” There is no “one size fits all” Our job as Leadership Academy is to truly understand, analyze and build a fully tailored solution that will pinpoint the exact objectives that our customer has in order to improve and grow its operations. That can be in all different sorts of learning experiences, and at the end it is like a growing ecosystem that never stops evolving.” Petar Dimovski
Interviewer: Mariham Magdy
Brief Biography about the Interviewee:
Petar Dimovski is one of Leoron’s Institute young executives. As a successful Business Developer recently Petar took a new position and a challenge in becoming Head of Leoron’s Leadership Academy. Being the link between international educational organizations and Leoron Institute’s corporate clients gives Petar a wide-angle insight into today’s needs of professional edtech development in the GCC region.
1- HR Revolution Middle East: Petar, welcome to HR Revolution Middle East Magazine. We are happy to make this interview with you. In the beginning we would love to learn from you about the unique role of Leoron Institute Leadership Academy, and how do you believe is it shaping a new set of competencies for Leaders nowadays?
Petar Dimovski:Thank you very much! Glad to be doing this interview with your magazine. As in LEORON Institute’s mission to help our worldwide clients boost their competitiveness by improving the competency levels of their employees, the Leadership Academy is one of the central elements paving that way forward. Every organization has different set of competencies that are crucial to its well-being. There is no “one size fits all” Our job as Leadership Academy is to truly understand, analyze and build a fully tailored solution that will pinpoint the exact objectives that our customer has in order to improve and grow its operations. That can be in all different sorts of learning experiences, and at the end it is like a growing ecosystem that never stops evolving.
2- HR Revolution Middle East: As an L&D professional, with a unique and extensive experience in this field; what are the future competencies companies really need to equip their professionals with to be ready for sustaining their competitiveness in todays’ VUCA world?
Petar Dimovski: That’s a great question, and very frequent one these days, if I can say. With the changes rising in exponential growth and in unexpected directions, complex problem solving is one of the most important among the ever-evolving list of competencies. The roles and ways of doing business vary and change now with much more frequent rate than ever before and organizations have to be innovative in dealing with these changes.
That requires a holistic overview on many different situations and at the same time being able to tackle these changes with pragmatic solutions without being overwhelmed by their complex nature will differentiate the companies that will thrive in the next period.
3- HR Revolution Middle East: We believe that the Business Development competencies have been changing a lot after covid 19; the way of developing a sustainable relationship with clients to grow a business has been totally changed requiring more empathy, agility, and resilience to accommodate customer needs. As a Business Development Leader, what special piece of advice would you share with businesses to optimize their business development capabilities today?
Petar Dimovski: Always analyze, actively listen and be proactive when thinking about your customer needs!
I think the pandemic showed how connected we all are, and how important is for a customer to have the utmost trust in you and your organization. But that is easier said than done, because to earn that trust you must be flexible, agile and to have perseverance to endure and patch things up when challenges arise.
The customers are very smart and intelligent and in the mid and long term recognize and value the care that you show towards their business and will appreciate the way you help them thrive. That differentiates the potential long-time partners in doing business from the one-time collaborators. Once that bond is formed, the synergy between the organizations drives everyone forward.
4- HR Revolution Middle East: To what extent do you believe that Leoron Institute diversified solutions and certifications are customized to serve businesses in multiple operating environments?
Petar Dimovski: We are always ideating, innovating, customizing and perfecting our services. That is why we have grown to support an array of different organizations, from large national corporations to niche specialized companies to achieve their goals when it comes to professional education. Through Ed-tech in the forms distance learning, e-learning, VR or the traditional classroom style, the training nowadays is all about that – customization. We are bringing the learning experience to our customers exactly as per their preferences because that is how great results are achieved.
5- HR Revolution Middle East: Leoron Institute has always been supporting all professions through launching diversified certifications to enrich and nurture a solid knowledge about professional implementation techniques and enhancement. What are the institute latest certificates this year?
Petar Dimovski: I am very proud that we have made a significant move in further expanding our portfolio this year and through our partnership with edX we are now offering certificates from top-ranked Ivy League Universities, such as Harvard, MIT, Berkely University of California, Oxford, Dartmouth and many more. We have integrated the content within our curriculum and now participants of our programs can get certificates from these Universities which speaks for itself about our drive for improvement and the level of quality in both our leadership and technical programs.
6- HR Revolution Middle East: What new aspects do you believe Companies need to consider while conducting their Training Needs Analysis today to ensure a comprehensive analysis for what really, they need to develop in their workforce?
Petar Dimovski: A proper training needs analysis establishes the gap between where you are and where you want to be. The process of identifying training needs in an organization for the purpose of improving employee job performance is different for every organization.
Before you start looking into training needs analysis, it’s important that you have a clear understanding of your organization’s mission and values.
This will help you identify areas of focus and improve the effectiveness of your training.
Most important is to have clear definition and to set the levels at which your TNA operates on: Organizational, Team and Individual.
After that when you do a deeper dive into the organization’s specifics a range of approaches and frameworks can be customized and utilized to design an effective TNA.
7- HR Revolution Middle East: What special competencies shall Trainers nurture nowadays to engage trainees with new mindsets and high-level expectations?
Petar Dimovski: Trainers are integral part of our operations as they are the ones bringing and nurturing the whole experience towards our customers. Besides the fact that every trainer must be master of his own area, not just in knowledge but in skills that will effectively transfer that knowledge to our students. Keeping up to date with newest trends and being tech-savvy in using new approaches is crucial. For example, using gamified content which is a type of content that uses game mechanics to enhance the learning experience. It can be used in non-gaming environments such as training courses. Rewarding those who complete tasks can boost engagement by up to 60%.
8- HR Revolution Middle East: Finally, we would love to ask you if Leoron Institute would consider holding Regional L&D Events and Conferences in the coming period?
Petar Dimovski: Definitely! We want to rise at the forefront of these kinds of L&D Exhibitions and Conferences. We have been at these conferences previously together with ASQ, IFMA and others and with the pandemic slowly behind us, we are looking forward to organizing such events in the near future!
THANK YOU