Smowltech is a startup created in San Sebastián. There, they have developed a surveillance system that is available in remote studies, based on proctoring technology. This will ensure that students do not cheat. Founded in 2012, this company is a European leader in this sector and its customers are spread all over the world. In this interview, Alex Vea, CEO of Smowltech Strategy, will talk about this innovative idea, among other topics.

What is SMOWL?
SMOWL quality education is a tool to make it more accessible to all people; and this mission is carried out through a remote monitoring software developed by the Spanish company Smowltech, which allows the student to demonstrate that he has internalized the knowledge.

When was it created and who created it?
Smowltech was founded by Ricardo Veak in 2012; Vea, a university professor and Director of Human Resources, was aware of the logistical problems and costs of face-to-face training, both educationally and professionally.

Who is it for?
SMOWL can help anyone who needs to validate their knowledge remotely and have an internet connection.
Mostly our clients are educational institutions; however, we work with companies, recruitment agencies, certifiers, financial institutions, government agencies, etc., and more and more companies are joining 100% online validation of identity and knowledge.

How did you come up with the idea?
Ricardo started working with the idea of ​​improving online education and overcoming physical limitations. Both to train its staff and to provide greater flexibility to students (e.g., foreign students) by improving quality assurance and enabling their training to be taken anywhere, anytime.

Ricardo empathized with his students and collaborators. He knew that it was not always possible to go to a physical place to be evaluated; for example, he once had a student at Erasmus and had to return only to take an exam.

Ricardo understands that not all students have the means to pay for an international trip to take an exam, or he knew that there were family fathers and mothers in his company, and that they could not leave their home so easily where they were dependent and cared for. .

To create a reliable online learning environment and fulfill its vision of empowering users around the world, Smowltech was founded in 2012 by Ricardo Veak in San Sebastián at the age of 53, which is less common.

Why does it offer a greater guarantee of less exam fraud? What sets it apart from other online surveillance systems?
We are pioneers in developing this type of tool in Europe, and leaders in Spanish-speaking countries. In addition, we receive funding from the European Commission for the development of the solution and we also have their endorsement for its use in full compliance with the RGPD. We also recently received our second patent.

The product was designed from the ground up for privacy and to make it as easy to use as possible, fully integrated with the students ’experience for an online assessment.

We have different products and security levels that allow us to adapt to the needs of each university, where we started to offer products that give the student the flexibility to do anything without having to install anything in any browser or device.

In addition, we have built a product that is able to reach students anywhere in the world because it requires low internet consumption, taking images instead of video, as other solutions do. This allows teachers to save time by viewing only photos with incidents, not videos.

SMOWL allows students to validate their knowledge in an online exam, no matter where they are.

The main tasks of SMOWL are to validate the identity of the student to ensure that the person is the right person, and to ensure that compliance with the rules set by the organization is met during the examination.

It is important to note that SMOWL is not responsible for student assessment. What it does is create a report with the images collected so that the teacher, or the person in charge of the assessment, can make the appropriate decisions.

The aim is to transfer what is done in a face-to-face environment to the network, maintaining the same level of academic integrity.

In which countries is this application present?
Thanks to the accessibility of our technology, SMOWL is used by users around the world.

The distribution can be summarized as follows: 60% in Europe and 40% in Latin America. The most used countries are Spain, Colombia, Peru and Chile.

How do you see the future in education? Do you think that these new systems have come to stay and not just because of the pandemic?
The education sector is one of the least digitized industries (less than 3% of allocated expenditure) and it is true that the pandemic has accelerated the digital transformation and led to a structural change in the way things are done.

According to Holon IQ, population growth will be a key challenge for the education sector. By 2035, there are expected to be 2.7 billion students worldwide, and under the current structure, in order to meet the demand for higher education, it is necessary to build at least two universities every day over the next ten years.

