Collaborating on Tech for Social Good: Lessons from Google.org
Welcome, everyone. My name is Jen and I am the global head of technology at Google.org, I'm excited to share my experiences and lessons learnt from 13 years at Google, particularly on how we structure our volunteer projects for deep and sustained impact. For new joiners, feel free to share a bit about yourselves in the chat! So, let's discuss the important role of tech in solving social issues by providing insights from several projects we ran at Google.org.
Why We Need Cross-Sector Collaboration
Unquestionably, the pandemic highlighted the need for a concerted effort from businesses, nonprofits, governments, science and tech communities towards addressing public health crises. From pandemic-stricken state unemployment insurance websites to the inadequate tracking of the virus spread and its victims, what's clear is we need to do more.
And we believe that it's time for lending tech expertise to pro bono work for maximizing social impact. However, challenges persist. We've heard stories about technologists developing fantastic solutions, only to leave nonprofits or state agencies without a robust maintenance plan. So today, based on our lessons learned, we'll shed light on running successful tech-pro bono projects.
The Project Selection Criteria
Creating impactful change by spending time on the right projects is crucial. This is why we've refined our criteria as we believe the potential impact increases exponentially when you get it right. Some criteria we used:
- Potential Impact: Beyond just creating a solution, we assess the scalable impact of the tool on the sector at large.
- Feasibility: We examine the feasibility of a project from the perspective of necessity, always ensuring a user-centered approach.
- Scalability: We seek out projects that are extensible and sustainable.
An example of this at work is a past fellowship with GiveDirectly where we mapped disaster data. Our project greatly shifted the way the sector responded to disasters, making a case, not just for give directly, but also for direct cash relief in times of crises.
Redefining Work Scope
Having a clear scope of work is crucial for effective project management in a fixed schedule, especially in pro bono engagements. We often employ a sizeable team of fellows for a six-month tenure, but the fellows will eventually return to their roles. Therefore, we try to reduce scope creep by running design sprints that encourage divergent and convergent thinking, forcing us to narrow down our focus.
Maximizing Unique Skills
At Google.org we work on project areas where Googlers can uniquely add value. Our areas of focus include making the world's information accessible and useful, using AI for social good and working on projects where user-centric design makes a significant difference.
Team Dynamics: The Crucial Factor
Team dynamics can lead to project success. Psychological safety, the comfort of taking risks within a team, improves team effectiveness more than any other single factor. Googler fellows are given the same level of introduction and inclusion as regular employees, which fosters trust and imparts shared responsibility among both fellows and organization employees.
Lasting Impact through Off-boarding
An effective off-boarding plan ensures the sustainability of impact even after the pro bono engagement is over. We've made off-boarding a key practice at every phase in implementing our pro bono projects, entailing detailed transitioning to the organization's team members, coupled with project-specific training.
Conclusion
Our goal at Google.org is to leverage Google's strengths and make the world's most significant challenges more manageable. Effective project selection, combined with cultivating team dynamics and creating sustainable impact through effective off-boarding, are a few of our tried-and-true methods. If you have any questions or would love to further the conversation, please connect with us through the chat or my LinkedIn page. Thanks for joining us today!