I’m going to try something. I’ve been immersing myself in the latest in Inclusion, Diversity & Belonging (IDB) by learning about the products being developed in this area. As tech cofounder myself, it’s my way of using something I know and am familiar with to learn things about something I don’t know as well. And I love it! So each week, I’m going to share a product I’ve found along my IDB journey. I hope you find it helpful!
While building a product (now known as BrandBuilder by The Muse), I unlocked a true love for both founders and tech. When I joined VH Included last Fall, my business partner, Katee Van Horn, was very supportive of me leveraging that to add something special and different to our offerings: the curation and implementation of IDB tech for clients. One of my favorite parts of each week is talking with founders and digging in to their new technologies. It is beyond stimulating for me and very much a “creative meditation.” Because I’ve worked directly with engineers and UI designers, I relish getting right there in the weeds and talking front-end, back-end, dashboards, reporting. As a founder I also enjoy talking product/market fit, funding, brand and go-to market strategy.
Let’s be clear: I am NOT an analyst (I can refer you; I have lots of good contacts) nor am I endorsing these products. This is not a comprehensive product review. I just love the field of IDB and believe the right tech can accelerate, scale and enhance those efforts. I’m using something I know and am familiar with to learn things about something I don’t know as well. And I’m loving every minute of it. Thanks, Katee and VH Included!
Here is the quick and digestible format I’m going to start with:
4 Questions each time:
1. Can I easily understand this product based on the website and social sites?
2. Is the focus Inclusion, Diversity or Belonging?
3. What caught my eye?
4. What business problem is it trying to solve?
Can I easily understand this product based on the website and social sites?
Yes.
Website: https://tryswirl.com/
Instagram: @trySwirl
Facebook: @trySwirl
Twitter: @tryswirl
Is the focus I, D or B?
Inclusion
What caught my eye?
It’s a Slack plug-in. I enjoy Slack and anything I already know and use is a HUGE bonus. It gives people an excuse to connect and the “what’s in it for me” for the employee is crystal clear (let’s face it, this is a thing).
What Business Problem is it trying to solve?
Founder Munhir Pathak explains that Swirl is designed to facilitate more human, authentic connections in the workplace to ultimately enhance employee engagement and productivity.
How?
Swirl lets you create a simple profile and then matches you to coworkers who have things in common and as well as differences so you can have a coffee or get together in some way. It’s resulted in some unlikely collaborations which is good for employees and customers alike.
Right now, you can use the Starter Plan for free, up to 20 users, biweekly matching.