customer churn 23% by implementing proactive outreach system using Intercom and HubSpot”
“Built automated reporting dashboard saving 15 hours/week of manual work”
“Increased qualified leads 156% through targeted LinkedIn campaigns, generating $340K pipeline”
Every bullet answers: what did you do, how did you do it, and what was the result?
Proof That’s Easy to Check
GitHub: github.com/username (50+ public repos) Portfolio: yourname.com LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/yourname Previous work: links to live projects or case studies
They’re making it easy for you to verify everything they claim.
Use Platforms That Pre-Filter for You
Reviewing hundreds of CVs manually is exhausting.
HireTalent.LAT uses AI-powered analysis to rank applicants across job match, retention risk, and experience level before you see them. The platform’s triple verification system also confirms identity, address, and phone for every candidate.
Your 60-Second CV Checklist
- Remote tools mentioned? (Yes/No)
- English level stated clearly? (Yes/No)
- Time zone and availability listed? (Yes/No)
- Numbers in work experience? (Count them)
- Portfolio or proof links? (Yes/No)
- Relevant tools for the role? (Yes/No)
If you get 5+ yes answers, read the full CV.
If you get 3 or fewer, move on.
Your time is valuable. Spend it on candidates who’ve done the work to present themselves properly.
The Bottom Line
Great Latin American candidates make hiring easy.
They list remote tools. They prove English proficiency. They show results with numbers. They clarify time zones and availability. They provide portfolios and proof.
Weak candidates make you guess.
Stop guessing. Start scanning for these six things, and you’ll spot strong hires in under a minute.
The best remote workers know how to show their value before you ever talk to them.
Their CV is proof they can communicate clearly, work independently, and deliver results.
Everything else is just noise.
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