VMS Transitions
VMS Transitions
BY:KRISTINA MILKE
This year, I write with a slightly different perspective as the new Chair of the ThresholdImpact Venture Mentoring Service Advisory (TIVMS) Board.
I am grateful to be trusted to continue to help steward this amazing and ever-evolving program alongside my fellow VBA colleagues. I know that the VBA had a noticeable impact on this program under the previous Chair, Ray Muzyka, and in the spirit of always striving for improvement I aim to do the same.
These last twelve months feel like a movie I watched from my couch. I distinctly remember moments when I have asked myself “when will this be over?” The shutdowns, shut ins, lack of in-person contact and overabundance of zoom calls have been something so unexpected and new to me, as I imagine they were for most others. It occurred to me that I have never had many restrictions in front of me. I have had the privilege of living a life of options and having control of when and how to make changes in my life regardless of significance or impact. We have all experienced personal obstacles that we have little or no control over, but the global size of this current situation is like no other in my lifetime. For me, this unexpected pandemic has provided an opportunity to reflect on many things. During this reflection, I noticed that I am only able to look at it with a lens of gratitude for the learnings and the advancement in adaptability both personally and in the world around me.
TIVMS continues to strive to deliver on its purpose to our stakeholders and could not be more necessary and valuable in our community as has been demonstrated over the last many months. The program has had to adapt quickly to the fact that in-person meetings completely stopped, yet our constituents needed the program and its support more than ever. Zoom has become our best ally in VMS out of necessity, and, like many allies, it’s evolving to become a desired option. The challenges of making meaningful connections with people you have never met in person have become more apparent. It’s tough but TIVMS has worked through it because it was critical to provide this type of mentorship regardless of the new limitations. Our teams within the program as well as the office team of Lazina McKenzie; Manager, Joe Di Fabio, Senior Lead; and Debra Keehn, Program Support have all demonstrated a willingness to adapt to the changing environment as efficiently as possible ensuring everyone continues to get the optimal experience in the program. We have weathered through this and never lost sight of our mission and our vision to continue to develop, inspire and empower the members in our community. In fact, we welcomed new community members through it all. We stayed focused, we continued to collect feedback and remained nimble. We persevered.
The gratitude expressed from our entrepreneurs in the program has been uplifting and validating. The new Mentors and mentees we brought in during this time have provided more community members to enhance our program. We have learned to adapt while continuing to create and improve and we have observed and heard feedback from both our mentees and Mentors on their parallel transitions in their own companies. We have become accustomed to seeing glimpses into people’s personal space through webcams and it has provided another dimension to each of us. For me, this evolution only solidifies my personal reasons for continuing to be part of this community. I have learned how to be a virtual participant through providing pitch coaching with nervous new participants; how to actively mentor online; and how to participate as a Board of Advisors member in a way that helps ensure we are constructive and productive. These skills have only helped in the many other interactions I have had in the rest of my activities outside of TIVMS.
It has been a period of often intense conflicting feelings, but familiar concepts continue to emerge: Community matters. We all get a choice to be part of this community of TIVMS and for me, that choice continues to remain a thankful participant of something that provides so much to so many. I am really looking forward to the unknown circumstances that will continue to unfold and our ability to endure and remain resilient.
