You have to make decisions because what today is an opportunity, tomorrow is no longer valid and the day after tomorrow is history»

With an average of 16 years of experience and an average of 39 years of age, the entrepreneurs and managers who have successfully completed the PYMEX Program of San Telmo Business School, celebrated on April 30 the closing of the Program.

The Master Lesson of the event, which took place in the Malaga headquarters of San Telmo Business School, was given by Borja de Torres Atencia, president of ACOTRAL.

Also, Rafael Domínguez de Gor, president of Grupo Mayoral and patron of San Telmo Foundation; Juan Pérez Gálvez deputy general director of San Telmo Business School; Emeritus Béjar, director of the course; Rafael Ollero Calatayud, director of Training and Improvement Programs in Malaga; and Alejandro Clavero Chicano, president of the course that concluded, took part in the closing ceremony.

Luck doesn’t exist

Borja de Torres, a former student of the program, began his speech by sharing with the attendees how the PYMEX program beat your expectations. «I discovered a new way of learning, the case method burst into my life, changed my understanding of training. The students become the protagonists actively participating, listening, reflecting and debating different points of view. I was fascinated, I was thrilled about the new way of analyzing and understanding the business world: a practical vision».

Referring to the words of Steve Jobs, inventor of the iPhone and true visionary par excellence, he said that during life we made decisions that seem random and without pre-established patterns. However, he added, as time goes by we can look back on these days and find the pattern that connects the dots, which connects all your decisions. «You realize that you were going through a path, that you could not see before and that today is evident and almost perfect. You can’t connect the points of your life looking forward. You can only do it backwards,» he said.

Time for change

During his speech, Borja de Torres also spoke about the technological change nowadays. In this sense, he affirmed that we have witnessed major changes in the business environment, which has gone from being dominated by large multinationals in the energy sector, to being led by technology companies. «The changes are increasingly disruptive. They have changed the way of buying, the consumption habits, the way of going on vacation … These changes are a double-edged sword because they are, at the same time, opportunities that can strengthen us and also threats that can weaken us. You have to make decisions because what today is an opportunity, tomorrow is outdated and the day after tomorrow is history”.

Regarding effort, he said that considering success without taking in account the effort required is to see only the tip of the iceberg. To avoid this, he encouraged the participants to delve into what is behind the people who work hard every day. «Approach these people, be inspired by them, but never think that they have had luck or that their path has been easy because it never is. The luck doesn’t exist «, he explained.

However, for the president of ACOTRAL, behind successful stories there is not only effort and sacrifice, there is also failure. And, for Borja de Torres, failure is part of success and only through this aspect we can improve ourselves and be successful.

Companies and entrepreneurs of the future

 “Whatever happens in the future, companies, entrepreneurs and managers will be in it as an essential backbone. However, we have to make the effort to define and explain the value we bring to society. We value our business ideas, but we do not know how to value what we bring, we do not know how to get the message.” These were the words of the president of ACOTRAL to claim the role of an entrepreneur as a key element of the development of society.

The most successful companies of the future will be, according to Borja de Torres, those that are capable of developing businesses where wealth is shared with employees. «We are not allowed to build a future with leading companies where workers have same economic and labor conditions like in last century, or where there is gender discrimination, or simply where there is a lack of social and environmental responsibility. We have to treat employees as we want them to treat us.»

Also, he encouraged attendees to be consistent with society, not only paying taxes, but reducing pollution, and being socially responsible with those with fewer opportunities. «A company that isn’t socially responsible with its environment should not have a place in the future.»