In addition, trends focus on “training in what I want, at the time and where I want,” making education accessible worldwide, including new alternatives and learning methodologies, breaking down geographical barriers and time, and reducing travel costs. at the same time, it allows for greater personalization and flexibility in combining working life and specialized training throughout life (lifelong learning).

In fact, the global elearning market is expected to grow to $ 325 million by 2025, according to Forbes.

So not only is there a lot of present, there is also a future for all these dynamizers who are increasingly adapting to the needs of users, teachers and organizations.

Does a new business need to be digital to be successful?
A business needs to be where its customers are. It’s important to segment your target audience well and understand how to get there. Based on this, you need to define your market access channels, which varies greatly depending on your business model and industry: B2B (business to business, business to business), B2C (business to user), e-commerce (eCommerce), and more.

There is no doubt that the digital world has increased the access of all users in different areas, not just in education.

Depending on the context, there are different success factors for all businesses, but the truth is that a digital business provides greater visibility, reach, and scalability, requiring fewer resources.

What are the pros and cons of starting a business?
It’s true that there are always risks, which is probably the biggest negative point when starting a new business. It requires passion, hard work and sacrifice.

Our culture at Smowltech encourages learning, which means we encourage our team to take the initiative and try new things, even if they don’t achieve their goals.
Fortunately, there are many methodologies that allow the creation of prototypes or tests to measure the real intention of the purchase and the viability of the projects, without having to invest much.

In addition, we must mention how rewarding it is to build something that creates social impact internationally and socio-economic impact at the local level.

Especially if you are able to attract talent and build a culture and work environment that motivates you to be part of the change.

Another positive point is the experience gained, which becomes a skill that supports the making of future decisions throughout life.

How would you encourage young people to start a business and pursue an innovative idea?
Entrepreneurship is not for everyone, because it is not an easy path. It requires dedication and long-term effort; it’s a roller coaster marathon. That’s why I would encourage entrepreneurship as a team so that we can help each other, as it requires a lot of resilience and mental strength to overcome the obstacles you will encounter along the way. In addition, you learn to work in a team and manage people, which will be essential for the growth of a business. Today, there is a great challenge to attract and retain talent, especially in the technology sector.

I would encourage young people to try to talk to people who have been entrepreneurs, to learn about their experience and to learn from it; it is also very inspiring. There is a lot of content, podcasts, etc. available online today to learn from other people. The good thing about this ecosystem is that entrepreneurs are usually open to sharing experiences to return what they have received or continue to receive at the time of the ecosystem.

It is important that before starting a business, you fully understand the need to create accessible solutions and not the other way around. Creating a solution and then checking if people need it is likely doomed to fail.
Fortunately, technology allows us to do small tests with minimal effort to provide us with validated knowledge of our potential customers.

What are your future plans for SMOWL?
We are working with institutions on the social impact of facilitating access to quality education through a network channel, linked to the goals of sustainable development, 4. Access to Quality Education and 13. Reducing CO2.

With the following objectives in mind:

1. Objective: To strengthen the quality of online training.
2. Objective: To improve the accessibility of university teaching (students with mobility problems, rural areas, conciliation, cost reduction, etc.).
3. Objective: To reduce the environmental impact of travel to educational centers.

Today, the whole group aims to achieve a world with fewer barriers to quality education. So we work hard to develop our solutions, whether it’s improving and updating, new features, or even better products that are tailored to the needs of our users and customers.

In addition, we believe that training enables people to be better prepared, so that they can have better opportunities while doing their job, which can also affect the economic growth of companies.

As far as our commitment to the environment is concerned, we know that a solution like SMOWL reduces the amount of carbon emissions generated by changes in location by users so that they can be assessed in a physical location. On the other hand, performing a digital exam reduces the amount of paper used compared to printed exams.

We would like to say that in the future, SMOWL will allow more people to have a better quality of life as a result of the better opportunities offered by being able to train online, without incurring high costs or having to abandon other responsibilities, such as their jobs or other people. care.

www.smowl.net