Nothing magical will happen on January 1 to suddenly make 2021 a better year than 2020. Indeed, in the scheme of the cosmic universe, even more could go horribly wrong: planet-killing asteroid, alien invasion, COVID-20 or a global war all come to mind, but I digress. As people, we like to categorize and explain our world to make it more rational and organized, so we declare 2020 horrible, package all the bad into a 12-month bucket of blame, and then turn to the future year for hope.
2020 was a year of adaptation for Tripepi Smith. While we were fortunate to already have expertise using cloud technologies and an entirely remote workforce, we had clients who were not, and who needed help to adapt to the new work-from-home reality. We also saw organizations ramp up their communication needs overnight to more directly connect with residents about the long reach of government, or to help their communities better understand the changing environment.
Among the dozens of speedy moves made by clients this year, here are three that reflect how public agencies adapted:
1. City of Paramount rolled out an outdoor dining program that allowed local restaurants to use sidewalks and parking lots to create outdoor dining space. They moved fast, and tasked Tripepi Smith with creating a video and website promoting the program within 50 days of conceiving it (ParamountAlfresco.com).
2. City of Lomita saw a rise in infection rates based on evolving case data from the County of Los Angeles back in March 2020. Residents had many questions, and while the City’s website was not designed for speedy updates, City leadership recognized the need to have a complete, one-stop shop for timely information. The answer was LomitaCoronavirus.Info,
a portal for all things coronavirus in the City of Lomita. Tripepi Smith worked with the City to get the basics of the portal up within THREE hours, and continued to update it as needed after that.
3. Pivot Charter School, which supports independent study with digital curriculum and classroom-based options, had to cancel graduation at their four locations in California. Wanting to still recognize this important moment for 2020 graduates, Pivot called on Tripepi Smith for technical guidance on live-streaming graduation ceremonies from each campus. Our team also designed “graduation packs” consisting of yard signs and car decals for families to celebrate their graduates' achievement.
In April of this year I wrote “Don’t Just Survive - Adapt!” in my cover letter missive. Looking back at 2020, our team has flexed and jumped in with enthusiasm to help our clients adapt – no matter the task. Like many leaders, watching our teams being tested this year has been a powerful experience, but the forging process will yield powerful results. As such, we are dedicating this newsletter to highlighting the new talent that joined our team in 2020 to help us grow and remain responsive to clients all over California.
My humble respects to 2020 for all the lessons and challenges.
Onward to 2021,
