Balance = good planning of personal and professional time and an understanding family partner

Introduce yourself in a few words..

My name is Todor Dachev and for the last 20 years I have been developing and managing various clients and companies in the BPO / ITO industry.   Working dynamically with clients and people energizes me and makes me feel fulfilled.

Currently, I am the regional manager for Bulgaria at Teknowledge and I manage a team of 800 IT professionals in Sofia and Varna.

How would you describe your career in a few words?

My career has developed very consistently and with a lot of purposeful efforts on my part for development. Fortunately, our industry offers many opportunities for growth, and it is important for a person to set goals for where they want to go.

At the beginning, I accidentally ended up in one of the first companies in Bulgaria for technical support, but I liked working with clients, and that's how I continued.

In the first years, when this business was developing in Bulgaria, there were neither structured management training nor enough local leaders with knowledge of how to successfully manage a business. Accordingly, we all learned on the go about leadership and management practices, which I believe helped me a lot to find and build my style.

What was the most important choice that shaped your path In?

There was a moment when I had to decide whether to give up what I had studied and continue my development in the industry where I had started to grow or to start over. I believe many people go through this phase when they start working as students and graduate. In the end, I followed my intuition about where I think I will be more successful in the next 10 years, and I do not regret my choice.

What would you like to know at the beginning of your career that no one told you?

That failures and mistakes are part of professional growth and that I should not take theme as defeats, but only to takee the lessons from them and to move forward.

How can a person understand which profession is suitable for them?

By making a self-assessment of their strong personal qualities and comparing them with those required for the specific profession. And when they feel happy and satisfied every day with what they do.

What skills according to Inyour opinion will be key in the next 10 years?

First of all, adaptability to the rapid development of technologies, which will affect all industries and transform the business environment in the next 5 years. New products based on AI, process automation, effective use of AI in business, and individual self-learning for effective use of these technologies will become defining.

On the other hand, as the world becomes more technological and digital, the skills for effective communication and management of people and teams in such an environment will become increasingly important.

How to build a network of useful contacts without appearing interested?

In my opinion, this is impossible 😊  

Ultimately, our network of contacts is built with the aim of interest from future joint projects or potential partnerships, i.e., we always have a long-term interest, and there is nothing wrong with that as long as it is authentic in approach and communication with the other party.

Personally, I try, when building such contacts, to also be useful to them, not just to seek one-sided benefit. Another important thing is that when we build such contacts, it should be at a moment and in an environment when it is appropriate and not to impose ourselves.

What is the biggest mistake you have made in your career, and what did you learn from it?

My biggest mistake is giving more opportunities to people in leadership positions when I see that things will not work out. Unfortunately, I have made this mistake twice, and the result has never been good.

How to recognize a toxic work environment and when is it time to leave?

A toxic environment is one where there is no open communication, constructiveness, and hearing between employees and the company's management, and instead of discussing openly how to solve problems, they are negatively commented on among everyone, but no one does anything about it.

When it is time to leave is an individual decision – for me, it has always been when I do not see what more I can give and receive from my current employer.

What would you do differently if you could start over?

I would be more self-confident – this is something that is built over the years and helps a lot in creating successful partnerships and deals.

How to maintain motivation in times of stagnation?

There is no path only upward; there is stagnation, and there is downward. The first important thing is that we must accept it instead of letting it demotivate us. Another very important thing that helps me is the discipline to continue performing my duties as effectively as possible during such periods. This is the shortest path out of stagnation.

Another approach in such situations is self-development and focusing on interesting projects even if they are not the highest priority.

How to achieve a balance between professional and personal life?

I am convinced that this is perhaps the most difficult skill for anyone participating in these interviews. Very often, our profession requires a tremendous amount of invested personal time and effort, and time is always insufficient.

First of all, it requires very good time planning – both personal and professional. Accordingly, I have learned to set boundaries and limit myself when I have planned personal time.

Secondly, in different periods of career and life, this balance is different.

Not least, you need to have an understanding partner in the family because there are quite a few days and periods when professional commitments impose certain sacrifices.

When is it time to change your career, not just your job?

Changing careers is not an easy step and not very advisable because there is no way years of accumulated experience and knowledge can be directly applied in another industry – accordingly, you start, if not from the beginning, then at least a few levels lower.

 I would do it in the following situations:

-         If I start my own business

-         If I feel completely exhausted and demotivated by the work I am doing and need a change

-         If I believe that in the other industry I can develop more successfully in the long term

If you had to give just one piece of advice to people seeking success, what would it be?

Not to stop developing. Persistence and very small steps in the right direction lead to success.

What is Inyour definition of a “successful career”?

A successful career is when you have left something valuable behind that is perceived this way by everyone.