Q1/2021 wrap-up: A new hope 

2021 felt like a new hope all over the world. There was a boost in innovation and applied technology, all types of businesses digitalized their work and processes, and the pandemic was hopefully coming to an end as multiple vaccines became available.

As you know by now, every quarter we recap our experiences as a team and share our work and achievements — communication and ownership are at the core of the Wolfpack Digital values.

Q1 is always a bit quiet: everyone starts slow, people still think about their winter holiday, and everyone works on yearly planning. But for us, well, we started with a party. A virtual party, of course.

Wolfpack Digital: 6th Anniversary

In 2020 we managed to take the entire team to Rome for the 5th anniversary of Wolfpack Digital. Little did we know back then what was ahead of us. This year we had to celebrate online, but we sent party kits to every coworker — glasses, cake, props, sparkling drinks, and everything in between, just like a normal party! Everyone enjoyed it, and we stayed up for hours playing games together.

To make things even better, Gina Lupu, our CEO, wrote a letter to everyone reminding us that what we do is about the journey, not the destination, and how company culture shapes the way we work.

February started with a lot more activity!

• Corina Știrbu, our CMO, became a mentor in one of the How to Web programs dedicated to startup founders — a year-long program supporting founders on positioning, market fit, go-to-market, launching, scalability, and growth.
• We helped Code for Romania grow. This NGO digitizes key fields for Romanian citizens — education, health, environment, vulnerable groups, and participation — and has already built over 20 free apps. This year we joined as sponsors of their work.
• In between, we had Wolf Gatherings where team members share knowledge on topics like running, volleyball, and photography, plus a few (mostly online) team events.

And by the time spring arrived, our agenda was completely full:

• We were sponsors and mentors at Innovation Labs — a national hackathon and accelerator that helps students build their businesses, starting with 30-hour hackathons and 1-minute pitches.

• Mental health plays a huge role in our mission. This year we were the unique partners of the e-mental health hackathon organized by HIVE and the Cluj School of Public Health, Babeș-Bolyai University. Georgina Lupu and Corina Știrbu mentored participants, helping them shape ideas into business plans and go-to-market strategies.

• We kept our sponsorship and support for Help Autism.
• We celebrated the women in our company with a virtual event and goodies, and covered the costs for the women on our team who wanted to join Crosul Divelor (the Divas' Marathon).
• Gina Lupu gave a talk on Lean Product Development at the ClujStartups Pre-accelerator, covering product strategy across transportation, finance, health, IoT, and beauty.

• We attended Wolves Summit — a great event with an even greater name — with amazing panels and disruptive startups.

We closed the first quarter with an all-hands meeting.

On top of all this, we were happy to see that Ikigai, one of our partners, was featured in TechCrunch and FinTech Futures for its innovative approach to digital banking and wealth management. Congratulations to Maurizio, Edgar, and the entire team for delivering a modern, digital-first banking experience!

What a Quarter!

Stay safe. We hope our next quarterly post will be about in-person team meet-ups, offline events, and even more news about the products and causes we support every month.