Your local partner in Madison
Your next great remote hire is already bilingual — and costs half as much as hiring locally.
Motivated professionals who work remotely as part of your team, on your hours. Vetted by our executive search team in Guadalajara, Mexico's Silicon Valley, and backed by a local partner here in Madison.
Francisco Rodríguez de la Mora, Founder
Cobalto Talent
Example · Remote AP/AR Specialist
Local cost = typical Madison pay + ~30% payroll taxes and benefits.
- 100% remote, Central Time
- 3 vetted profiles in about a week
- 30-day trial
- Free replacement
Trusted by companies across the U.S.
The problem
Hiring in Madison is harder and more expensive than ever.
2.9%
Almost no one is job-hunting
Unemployment in the Madison area was 2.9% in July 2026. The people you need already have jobs.
vs. the giants
The big employers take the talent
You compete with large tech and health companies, the university and the state for the same people, and their pay and benefits are hard to match.
+30%
Local hires bring added costs
Payroll taxes, health insurance and benefits add roughly 30% on top of pay, before the person's first day.
The work shouldn't pile up on you and your best people. There's a better way to grow.
Unemployment: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics via FRED, Madison, WI metro, July 2026 (not seasonally adjusted). Benefits load is an estimate.
Our story
Started in Guadalajara, Mexico. Growing roots in Madison, Wisconsin.
Francisco Rodríguez de la Mora
Founder, Cobalto Talent · Madison, WI
We relocated in summer 2026 to my wife Catherine's hometown: she was born in Madison and grew up in Lodi. I love our new city!
My great passion is to help businesses grow. I'm a lawyer-turned-entrepreneur from humble beginnings; I know that when we level up, so can the people and places around us.
I've built a retail franchise that grew to 800 locations in underserved neighborhoods, and I've turned a languishing urban block into a bustling public market.
In 2022 I launched Cobalto Talent, an executive search firm for C-level roles and a trusted partner for U.S. companies hiring in Mexico.
I am proud to help businesses in my new home get a leg up, and at the same time bring much-needed salary boosts to Mexico. I meet every client in person and stand behind every placement.
In honor of where we've been: for every role we fill for a U.S. business, we open a monthly sponsorship for a child at Sueños y Esperanzas, a children's home meaningful to our family.
You get Mexico's top talent and a neighbor who picks up the phone.
Meet the team
Real people behind every placement.
In Madison and Guadalajara, working together so you always have someone to call.
Francisco Rodríguez de la Mora
Founder
Madison, WI
Meets every client in person, stands behind every placement and oversees cross-border compliance.
Catherine Russler
Client Experience Lead
Madison, WI
Makes sure every placement works for you, and leads our community partnerships.
Janeth Flores
Talent Acquisition
Guadalajara, MX
Years of hands-on experience in administrative, accounting and operations roles, so she knows exactly what great looks like.
Diana Bonilla
Talent Acquisition
Guadalajara, MX
Finds, interviews and supports every candidate, from first application to day one.
Alejandra Parra
Business Development
Guadalajara, MX
Industrial engineer specialized in strategic B2B account development. Leads our business development from Guadalajara.
Our goal for 2028
100 businesses that grow.
100 professionals who build a better life.
100 children with more support.
Every placement is more than a hire. A business owner gets their evenings back. A talented professional in Mexico builds a better future for their family. And a child at Sueños y Esperanzas has someone in their corner, every single month.
Full-time remote talent for the work Madison businesses can't fill.
What a full-time local hire costs, what you pay us, and what you keep.
Finance & accounting
Full-Charge Bookkeeper
Daily books, reconciliations and monthly statements in QuickBooks.
Save ~$44k/yr
Finance & accounting
AP/AR Specialist
Vendor bills, customer invoices and collections that keep cash moving.
Save ~$43k/yr
Finance & accounting
Staff Accountant
Month-end close, accruals and statements your CPA can trust.
Save ~$62k/yr
Bilingual support
Bilingual Dispatcher / Scheduler
Answers calls, books jobs and keeps crews on schedule — in English and Spanish.
Save ~$36k/yr
Bilingual support
Bilingual Payroll & HR Assistant
Accurate payroll and a Spanish-speaking contact for your crews.
Save ~$32k/yr
Bilingual support
Bilingual Executive Assistant
Calendar, inbox, travel and projects, so the owner focuses on growth.
Save ~$63k/yr
Professional services
Bilingual Legal Assistant
Client intake, document prep, calendaring and filings support, so your attorneys bill more hours.
Save ~$43k/yr
Operations & construction
Construction Estimator / Project Coordinator
Takeoffs, bids, submittals and RFIs — so you bid more work.
Save ~$54k/yr
Operations & construction
Operations Manager
Back-office processes, KPIs and vendor coordination.
Save ~$54k/yr
Sales & technology
RevOps / CRM & Automation Specialist
HubSpot or Salesforce set up right, with automations that save hours.
Save ~$77k/yr
Sales & technology
Software Developer
Web apps, integrations and internal tools, on your team's hours.
