Richard Tovar is a graduate of Bachelor of Education and an expert in instructional design, specializing in creating impactful learning experiences for diverse organizations. As a consultant in training strategies, Richard has worked with companies, universities, and social organizations, helping them optimize their learning programs to meet specific needs. His extensive experience also includes coaching leaders in enhancing their teaching techniques, ensuring that they can effectively guide and inspire others. Through ÁREA ÍNDIGO, Richard continues to make significant contributions to the development of educational programs and leadership training.
Company: ÁREA ÍNDIGO / Agencia Índigo
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company
Richard Tovar: I am Richard Tovar, educator, university professor, consultant for companies and advisor to leaders in training strategies to optimize the process of knowledge transmission. I do this through my company: Agencia Índigo, a training company that since 2014 and with more than 36,000 apprentices and more than 60 companies served, is dedicated to promoting leaders, human talent and organizational structures through training.
If you were in an elevator with Warren Buffett, how would you describe your company, your services or products? What makes your company different from others? What is your company’s biggest strength?
Richard Tovar: You have business objectives, you have leaders guiding those objectives and human talent acting to achieve those results. I offer you to enhance that talent, and those leaders to achieve results with less wear, in less time and with greater satisfaction. Therefore, I provide you: 1) Manuals and templates to diagnose and address the capabilities of your leaders and teams. 2) Design of training strategies to enhance strengths and reduce functional gaps. 3) Execute these strategies as a team added to your management. 4) Train and empower your people to replicate execution throughout the structure. all this supported by technology and management support.
Quiet quitting, The Great Resignation, is an ongoing trend causing many businesses to struggle to keep talent engaged and motivated. Most are leaving because of their boss or their company culture. 82% of people feel unheard, undervalued, and misunderstood in the workplace. In your experience, what keeps employees happy? And how are you adapting to the current shift we see?
Richard Tovar: There are two terms in our leadership model that allow us to keep the “silent resignation” very present and these are: 1) Retention 2) Maintenance In Venezuela, where my company is run, business leaders believe that retaining talent with good salaries and good performance bonuses are what keep people happy and motivated, and this is a BIG LIE, because what it does It is “imprisoning” talent in a cell of good benefits, although it is contradictory, it is what happens. Now, what do we invite our clients to? to migrate to a path of talent maintenance in which consequences such as: 1) Sense of purpose 2) Sense of belonging 3) Sense of participation 4) Sense of proaction 5) Sense of perseverance. 5 senses that allow a collaborator to feel not only part of the company, but also an agent of transformation, this is exercised through sessions of: 1) Listen 2) Definition of interests and opportunities. 3) Co-creation of initiatives and campaigns. 4)Collaborative execution. 5)Exhibition and measurement of indicators
Online business keeps on surging higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for the year to come and how are you capitalizing on the tidal wave?
Richard Tovar: From our niche, capacity and research, we have detected a Spanish-speaking market that is projected to reach almost 4 billion dollars in digital consumption by 2028 of: 1) Training 2) Mentoring 3) Accompaniment 4) Templates and work tools Accompanied by AI, content production and a deep understanding of the market, at indigo we are building digital universes that allow our clients to automate and sustain their training projects, whether for internal or external clients.
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as THE real challenge right now?
Richard Tovar: The real challenges in training services businesses that we detect are the following: 1) “Personification” of the service: that is, customers tend to believe more in people than in companies, which means that scalability may be compromised. 2) The generational gap between leaders and collaborators. By not having teams rich in experience (older people) and technology (younger people) we risk making mistakes, which is why it is key to harmonize teams with generational intelligence. 3) Agility and adaptability: It is increasingly important to adapt to the demands and speeds of the market and the environment; so having teams with vision and ambition is key.
In your experience, what tends to be the most underestimated part of running a company? Can you share an example?
Richard Tovar: What we all underestimate is the most obvious: 100% of the market is made up of humans. 100% of companies and organizations are made up of people. Therefore, if we do not focus on HUMANS, we will not be able to dominate the market or the business. If we do not know who our clients are, nor who our leaders and work teams are, a good product has NOTHING of relevance. Since those who represent the brands and consumers will not feel part of the business. We underestimate the training of leaders and teams because we do not know how to measure their impact. That is why this company was born, to make training sustainable and intelligent investments.
On a lighter note, if you had the ability to pick any business superpower, what would it be and how would you put it into practice?
Richard Tovar: The super power that we can all access: that of listening, accompaniment and assistance to our human talents in organizations. because that super power would allow us: 1) Fly within reach of our results. 2) Superstrength against crises 3) Make ourselves invisible to laziness and demotivation 4) Break through walls of assumptions and burnout and finally: 5) Travel in time to the future, to create it from the present.
What does “success” in 2024 mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision
Richard Tovar: Success is feeling satisfied doing what you do. Success is providing opportunities and employment opportunities. Success is offering value to the market and promoting entrepreneurship through training.