This session is designed specifically for the Digital Inclusion Fellows, though other NTC attendees are welcome to attend. Scaling pilot programs and transitioning responsibility from one person, team, or department to another requires intentional documentation, training, and sharing. This session will address how to successfully prepare a program to undergo change, so that work in progress continues and lessons learned support future expansion. http://www.nten.org/session/digital-inclusion-program-sustainability-documenting-lessons-sharing-successes-and-transitioning-work/

1. #16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago
Denise Linn, Program Analyst for the Smart Chicago Collaborative
#16NTC | March 25, 2016
Digital Inclusion Program Sustainability:
Documenting Lessons, Sharing
Successes, and Transitioning Work

2. Background on this session:
Here are the session notes: http://po.st/di-16NTC
Here is the session hashtag: #16NTCdi
This session will be fairly city-focused
This session is partly tailored to NTEN’s National Digital Inclusion Fellows
(DIFs). Their projects include setting up basic computer skills courses,
increasing home internet usage, and volunteer recruitment and training.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

3. First, let’s celebrate the Fellows!
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

4. About Me
I work for the Smart Chicago Collaborative and I manage the Connect
Chicago initiative.
I’m an AmeriCorps VISTA alumna — I conducted a year of service in
broadband adoption & digital inclusion in North Carolina.
Many hats in the digital inclusion space: national volunteer, bureaucrat,
researcher, fellow, program analyst.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

5. The Smart Chicago Collaborative
is a civic organization devoted
to improving lives in Chicago
through technology.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

6. About Smart Chicago Collaborative
We were founded in 2011 by the City of Chicago, The Chicago Community
Trust & the MacArthur Foundation.
We care about access to the Internet, digital skills, and data.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

10. Digital Inclusion
Best Practices & Sustainability
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

11. Digital Inclusion isn’t just
….the “homework gap”
….the % of at-home broadband adoption
….securing faster networks for your city
….teaching kids to program
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

12. Digital Inclusion
Closing the gap that exists between those
that have the access to today’s standard
Internet & technology offerings (and know
how to use them) and those that don’t
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

13. Digital Inclusion Programming Features
Access programs (reduced or free monthly
subscriptions, hotspot lending, public Wi-Fi)
Digital skills training (to both trainers and trainees)
Public computing labs & community technology
spaces
Device lending and reuse programs
Best when offered
simultaneously
within one
program OR
offered across
coordinated,
partnered
programs
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

14. Three levels of sustainability to address:
1. Digital Inclusion Project Sustainability: Are we addressing
a true need? Do we have the stable support to continue?
2. Organizational Sustainability: Is this work aligned with our
mission & priorities? Do we have the time & staff to continue
investing in this?
3. Ecosystem Sustainability: Is there a community of
sharing/collaboration? Is there political support? Across
organizations, are we addressing our city’s access & skills
gaps?
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

16. Digital Inclusion Lessons
Tap into national communities & resources (ex: Community Connectivity
Initiative out of the NTIA or Next Century Cities)
Recognize that broadband adoption isn’t the only metric for success. Also
measure engagement with technology, use & skills.
Partner with everyone in your city doing this work — including the
people/organizations that don’t realize they are!
Check your assumptions. Ask residents about their needs, preferences,
and expectations on digital inclusion resources.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

18. The Challenges for
Preserving & Transitioning
Fellowship Work
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

19. Challenge #1: Inventorying &
Organizing a Year of Work
Each fellow cited multiple types of content
they have used to document their year and
multiple tools they’ve used to share work.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

20. Challenge #1: Inventorying &
Organizing a Year of Work
Take time now to centralize your work &
create “meta documents.”
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

21. Challenge #2: Passing off
relationships
“...having the partners transition the trust
to another person might be a challenge.”
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

22. Challenge #2: Passing off
relationships
If possible, pass off relationships in
person. Do your best to capture & share
tacit knowledge about key partners.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

