Last year LocalGov Digital launched a prototype randomised coffee trial offer called UnMentoring. It was very simple in its approach, a google form enabled people to sign up and I managed a spreadsheet and then sent out emails every month to connect people. It was basically an alpha.
The good news was it grew and grew and we had quite a few people signed up which meant that the administrative process became a but more of a burden and more complex with every month. It wasn’t a problem but it did mean that we need to start thinking about moving from an Alpha service to Beta and then Live.
In September or October last year I contacted Dan Harrison (Wizard of Excel) to get some advice and help on how i could automate or at least simplify the process in excel to reduce the time it took to match people together. Dan was fantastic and provided some excellent support and advice and even spent (i imagine) hours on making it work, which it did for a few months. So THANK YOU Dan for your help, you moved us forward.
Just before Christmas i was contacted by Michael Soto from Spark Collaboration via Linked In who mentioned their platform which was designed specifically to support randomised coffee trials. I was naturally very interested in how this could work out.
Anyway to cut a long story short, I hooked up with Michael via skype, he showed me the system and we chatted about how LocalGov Digital could use it and we are now in a position to provide a much better experience and one which has moved us from alpha, through beta and into live.
If all of this sounds interesting to you then you can sign up to have a random conversation with someone who passionate about public service transformation.
It only takes 30 seconds to complete and you will need to validate your email. The main difference is that you are in control of your profile and your details which means you can update your profile when things change. You can also add links to your social platforms which should help provide some context for the introductions. You can even add a photo if you wanted to!
The next round of UnMentoring will start from 8th February so please sign up ASAP
A journey through life - Carl's Notepad 