It’s hard to imagine that our world was entirely upended three short months ago.

I’d been the CMO at Skillsoft and SumTotal for 6 months. The most important initiative on my list (besides launching a new brand, staffing up a global department, running a dozen concurrent marketing programs, and scheduling foot surgery) was Perspectives, our annual user conference. Perspectives brings together customers, partners, and industry visionaries to showcase how organizations are building transformative learning and development programs. It was to be a thoughtful and high-end, but fairly conventional event: with live programs in Florida, London, and India. And we had lofty goals to increase participation by 25% to more than 1,200 attendees, aggressive but achievable.

Then everything changed.

The first week of March, the Covid-19 pandemic became a reality for those of us in the United States. In short order, we were advised to stay at home and adjust to remote work. Suddenly, a live destination event was more than a challenge. It was an impossibility. I’m not sure that anything could have prepared us for the nature of this crisis and the immediacy with which we had to act. Our ability to adapt — and adapt swiftly — was paramount.

But, we knew that simply delivering the program we had planned in a digital fashion wouldn’t be enough — for our customers or ourselves. Necessity is often said to be the mother of invention. Or, in our case “reinvention.” We had to create something completely new and irresistible that encouraged people to participate live. And so, our team spent 28 hours over a two-day period in a design thinking workshop, connecting with customers and, more broadly, learners, to determine what they wanted from a modern digital experience. We also looked at examples of companies that have held successful live experiences and sought inspiration in some unusual sources — from Peloton’s annual Homecomings, Apple and their infamous product unveilings, and even television’s The Bachelor, which uses social media to drive tune-in. And we recognized that we had an opportunity to open our aperture and turn this limited, in-person regional event into a global day of learning for everyone.

Over the following two and a half months, my team worked — sometimes day and night — to reinvent Perspectives from top to bottom. It became a free, 24-hour, online experience, starting in Sydney, Australia and wrapping up in San Francisco, California. Perspectives 2020 featured more than a hundred speakers in keynotes, case studies, and head-to-head debates. There were product demos and regional business continuity panels. There were music and yoga breaks, and ample opportunities to ask questions, suggest solutions, and participate in what turned into a 24-hour conversation about everything from personal development to diversity and inclusion training; from leading in challenging times to lively discussions on who owns the skilling agenda.

And, more than 40,000 people registered! And with all content available on demand, even more are accessing daily — learning and growing along the way.

Perspectives 2020 was three weeks ago, and to say that it was an exceptional experience would not do it justice. As I reflect on it — particularly the May 13th live digital experience — a few things stand out:

The experience strengthened our own organization even as we sought to serve our customers, partners, and learners. We had just taught our entire organization how to work in Agile and we couldn’t go back. Perspectives 2020 was a forcing mechanism. We had seven independent squads and a top-notch scrum master over the entire program (thank you, Chris!). The core team came together for daily stand-ups, setting goals, and improving our velocity with every weekly sprint.

We built strong customer relationships while amassing an entire library of content. We involved our customers early on. What was most important to them? How could we support them during a time of unprecedented disruption? You only have to look at all of the customer case studies our team built or the new contacts we’ve made to understand the value. It’s exciting to see and read the amazing stories as told from the perspectives of our customers.

We launched — and lived — a new brand. Perspectives 2020 was our new brand personified. At Skillsoft and SumTotal, we believe that every person has the potential to be amazing. We help people invest in themselves and unleash their edge. And our vision is to democratize learning, making it available and accessible to all. Everything that we stand for as a brand was right there in Perspectives 2020 — from the messages delivered by our keynotes, to the presence of Special Olympics, to the way in which we opened this up to anyone and everyone, from C-level executives to students.

We exceeded our own expectations (and everyone else’s). Shortly before Perspectives 2020, I met with a prominent marketing luminary who told me that digital events were not living up to the hype. (Luckily, I didn’t get discouraged; I hardly had time to catch my breath, much less lose momentum.) Drew Neisser, Founder and CEO of Renegade, who works with numerous CMOs, came back on the day of our event and tweeted, “#wow Virtual conferences have a new bar to top! #Perspectives2020 is really worth checking out. Congrats. Great energy. Looking forward to watching more today.”

Were we overly ambitious? Absolutely. Would we do it differently? Probably not.

In hindsight, if we’d had more time, if we’d truly planned this for months and months, I’m not sure we would have accomplished what we did. We made a quick decision to move this to digital and do something completely different. And then we had to execute. We didn’t have time to ponder the decision or adjust our thinking. We had to move and make smart, but quick decisions.

Yes, we faced minor technical challenges (and I have to personally thank broadcaster Jez Rose for teaching me how to get through an audio issue with grace and levity). But, all in all, I can’t convey the sense of accomplishment we have.

And, I can’t begin to list all of the (literally hundreds of) highlights across the 24-hour experience. I encourage you to sample them for yourself. From keynotes by Tara Westover, Shawn Achor, Heidi Grant, David Meerman Scott, and more, to Q&As, lively debates, expert panels, customer case studies, and more. Visit for free access to the entire program.

So, the obvious question (now that we’ve caught our breath) is how do we top this?

We don’t.

Our job is not to replicate this experience; it was appropriate for the time and need in the market. It was lightning in a bottle; the right thing at the right moment. And, it helped us define and embody who we are and who we aspire to be.

Today, our job is to determine what our customers and their learners need going forward and continue to evolve our marketing to suit. Right now, for example, we’re running intensive bootcamps, including a new one for leaders faced with transitioning teams back to the workplace. We’re taking all we’ve learned from Perspectives 2020 and started to reimagine a new long-term event strategy (hint: it won’t likely include in-person events until 2021 at the earliest). And, we’re assessing all our content to make certain it aligns with the real and valuable insights we gained about our customers.

I’ll leave you with this … the single biggest takeaway for me was that this was not just about teaching people new skills; it was about improving our collective well-being — developing the whole person. If there’s anything the pandemic has shown us, it’s that the line between the personal and professional is — and should be — flexible. When we continue to learn and grow and achieve, it benefits our work life and our home life. This was a theme that surfaced over and over at Perspectives 2020: holistic learning. And this is precisely who we are and what we do.

Perspectives 2020 was a lot like a marathon. You train and you train for the big day. And, then — suddenly — it’s over. But guess what? The value isn’t solely in finishing the race itself; it’s in the efforts that lead up to it.

All of the work we put into Perspectives 2020 will pay tremendous dividends in myriad ways. For our customers, and ourselves.