Tech for Good Mavens and Mavericks: A network of freelancers
About
Tech for Good Mavens and Mavericks is a community, primarily on Slack (we are planning our first Christmas drinks meet-up in person), dedicated to those freelancers who support organisations across the UK tech for good space with research, strategy, design, evaluation, comms and data — we’re the people who worry about how charities, funders, intermediaries and the social sector think and feel about what they do with tech (i.e. we’re not the tech developers).
It’s for those active in tech for good consultancy work and who want to come together and work more collectively and collaboratively. It seems to be particularly useful for those who want to feel part of a community whilst working solo, including those just starting out as freelance having left paid Tech for Good type jobs. We mostly share experiences, opportunities, sector news, everyday freelancer woes and what we’re up to.
It’s also distinctly NOT for commissioners — so that we can share experiences, information and freelancer woes. It’s also not for agencies, developers, charities, skills or direct digital support (head to Digital Charities Slack for this). In other words, it’s for freelancers because of the unique position we’re in and the challenges that brings. We’ve been up and running for about a year and to date, it’s grown organically. We tend to have around 15–20 active members. It’s never going to be a huge community but we’d love more members to come and join.
If you want to join or if you want to promote relevant opportunities with freelancers, find more information here, including a list of members and their contact details so that you can go direct http://thinksocialtech.org/community.
Why it exists
At the end of 2017, I decided to leave a great job I loved during a organisation restructure. I decided it was time to test a different way of working in London for me and my new family. The first six months were hard and at times, lonely. Having a team became distant memory and the field of ‘tech for good’ (specifically the funding and support for it) went quiet for a while. Slowly but surely, I started finding interesting projects with great clients and I got paid. Importantly, in the background were some great freelancers I met up with and kept in touch with. Soon enough, I discovered there was a small group of us working with a similar ethos and similar clients. It made sense to come together on Slack. They have become my new ‘team’, maintaining my sanity, being critical friends and helping me stay positive. We’ve been keeping in touch for a year now and I want to keep inviting in new people, whilst keeping it small enough to be friendly and relevant.
What we’re finding
Freelancers are needed in this field: Obviously I would say this! But I also wasn’t sure this was true when I first started out. Tech for Good as a community and an area of work is still very small, lacks agreement on definitions and desperately needs more suppliers (including agencies) — people who can get stuff done and organisations expand or improve their thinking and practice. We now regularly share opportunities.There is also more than enough work to go around.
We have back-up! We know each other and how we all work, we’re used to documenting what we’re doing and how. If one of us gets sick, has a childcare drama, can’t turn up on the day for whatever reason — we know who to call.
Collaboration is more likely (but it’s hard to figure out): We all want to collaborate more, whether it’s to bring in new skills, work as part of a team, contribute to a bigger projects or to co-deliver in different locations (e.g. getting outside London). I’ve had some great experiences already working with fellow members Pauline Roche (on this Yori Project) and Helen Lang on the Digital Maturity Research. BUT there are issues with sole trader business models, tax implications, considerations for project management time/costs. Before all of that — we’re also just really busy with current client work and being able to come together at the point at which a tender is based on luck. Whilst doing this is hard, practically and strategically — we’re hoping to keep working on it.
Support matters: Whether it’s struggling to find a call-friendly coffee shop or trying to get a client to pay (yes, we do occasionally name them!) someone else can empathise and advise. We know who to ask about how to best deliver an online workshop that’s inclusive or the best way to set up a survey. This stuff really helps make our working lives easier!
It is a community of practice: This has always been my hope. It’s really easy to feel invisible at home or in a co-working space when delivering solo for a client. I find that being part of this community helps me feel like I’m building my own knowledge, ensures I’m more aware of other relevant and interesting work that’s taking place and helps deliver more value to the projects I’m working on.
“I became freelance so that I could be more flexible, live with my new small french family, and be more present as a parent away from a 9–5 office based job (which I had done for almost 20 years). It felt (and still feels) like a big risk. I love the projects I am getting to work on, but the uncertainty is scarier than I thought. However knowing there is a community of people I can engage with and hopefully collaborate with in the future is great and I am learning so much from reading about what they post and are up to” (Matt Jackson, a member of the group)
What next
If you want to join head to this page of my site and click on join now or do share this post with others that you know. You can also get in touch to advertise opportunities to the group, or contact members directly (list here!). In the meantime, we’re planning a little Christmas get together and other ways of coming together more as a group.
“My journey to being freelance was a quick leap to escape a feeling of being overwhelmed and undervalued in the organisation that I was in. It was in some ways a reactive move made almost 12 months ago and to my surprise I have not only found work but a new team in T4G Mavens and Mavericks. They’ve given me support and guidance when I have needed it and the strength to continue working as a freelancer to help the charity sector embrace the opportunities of technology one project at a time.” (Bobi Robson, a member of the group)