Save ~$51k/yr
*Local hire = typical Madison-area pay for the role plus ~30% for payroll taxes and benefits. Cobalto fee is all-in and paid monthly; savings compare a full year of each. Pay data: BLS, Robert Half, Payscale and Built In (2025–2026). Your savings depend on the role and experience level.
Dedicated Remote Teams
Start with one. Grow into a team.
Most clients start with one person for the role that hurts most. When it works, they add the next one, and we build a dedicated remote team that already knows their business.
Example · Construction back office
- Bilingual Dispatcher / Scheduler$2,780/mo
- AP/AR Specialist$2,780/mo
- Construction Estimator$3,850/mo
Save ~$133k/yr
- One point of contactMonthly check-ins with Catherine, here in Madison, on how the whole team is doing.
- Recruiters who already know youEvery new hire is chosen knowing your tools, your people and how you work.
- Same guarantees, every hire30-day trial and free replacement for each person on the team.
- Done beforeRefine Labs and Altos Planos both grew from one hire to a dedicated team with us.
*Same method as the roles above: typical Madison-area pay plus ~30% for payroll taxes and benefits.
How we vet every candidate
Three filters. Only the best reach you.
The same process we built for executive search, applied to every role.
Skills & psychometric assessment
A hands-on test built for the role, plus a psychometric profile of work style, judgment and culture fit.
- Real tasks: a reconciliation, a mock call, a takeoff
- Scored the same way for every candidate
Recorded English video interview
Eight role-specific questions answered on video, so you hear their English and see how they think before you meet them.
- You watch the videos, not just a resume
- No hours lost on first-round calls
Verified background
Identity, education and past employment verified, references checked by phone, and a digital background review.
- Real people calling real references
- Extra care for roles that touch money or data
How it works
From coffee to a working hire in about two weeks.
-
1
Coffee & scope
We meet at your office or downtown. You tell me the role, the tools and the person who would fit your team.
-
2
3 profiles in 5 days
Every candidate has passed an English screen, a recorded video interview and a hands-on skills test.
-
3
30-day trial
Your new remote team member works your hours, in your tools, from Mexico. Not the right fit? We replace them at no cost.
-
4
One simple invoice
One flat monthly fee. We handle pay, contracts and check-ins in Mexico; you get a local contact in Madison.
Client stories
U.S. companies growing with Cobalto talent.
From Boston and New York to Miami, Atlanta, Dallas and Washington, D.C.
The best of hiring local, without the local price.
| Local hire | Offshore marketplace | Cobalto Talent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where they work | Your office | Remote, overseas | 100% remote from Mexico, on your hours |
| Cost | Full salary + ~30% benefits | Low | About 50–65% less than local |
| Time zone | Yours | Often 10+ hours apart | Central Time (0–1 hour difference) |
| Vetting | You do it | You do it | Skills test + video interview done |
| Spanish for your crews | Hard to find | Rare | Native |
| If it doesn't work out | Start over | Start over | Free replacement, local contact |
Why Cobalto
Compliance handled. Risk off your books.
Your team member is not your employee. No payroll, no benefits, no employer filings: one U.S. vendor, one monthly invoice.
- Not on your payrollNo payroll taxes, benefits, I-9 or workers' comp for you. We contract and pay every professional.
- U.S. legal protectionYour agreement is with a U.S. company and enforceable in U.S. courts. No foreign-vendor risk.
- Your IP is protectedEvery professional signs an NDA and assigns all work product to you.
- Cross-border compliance on usContracts, tax forms and payments in Mexico are handled by Cobalto, not by you.
- One simple invoiceA single monthly vendor invoice your accountant can book in minutes.
- Accountable, locallyIf something needs fixing, the owner is across town, not across the world.
Questions business owners ask us
Are they my employees?
No. They work remotely from Mexico, full time for you, on your hours and in your tools, while Cobalto handles their contract and pay. You get one monthly invoice.
How does working with a remote team member work?
Just like a colleague who works from home. They join your video calls, email and chat, work in your software, and keep the same hours as your team. Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Google Meet, Slack: they use whatever your team already uses.
How good is their English?
Every candidate passes a live English screen and a recorded video interview in English. You watch the interviews before you meet anyone.
What hours do they work?
Your hours. Most of Mexico is on Central Time: the same clock as Madison in winter and one hour behind during U.S. daylight saving time.
What if it doesn't work out?
Tell me. During the first 30 days we replace the person at no cost, and after that I'm a phone call away.
How do you protect our financial data?
NDAs and IP assignment for every placement, access only to the systems you choose, and we recommend role-based permissions in your bank and accounting software.
How much does it cost?
One flat, all-in monthly fee per person, listed for each role above. Over coffee, I'll calculate the exact savings for your business and the specific experience level you need.
How does billing work?
To start interviews, you pay a $1,950 start deposit, credited 100% to your first month. When you choose your candidate, we invoice the rest of the first month before their start date. After that, you're billed monthly in advance. If we don't deliver qualified candidates on time, the deposit is fully refunded.
Let's grab a coffee in Madison.
30 minutes, no sales pitch. Tell me where your team is stretched, and I'll bring real candidate profiles and the numbers for your business.