After launching Atrion Inc., a two-person information technology company, in Exeter in 1987 and turning it into a $170 million operation nearly four decades later, Tim Hebert and his partners learned the hard way what makes leaders – and teams – truly succeed.
Following Atrion’s acquisition by Carousel Industries of North America LLC in 2016, Hebert and his team launched Dirigo Leadership Consulting LLC, doing business as Dirigo, in North Kingstown in 2018. The leader-training firm recently relocated to Warwick, where it opened its Leadership Activation Center with a ribbon-cutting on Oct. 22.
“We grew our previous company from the ground up, developing leaders and nurturing talent,” said Hebert, founder, owner and CEO of Dirigo. “That’s what Dirigo is all about – taking decades of real-world lessons and turning them into programs that help others succeed.”
Unlike traditional academic programs, Dirigo’s approach is forged from the real-world successes – and failures – of its founders.
“The programs we run today grew from our own internal development efforts,” said Garry Foisy, partner and facilitator at Dirigo. “We’re teaching from being out in the field, not from a textbook. Our clients learn what works because we’ve tested it ourselves.”
Dirigo’s training programs grew from internal workshops that the founders developed for their teams at Atrion, which they then adapted to help other organizations apply those lessons.
Dirigo’s offerings fall into three main categories: educational workshops, keynote presentations and strategy consulting. Workshops can be private sessions for a company’s employees or open-enrollment courses available to anyone.
Keynotes focus on energizing teams and inspiring thought leadership, while consulting services help organizations create and execute actionable strategies.
And Rhode Island provides fertile ground for this kind of work.
“There’s a resilience here, a community of leaders who have been through the trenches and are looking for that next edge,” Foisy said. “It’s rewarding to see organizations succeed in a state where growth often requires doubling down on effort.”
Dirigo works with both commercial and nonprofit clients, focusing on technology companies and health and human services organizations.
Among its commercial clients is Vertical6, a Warwick-based IT services firm. Foisy said the company’s engineers and developers participated in full-day workshops that strengthened teamwork and problem-solving skills, with tangible results for daily operations.
“They walked out reinvigorated, with a stronger sense of purpose and cohesion,” he said.
On the nonprofit side, Dirigo partners with the Community Provider Network of Rhode Island, an association supporting organizations that serve people with disabilities.
Dirigo has been working with the nonprofit and its member organizations for two years, running workshops on leadership and technology, including the intersection of artificial intelligence and service delivery.
Dirigo currently employs three full-time facilitators, including Hebert’s wife, and two part-time administrative and finance staffers.
Looking ahead, Dirigo aims to expand its programs, offering more frequent public courses and continuing to tailor workshops to meet the evolving needs of workers.
For Hebert and Foisy, the work is deeply personal.
“This company, this mission, it’s the culmination of decades of our experiences,” Foisy said. “And the fact that it’s happening here, in our home state, makes it all the more meaningful.”
OWNER: Tim Hebert
TYPE OF BUSINESS: Leadership training firm
LOCATION: 200 Bald Hill Road, Suite 202, Warwick
EMPLOYEES: Three full time, two part time
YEAR FOUNDED: 2018
ANNUAL REVENUE: WND
