In its second year, the hackathon held during ATD tech 2021 took a fully virtual form. This year, the goal was to support a nonprofit design collective and apprenticeship program pairing experienced creatives with fresh faces to collaborate on real-world projects advocating for black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC).
coordinates volunteer teams to design and develop training materials. Its onboarding process is somewhat manual and limited. The organization wanted to improve its onboarding experience and retention of volunteers. Our goal was to create a new vision and process for onboarding volunteers, including leveraging free and existing tools wherever possible.
ATD hosted the event through its conference platform. I co-facilitated two kickoff sessions with Spooner, co-founder and learning experience designer. We used that time to share details about the organization and its current onboarding processes. Participants asked questions to dig into analysis and prepare ideas. During the course of a few weeks, teams and their volunteer coaches worked independently on their solutions. All teams joined the two-hour checking with this team as they worked through designs.
1. Self-paced e-learning onboarding that explains what is expected at each step of the process
2. Self-directed learning to explore available resources and encourage active use of existing resources without disrupting the workflow
3. A self-guided digital performance support resource center for quick and accessible answers to pressing questions that provides just-in-time learning and support.
Perhaps more rewarding than the prizes, though, was being a part of this event. Participants shared this feedback about their experience:
“The hackathon was a chance to create synergy with two prominent organizations, ATD and Design of Humanity. Within the hackathon, our group developed some unique learning experiences through unadulterated conversation to advocate for black, indigenous, and people of color. Because we believed in the mission, we pushed further to create multiple tools Design of Humanity could leverage in their future endeavors.”
—Michael T. Sanders,
“Thank you, There are so many wonderful people in this industry, but in day-to-day work it can be difficult to find time to interact with them. This was a great occasion to contribute to an amazing cause and work with some truly talented folks.” —Carrie Gauthier,
“The Intersection of Racial Justice and L&D.” That was a conversation I had also been having, here in Louisville (home of Breonna Taylor) and with a few colleagues throughout the nation, before the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, but hadn’t yet heard the L&D field speaking widely since. The work we do in L&D can move the needle. I truly believe that.
1. Self-paced e-learning onboarding that explains what is expected at each step of the process
2. Self-directed learning to explore available resources and encourage active use of existing resources without disrupting the workflow
3. A self-guided digital performance support resource center for quick and accessible answers to pressing questions that provides just-in-time learning and support.
" The human race, which includes everyone on Earth. It's also a word for the qualities that make us human, such as the ability to love and have compassion, be creative, and not be a robot or alien."
You must be logged in to post a comment.