Untapped Society

2020 has brought us a lot of changes, including the effect COVID-19 has brought upon the job market. Manual jobs that the working class depends on are disappearing, workers are losing their jobs, and a lot of communities are finding themselves lacking in opportunities, especially the underserved populations.

The job industry is making a shift towards technology, and these communities may not know where to gain those necessary skills. 

We are designing a service that helps these communities build the skills they need to access the evolving job market, as well as to adapt to these changes.

This can positively change lives since it creates a foundation where underserved communities and business partners can connect to network, skillbuild, and mentor. #startlocalgrowglobal

According to the Illinois Department of Commerce "the average unemployment rate that is more than 120% of the national unemployment average..."

In addition, the United States Department of Labor states "jobless rates were higher than the national rate for American Indians and Alaska Natives (6.6 percent), Blacks or African Americans (6.5 percent), people categorized as being of Two or More Races (5.5 percent), and Native Hawaiians and Other Pacific Islanders (5.3 percent). Jobless rates were lower than the national rate for Asians (3.0 percent) and Whites (3.5 percent)."

After more research on our own through surveys and interviews, a common topic came up - outreach and finding out about opportunities was a barrier between underserved communities and their goals. 

Our team is finding a way to support workers as they attempt to gain the skills needed in the workforce, while also paving a way for businesses to reach out to these underserved communities. It will further worker’s economic prosperity by providing one easy source to find opportunities, network with others, and become more aware of the job market trends.

Our solution involves two parts:

Digital Design: 

By creating a digital platform along with an effective outreach strategy, we can help underserved job seeker communities access resources. Doing this will enable users and businesses/ organizations to efficiently find connections to opportunities in order to succeed in today's changing job market.

Users of the website can browse posted jobs, match with a mentor to further their goals, and find what skill building resources are available. In addition, businesses are also able to post positions as well as reach out as a mentor. 

Service Design: 

In addition to the web page, research interviews indicated there was a gap in outreach, especially from the older adult community. We wanted this demographic to hear about Untapped Society not only through word of mouth or online, but also in everyday life - coming across a flyer. Included on this flyer would be a QR code that will bring the user back to the site.

Our target population includes the underserved community who have difficulty in finding resources for them to succeed in the work place. We conducted surveys and interviews to understand the human behaviors of navigating the job market today. In addition, our team is a group of diverse people who have been affected ourselves. 

The solution will address the needs of these underserved communities by creating one source where diverse populations can find resources, network, and build confidence in how to navigate the system. 

The product/service that we've designed not only provides these underserved communities with the tools they would need to survive the constant changes in the job market, it also enables businesses to reach an understanding with the communities that they operate in, which in turn will further their reach. Utilizing the key features of our digital product ie, opportunity map finder, curated mentorship program, and a resume builder, will directly affect job seekers in these underserved areas.

Our solution is innovative since it targets a community who may not know how to navigate the system. Our competitors include sites such as Indeed, Glassdoor, and other job boards out there. However those sites lack in personal connection. In addition, we took a look at sites such as Diversify Tech and Diversity.com that target our users as well, but it's forgetting about those who may not know what route to search. What sets us apart is the ability to build a community and connect with others through matching with mentors who have the skills you are looking to gain if you do not know where to start. We want to bring to light the importance of the step that comes before actually applying to an opportunity.

Our business model was applied to a digital webpage where candidates are able to collectively find equal opportunities in areas that promote professional development. The tool that can be used for those searching for resources, or those who are able to lend a helping hand by becoming a mentor or posting a job.

When you sign up to join the community as an individual, you have access to features such as resume building tips, a personalize profile for networking, a map driven opportunity finder, and the ability to match with a mentor and/or become one.

When you sign up as a business profile, you have access to features such as the ability to post an opportunity for potential candidates, the ability to message them directly, and/or to become a mentor. 

Our solution works because in these days, the majority of people search for resources online. What sets us apart from others is creating a tool that's a "one stop shop" for opportunities. Search engines are successful, but we want to increase the efficiency and likelihood of finding opportunities to network or skill building sources for those in underserved populations. 

Our design will bring about change because it is not simply a product, it is a service that will provide businesses with a guide on how to interact with the communities that they operate in. By providing a stable platform where these underserved communities and their local businesses can directly interact with each other, we are laying the foundation to enable both user groups to invest in each other and further economic prosperity.

It is not active yet. However in the first year we will be working with 3 different underserved communities.

In our first year, the digital product will be live and we will begin with fostering relationships with 3 different underserved communities and their local small/medium businesses. Once we've set them up with our product we will monitor the results of the union. The first year will be a usability test for us, where we will be in constant communication with all parties and nailing down the improvements to be made. After our first year we plan to introduce this product/service strategically in other states and monitor the effects of user growth and adjust accordingly.

Despite the financial barriers of a small team working to implement this product/service, our biggest challenge will be a cultural one. These communities and these businesses have a huge lack of communication between the two. Also there will be a psychological barrier within these communities, most of whom have come to accept the way that life is for them.

To overcome the cultural barriers we plan on expanding on our service design. If we were to create a monthly space where both user groups can physically come together and discuss their individual economic challenges this will help strengthen community bonds between the two. 

For the psychological barriers, we plan on finding respected members of each of the 3 testing communities and get them to endorse the product/service. Seeing respected peers using these tools will encourage others to do the same.

4 UX/UI Designers

2 Data Scientists - Consultants

1 Software Engineer

Our team is well equipped due to our experience not only working in the digital sphere of webpage creators and researchers, but also due to our first hand experiences coming from an underserved population. We are well equipped in designing a digital platform as well as interdisciplinary collaboration with data scientists and a software engineer to make this product viable. What is unique about our team is our knowledge of how to understand human behaviors and taking a step back to take a look at the bigger picture - e.g. opportunities are out there, but people need to find a way to become aware of them or create new ones.

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We are applying to the Solve challenge because we believe in the positive impact that our product/service will have on underserved communities as a whole. Getting noticed by the Solve panel with help spread the word about our design's potential.

Getting more advice on having a more stable business plan and finding funding will help us by giving us more time to focus on our service and make the initiative that much stronger.