Looking Back on 2020: Flexibility & Opportunity
When we started a new tradition of writing a “year in review” last year, we couldn’t know what a wild ride 2020 would be. The pandemic left no best-laid plan unchallenged, personally and professionally, but reflecting on the MatchPace journey this year has been a great exercise in both growth and gratitude.
We set some ambitious goals at the end of 2019, some of which we achieved and others we didn’t. Here are some of our 2020 highlights:
Client engagements: We had several promising potential clients in the pipeline at the start of 2020, but the pandemic affected organizations across industries, and many didn’t come to fruition. We are proud, however, that two previous clients pursued new engagements with us this year, a testament to the value we strive to offer all our clients. The road to organizational transformation can be long, and we are honored that clients continue to partner with us in that process!
Covid-related resources: Early in the pandemic, we pivoted to offer a series of blogs with Covid-related resources as well as Covid-specific coaching for individuals and organizations adapting to a new way of working. The transition from in-person work to remote work is far from seamless, but we’ve been exploring how to work well remotely for a while now, and we were able to offer tangible resources to help people and organizations adapt.
Support for working moms: By this fall, we saw firsthand how the pandemic has disproportionately affected working women, especially working moms. We’re proud of the Working Mom Sprint we’ve developed, and we’re hoping to offer the cohort-based coaching program to new organizations in 2021.
Developing our data: Thanks to our amazing Data Officer, Nicole, we were able to lay the groundwork for collecting important data about how our clients grow and what they achieve over the course of a MatchPace engagement. From the Pace Check™ to the ChronoPace, the data allows us to show clients a tangible return on their investment and continue to measure progress even after an engagement wraps up.
Coaching: completing my Professional Certified Diversity Coach training through the first half of the year was a personal highlight for me (Elizabeth). I’ve had the privilege of helping clients work through things (on a range of topics, not just diversity and equity) that have been holding them back for years, helping them design new paths forward. Coaching has also been really valuable in our client engagements - we include coaching for the organization leadership in every project, and it helps the individuals and the organization achieve higher levels of transformation.
Finally, this was a heavy year for our country, from a contentious election to racial tension. MatchPace is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion, and we spent this year reflecting on how we embody those values and creating a Diversity Statement with policies that hold us accountable to them. We’re excited to partner with a Black and Brown-owned consulting firm in the new year to help us attain clarity about equity and belonging in our own house.
We’re wrapping up this year with some fun (virtual) events, including free burnout seminars for organizations and the opportunity to speak with a group of women leaders in Silicon Valley about our “Prioritize, Minimize, Delegate” framework that helps individuals and organizations work better. We end the year feeling both grateful to still be in business after such a tumultuous year and more excited than ever to partner with organizations to help then work well and live well.
As always, please never hesitate to reach out if we can help! We wish you and yours a safe, healthy, hope-filled holiday season, and look forward to serving you in the New Year!