Insight

Announcing our first FutureFridays experiment for EdTech

I’m thrilled to be announcing our first FutureFridays initiative for infogr8’s EdTech pod. FutureFridays is something we’ve been hard at work on for a while now, so I’m excited to get the ball rolling!

What are FutureFridays? 

When we set up the first pair of sector-specific pods at infogr8 (Sustainability and EdTech), we made the decision that 20% of our working week would be dedicated to solving a specific problem or challenge facing our respective industries. We chose Fridays as the day for that 20%, and FutureFridays were born. 

Each month, we’ll be harnessing the power of our global network of data specialists to identify, assess and respond to some of the most pressing challenges facing those who work day-to-day in EdTech and Sustainability. 

For the EdTech pod, that means bringing together crack teams of data designers, data engineers and other data specialists from around the globe to come up with creative solutions to standout issues in education and HR. It’s our way to accelerate the workforce of tomorrow – guided (as ever) by the data.

What’s the theme for the first EdTech instalment?

Our first FutureFridays theme is career pathways. 

In the wake of the pandemic, the modern workforce needs a refresh, a reboot if it is to remain fit for purpose. Skills gaps need to be closed, careers have never been less linear, and organisations need to hang onto their most talented individuals. To do so, traditional career development is being overtaken by a new wave of career pathway tools that clearly and compellingly present favourable job trajectories to new and long-standing employees alike.

Our Career Pathways tool empowers students, employers and job-seekers to make informed career decisions by mapping out data-led careers intelligence and insights. It does this by surfacing career opportunities that are realistic and accessible and presenting them in a clear and memorable way.

Why Career Pathways for our first FutureFridays initiative? Looking at what’s out there on the market, we found that other tools had outdated UX, lacked personalisation, and didn’t put mobile at the centre of the experience. This is our solution to that design problem.

Our award-winning team of data-led experts, made up of product strategist Claire Owen, information design lead Tiziana Alocci and the infogr8 core team set about solving this challenge across 4x Fridays in February. 

The FutureFridays process is simple yet effective. Each month, we decide on a theme (always data-related) with a creative challenge to overcome. The steps are semi-structured and will be adapted depending on the theme, but they will always cover at least: 

• Defining the problem
• Unearthing the value proposition
• Rapid references 
• Crazy 8s sketched ideas 
• Mapping the journey 

The outcome will almost always be an interactive prototype that’s either clickable or coded. Click here to view a sneak peek of February’s Career Pathways prototype.

So how can I get involved?

We’re always on the lookout for partner organisations to get involved in FutureFridays.

Perhaps you have a business challenge around data that you’d like us to solve. Or you can join a beta testing group to try out our prototypes when they’re getting prepped for launch. 

Get in touch with Jake to find out more about signing up to our FutureFridays community, where you’ll get first-look access to each new FutureFridays initiative and the first chance to see our new products and tools in action.

Get Involved