Team Collab: Application of Knowledge & Reflection
Application of Knowledge
Collab is not just the result of what we learned inside the classroom at Swarthmore, but also the vision molded from the collection of experiences we have gained outside of the school setting.
Our notes from our computer science classes taught us how to create the website prototype and our notes from our economics courses helped define our understanding of revenue streams, but most importantly, the attention to social justice and civic responsibility that we brought to light through Collab was a direct result of our immersion in the Swarthmore community.
For example, our adherence to gender inclusivity was brought to our attention when we attended campus events involving gender equity, and the drive behind creating a product that deconstructed classism was something that was supplemented by listening to our peers vocalize the need for economic justice. Every day on campus is dynamic and filled with constant opportunities to learn and grow as an individual, and we did our best to reflect this mentality through Collab.
Moreover, the entire concept of Collab was conceived as a result of Swarthmore and Haverford’s inaugural “Design Thinking course.” We learned the very practice of designing products around users and users’ needs through the course, and the Design Thinking pitch event was the springboard we needed to get to what Collab is today.
Seimi Park and Michelle Ma, two-thirds of the Collab team, also utilized Swarthmore’s annual Winter Externship program to go to Los Angeles, California to extern at WeWork, a real estate management company that specializes in building co-working spaces for entrepreneurs, freelancers, startups and small businesses. Externing at WeWork was particularly valuable insight into how coworking spaces operate and are managed, and as a part of the externship, Seimi and Michelle pitched “Collab” to the WeWork Los Angeles product development team, consisting of Swarthmore alum Arsean Maqami ‘14, Community Manager Shelby Hoefling, and Logistical Execution Director Sloane Winters. Additionally, over the tenure of their externship, Seimi and Michelle filmed a promotional video using footage of the small existing New Mother’s Room in WeWork so that the average user could truly visualize why expansion of such spaces is necessary.
Reference: “I love this project. I think it’s a great idea to provide new parents a place to work AND bring their kid. It’s super helpful for them to just have one stop and not have to worry about where to drop the child off or if they get their child into a specific daycare. I feel like a lot of parents’ decisions come down to how close the office is to the child’s childcare location. Super awesome if it can be provided on site, I do see potential success for this product.” –Shelby Hoefling, Santa Monica WeWork Community Manager
Reflection
We each learned to test our limits and to push ourselves outside of our comfort zones. None of us had prior experience directly in the space of the social innovation, so from the start, the entire Swat Tank experience, from Design Thinking to writing this report itself, has been refreshing, challenging, and exciting -- all at the same time.
As a team, we learned to live the very vision of our product, Collab, by truly understanding that when we collaborate, magical things happen. Our product wouldn’t be where it is today without Meiri’s thorough understanding of technology, Seimi’s skillful marketing expertise as illustrated through her development of a promotional video, poster, and stickers, and Michelle’s design experience in crafting the logo and Collab infographic.
At the end of the day, we realized that we were right from the very start -- we are better when we work together.