23. Challenge #3: The Unknown
Hand-off
Most Fellows are transitioning their
personal project to either “the institution
in general” or “I don’t know”
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

24. Challenge #3: The Unknown
Hand-off
When in doubt, customize your transition
material for someone with zero familiarity
with your field. Define everything. Make no
assumptions! #16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

25. Challenge #4: Avoiding
Institutional Overload
“People are already very busy...layering
new responsibilities on them would be
relatively hard, but definitely worth it.”
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

26. Challenge #4: Avoiding
Institutional Overload
If possible, break your project into smaller,
contained pieces for people to own.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

27. Challenge #5: “The work isn’t
done.”
“I am still implementing ideas & I have yet
to determine if they will be successful
enough for the leadership to notice and be
willing to sustain.” #16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

28. Challenge #5: “The work isn’t
done.”
The definition of success is not always
accomplishing exactly what you initially set
out to accomplish.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

29. Frameworks + Tips for
Preserving & Transitioning
Fellowship Work
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

30. The best thing you can do to
smooth out transitions and
sustain your work?
On day #1, build documentation &
openness into your routine.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

31. What we do at Smart Chicago:
We have a constantly updated internal operations manual
Slack + Dropbox + Google docs Integration for internal communications
and document management
We share via our blog, Slideshare, on Twitter, on Flickr…
Smart Chicago publishes books!
“Publish or perish.”
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

32. A Framework for Transition Planning
Records of your work Narrative of your work
organize +
prioritize
customize
Emails
Program data
Meeting notes
Pictures
Reports
Presentations
Budgets
Flyers
Curriculum
Planning documents
Successes
Failures
Missed opportunities
Best practices
Key cases
Legacy of your work
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago
Recommendations
Next steps
Inspiration/motivation

33. A Framework for Transition Planning
Records of your work Narrative of your work
organize +
prioritize
customize
Emails
Program data
Meeting notes
Pictures
Reports
Presentations
Budgets
Flyers
Curriculum
Planning documents
Successes
Failures
Missed opportunities
Best practices
Key cases
Recommendations
Next steps
Inspiration/motivation
Legacy of your work
Don’t stop here!
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

34. Tip: Create a Comprehensive Artifact
A comprehensive artifact (ex: book or report) of your fellowship would have:
❏ Personal motivation & narrative
❏ Goals & work plans for the Fellowship
❏ Notable successes & challenges
❏ Your favorite tools, tricks, & how-to’s
❏ 3 big picture lessons in digital inclusion in your city
❏ Recommendations for changing, sustaining, scaling or replicating the
work started during your Fellowship
❏ Index of or links to public documents or records of your work
We do this at Smart Chicago for some of our projects: cutgroupbook.org
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

35. Tip: Create a Short, Shareable Artifact
You can create a short, shareable artifact of your fellowship to compliment
your comprehensive artifact. Examples:
❏ An infographic of program data (think Infogr.am)
❏ A one page case
❏ A reflective blog post on your fellowship
❏ A personal website (think WordPress, Sqaurespace)
❏ A timeline of your fellowship (think Storify)
An imperfect personal example: https://storify.com/dklinn/my-year-of-
service
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

36. Tip: Ask for feedback
Don’t be afraid to ask partners for feedback.
The checklist:
❏ Ask about your work style, collaboration style
❏ Ask about how your Fellowship goals matched with their
organizational/personal mission
❏ Ask to keep in touch!
You can do this in person, use forms, or use both. FYI, I like Wufoo!
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

37. Big-picture goals beyond your host organization:
Think of yourself. Get what YOU need out of you fellowship transition!
Keep & showcase your best work and take-aways for your next steps.
Strengthen your city’s digital inclusion ecosystem. Share your records
& recommendations with partners.
Strengthen the DIF community. Share your work on NTEN’s DIF
platform.
Help make the whole field better. The digital inclusion/digital equity space
is growing and getting more collaborative.
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago

38. Questions
#16NTCdi | @DKLinn | @SmartChicago