Our Ecuador operations were awarded the Empresa Familiarmente Responsable (Family-Responsible Company, known locally as efr) award, thanks to the program of activities aimed at improving people’s worklife balance.

Tecpetrol’s efforts to promote the well-being of its people have been recognized in Ecuador with an international certification. Following a presentation by the Human Resources team, the company was awarded the Family-Responsible Company (known as Empresa Familiarmente Responsable or efr in Spanish) seal in December, confirming that its benefits effectively reach employees and their families.

"This award validates the range of policies, initiatives and procedures we have in place to help people balance their professional and personal lives. These are measures with a real impact on families and on each person’s growth within the company,” explains Sebastián Cabezas, HRBP Manager, who is responsible for managing the efr model implemented in October 2024 through the Fundación Másfamilia, a Spanish organization with more than 20 years of experience and recognized by the United Nations.

The first step in the certification process was to measure how aware employees were of the benefits available to them, focusing on five key areas: equal opportunities, flexibility in time and location, family support, personal and professional development, and quality of employment. This was followed by an assessment of how these benefits are actually being used across the organization.

“Across Tecpetrol globally, there are already many initiatives in place around sustainability, well-being, diversity and flexibility, and this certification really reflects and validates much of what we’ve been doing,” says Francisco Do Pico, Country Director. “At the same time, earning this recognition and making it public is also a commitment to the future. It sets us on a path that will continue to challenge us to go further and keep improving.”

As a guest speaker on panels focused on sustainability programs, Do Pico had already seen the surprise of colleagues from other companies when they learned about the concrete actions Tecpetrol is implementing.

“We have a well-established diversity program, and this certification gives structure and visibility to much of what we were already doing,” says Jennifer Regalado, HRBP Lead Analyst, who was closely involved in the diagnostic phase.

“When we gathered all the information on benefits and classified them under the efr framework, we realized just how extensive they are—more than 60 in total. It also made us aware that many of these initiatives, because they are part of our everyday work life, tend to go unnoticed. That exercise invited us to take a step back and truly value everything the company does to support us at different stages of our professional and personal lives,” she explains.

Family health insurance and life insurance are among the most highly valued benefits, but flexibility around schedules, time off and family routines also stand out.

After gathering all the information and completing an external audit, Tecpetrol Ecuador achieved certification under the 1000-2 standard, with plans to keep moving forward as new indicators are incorporated and measured.

“We were able to clearly identify our strengths. Now the next step is to design action plans to improve communication and assess everything we already have in place so we can keep evolving and adding initiatives that support work-life balance,” Sebastián explains. “It was very rewarding to receive this recognition. It confirms that we’re above average, doing things well, and that opens the door to many new opportunities,” he adds, looking ahead.

“We’re proud of what we’ve built, and even more proud to share it internally,” concludes Francisco Do Pico. “Seeing the company’s commitment to people’s well-being reflected as a real value—through concrete programs, a supportive and human working environment, and a strong alignment with business objectives—is something we can all stand behind.”