Umano scales from legal aid to eight-discipline wellness platform across LATAM
A Chilean startup founded to address gaps in state-provided family law services has evolved into a regional corporate wellness provider operating in seven Latin American countries. Umano, co-founded by attorney Francisca de la Piedra, began as Legal Step, offering free legal assistance to workers. The company now delivers integrated employee assistance across psychology, legal counsel, financial advice, nutrition, social work, occupational therapy, and personalized kinesiology.
De la Piedra's shift from law to entrepreneurship followed a domestic violence case in which private professional support proved transformative for a family that state services could not adequately serve. That experience prompted the question that shaped her venture: how to scale such assistance to more people. The startup currently operates in Mexico, Peru, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, Ecuador, and Chile, with Brazil entry scheduled for 2027 and a first client already waiting.
The platform's eight professional lines emerged organically as specialists identified unmet needs. A child psychologist flagged high demand for autism spectrum assessments, prompting the addition of occupational therapy. Kinesiology services were built around individual patient routines rather than generic fitness plans. Umano's website describes the model as connecting personal well-being with business outcomes through data-driven case management and critical incident response.
For employers expanding across Latin America's key markets, Umano's trajectory illustrates both the demand for localized, multidisciplinary employee support and the operational complexity of scaling professional services regionally. The company's growth also highlights Chile's growing wellness and HR tech talent pool, a factor relevant to firms building or sourcing teams in the country.
Planning a hire?
Talk through the best hiring option
This article usually leads to one practical question: should you use country guide or staffing? We can help you choose quickly.
Simple next step
Start with country guide and we will help you pick the best hiring setup.
How Francisca de la Piedra's multidisciplinary model challenges corporate wellness spending priorities
De la Piedra has been candid about the difficulty of persuading companies to allocate budgets to year-round wellness programs rather than one-off events. When Umano launched, HR departments often prioritized end-of-year parties or Chilean Independence Day celebrations, forcing integrated wellness proposals to compete with catering line items. The startup responded with a campaign it called the "Empanómetro," asserting that employees need support throughout the year, not just during festivals.
The business case has since strengthened. De la Piedra cited World Bank estimates of more than $30 billion in annual productivity and absenteeism losses across the region due to mental health challenges. Umano's own client data shows a 6.8 out of 7 service rating, a 16-point increase in employee Net Promoter Score, a 35 percent reduction in absenteeism, and six times greater likelihood of employee retention.
These metrics carry weight for workforce planning. Companies hiring in Chile or operating across multiple LATAM jurisdictions face rising expectations that benefits address real needs rather than perception. Umano's model suggests that multidisciplinary support, when tracked and adjusted using case data, can reduce turnover and unplanned absences, both of which carry direct recruitment and operational costs. For talent teams managing distributed hires or working with regional recruitment partners, understanding how wellness infrastructure affects retention becomes a strategic input rather than an HR afterthought.
De la Piedra also addressed gender dynamics in startup funding. Women founders encounter fewer available funds, lower application rates, and disproportionate family reconciliation responsibilities. A corporate HR manager once told her that women only join companies to get pregnant. Such experiences erode confidence, making evidence of impact essential to sustain momentum.
GENTY's argentina recruitment agency guide offers additional context for employers planning their next hires. GENTY's Chile's growing wellness and HR tech talent pool guide offers additional context for employers planning their next hires.
Umano's Brazil entry and the future of integrated employee wellness in Latin America
Umano's planned launch in Brazil, with a client already committed, extends its footprint into Latin America. The move reflects both the startup's operational maturity and the portability of its service model across diverse regulatory and cultural contexts. Brazil's scale and complexity will test whether Umano's interconnected professional lines can maintain service quality and data integration as the company grows.
The startup's participation in Startup.Connect, a program run by Universidad del Desarrollo and País Digital, has facilitated corporate introductions. The initiative has brokered over 250 one-on-one meetings for more than 90 startups, achieving a 92 percent match success rate. De la Piedra appeared as a panelist at the program's 2026 summit, raising her profile among potential enterprise clients and partners.
For employers, Umano's expansion signals a broader shift in how employee assistance programs are structured in Latin America. Traditional EAPs often silo services by provider or discipline. Umano's approach integrates legal, psychological, social, and health services under a single platform with shared case visibility, enabling earlier intervention and reducing duplication. This matters for companies managing distributed teams or entering new markets, where fragmented vendor relationships complicate compliance, reporting, and employee experience.
De la Piedra's advice to her earlier self was to have more confidence. She described the first year as marked by insecurity, feeling as though the venture sat awkwardly between a nonprofit and a business. Her counsel to other founders: seek evidence of the problem being solved and never lose sight of it. That focus sustains relevance amid the daily uncertainty of payroll, budgets, and growth.
The startup's name, Umano without the "h," was chosen to signal an absence of hype in corporate wellness. An agency proposed the spelling to reflect substance over style. For talent and operations leaders evaluating wellness vendors or building benefits strategies across LATAM, that distinction between evidence and marketing remains a useful filter.