Glossary of outsourcing, Softland and AI terms
Short, precise definitions of the terms that come up daily in IT outsourcing, Softland ERP implementation and AI software development.
Nearshore
An outsourcing model where the vendor is located in a nearby country with overlapping business hours. For US companies, nearshore typically means Latin America: synchronous collaboration with no night shifts, 2-4 hour flights from Miami, and cultural alignment.
Offshore
Outsourcing with a vendor in a distant country (typically Asia for US/European clients). Lower cost but limited time-zone overlap (0-3 hours) and heavy async coordination. Requires mature handoff processes and documentation.
Staff augmentation
An outsourcing model where the vendor provides dedicated resources (developers, DevOps, PMs, QA) who integrate with the client's team as if they were employees: they follow the client's methodology, tools and stand-ups. Vendor invoices monthly per resource and handles the employment relationship.
RPO
Recruitment Process Outsourcing. The client outsources part or all of its recruitment function to the vendor: sourcing, screening, technical interviews, offer negotiation and onboarding. Fee model: per hire, per month, or hybrid.
ATS
Applicant Tracking System. Software that centralizes the recruitment pipeline: job posting, CV intake, screening, notes, interviews and offer status. Common ATS platforms include Greenhouse, Lever, Workday, Bamboo HR and Manatal.
Headhunting
Proactive search for specific talent (typically senior or passive) for hard-to-fill roles. The headhunter maps the market, contacts candidates who are not actively looking, and introduces them confidentially to the process.
Executive search
Headhunting focused on executive roles (VP, C-level, Director). Includes market mapping, discreet approach, executive interviews, reference validation and offer negotiation support. Typical duration 6-10 weeks, a % of annual compensation.
EOR
Employer of Record. A provider that acts as the legal employer of the talent in their country of residence, while the client directs day-to-day work. Useful when the client wants to hire in a country where it has no legal entity.
GMT-6
Central Standard Time. Same time zone as Chicago, Houston, Mexico City and Winnipeg. Offers 8-9 hours of overlap with US Central and Eastern business hours. Central America does not observe daylight saving time, so the offset is constant year-round.
Time zone overlap
The number of working hours two teams share in a typical day. A team in El Salvador (GMT-6) has 8-9 hours of overlap with Chicago, 6-7 with Los Angeles, 7-8 with New York. High overlap enables synchronous collaboration without async penalty.
LLM
Large Language Model. AI model trained on large text corpora for natural language understanding and generation. Examples: GPT-4/GPT-5 (OpenAI), Claude 3.5/4 (Anthropic), Gemini (Google), Llama (Meta), Mistral. Integrated via API or self-hosted.
RAG
Retrieval-Augmented Generation. AI architecture where an LLM queries a private knowledge base (documents, wikis, databases) before answering. Reduces hallucinations and enables answers grounded in proprietary data. Typical components: embedder, vector database (Pinecone, Qdrant, Weaviate), retriever and LLM.
MCP
Model Context Protocol. Open standard proposed by Anthropic in 2024 to connect AI models with external tools and data sources in a structured way. An MCP server exposes capabilities (functions, resources, prompts) that any compatible client can use.
Softland ERP
Enterprise Resource Planning suite widely deployed in Central America, covering accounting, electronic invoicing (DTE), payroll (HCM), inventory, CRM, POS, and foreign trade. Modular architecture with local tax compliance for El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.
DTE
Documento Tributario Electrónico (Electronic Tax Document). Digitally-signed fiscal receipts submitted to a national tax authority. In El Salvador, DTE is regulated by the Ministerio de Hacienda since 2022. Includes electronic invoice (FE), electronic credit fiscal document (CCF), electronic credit note, and others.
Shortlist
Filtered list of finalist candidates for a role, screened by the recruiter after initial evaluation. A Pliret shortlist typically contains 3-5 candidates with CV, screening notes, technical evaluation and salary expectation. Delivered .
SLA
Service Level Agreement. Contractual commitment between vendor and client on service level: response time, resolution time, uptime. A typical Softland support SLA: critical incident resolution <24 hours, uptime 99.5%.
PCI DSS
Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard. Security standard required for any organization that processes, stores or transmits credit card data. 12 requirements covering network, encryption, access control, monitoring and policy. Annual certification by a QSA auditor.
KYC
Know Your Customer. Customer identity verification process required in banking, fintech and other regulated industries. Includes official ID validation, liveness check, OFAC/PEP list screening and risk scoring. Many fintechs use vendors like Onfido, Persona or Jumio.