The Challenge

Through a week-long design thinking activity, American Underground embarked on a journey to understand how its members connected with community resources and fellow members. The research revealed challenges in information access, community engagement, onboarding processes, and resource utilization. We needed to create a better functioning and more engaging communication system to keep pace with our growing community.

Expanding Communication Channels in Digital and Physical Spaces

Our research shed light on a recurring issue faced by our members—the struggle to stay informed about new events and resources. A common refrain we heard was, “I totally would have gone if I knew about it,” or “I could have really used that!” While we consistently communicated updates through our weekly newsletter, it became evident that some members were losing track of our emails amid their overflowing inboxes, while others occasionally overlooked them.

To address this challenge, I first revamped our existing newsletter, giving it a sleeker design and providing more succinct, targeted updates. While this certainly helped, I thought American Underground could also leverage signage in our physical coworking space to reinforce what was being communicated in the newsletter.

I worked with our in-house graphic designer to make our digital signs more vibrant and eye-catching. I also introduced an automated system for digital sign updates to eliminate time-consuming, manual processes. Then, I drew inspiration from companies like Google and Cisco who utilized light-hearted bathroom signage to reach their employees. Collaborating once again with our graphic designer, we launched our own bathroom signage publication, appropriately named “Potty Talk.”

Fostering a Sense of Community: Spotlighting Members and Connections

Through our design thinking interviews, it became apparent that older members, who had witnessed the community grow significantly larger, desired to regain that sense of familiarity that they had with other members in the earlier days of American Underground. Instead, they felt disconnected as new, unknown faces joined the American Underground.

To address this, I implemented initiatives to highlight members and their achievements, encourage networking, and emphasize the importance of forming connections.

AU Gold

Each week, we celebrated AU companies that had attained recent success such as fundraising, acquisition, press coverage, philanthropic work, etc. The stories would be included on digital signs, newsletters, during Helpfest (see below) opening remarks, and on external social media channels.

Helpfest Icebreakers

As host of Helpfest (a Ted-Talk-styled learning lunch), I would frequently feature members in my opening remarks and icebreakers. These features could be as simple as mentioning recent progress or wins of specific startups within our ecosystem, or humorous icebreakers that encouraged members to connect with one another.

Coffee Break & Connectricity

Another way I sought to foster member connections and engagement at American Underground was through engaging interviews conducted in various multimedia formats.

Coffee Break is a video series I developed and hosted that featured on-the-move interviews with American Underground members, providing a fun and interactive Q&A experience that showcased interesting facts about the interviewees. Each episode intentionally concluded at one of American Underground’s free and welcoming coffee stations—where casual connections and engagements between members were common.

Connectricity, a podcast I co-produced with Austin Henley, focused on the connections that played a pivotal role in the success of American Underground founders. By featuring these inspiring stories of entrepreneurial journeys, the podcast not only introduced the wider community to the exceptional talents within American Underground but also encouraged members to similarly form meaningful connections with one another.

Revamping Onboarding: Smoother Transitions and Enhanced Community Integration

During the research phase, we identified gaps in the onboarding process. First, initial one-on-one onboarding sessions with new members were time-consuming for AU staff, and overwhelming for new members due to the large amounts of information shared in a single sitting. Plus, these onboarding sessions were typically more focused on accessing the space than they were on helping new members integrate with the larger community.

Then, as new employees were hired by existing member companies, they would typically not have their own dedicated onboarding, thus missing out on pertinent information.

I pitched a two-part idea:

• First, an email drip campaign would release the most important orientation information to new members in digestible chunks over the course of their first week.
• Then, the AU team would host a monthly community onboarding presentation that was more streamlined and allowed all new members to get a fun and engaging introduction to the community as a cohort.

The result was a revamped onboarding process that led to smoother transitions, increased community integration, and a stronger support network for new members

Creating a Comprehensive Member Portal: Streamlining Access to Resources

Our research revealed that members struggled with navigating multiple online platforms and desired a streamlined way to access important membership information and resources. I embarked on a journey to find a unified and user-friendly member portal. Speaking to stakeholders, affinity group leaders, and other startup communities, I began to get a sense of what features would be the most valued by our startup community.

After researching and evaluating various options, I chose a platform called Bisner for its modularity and flexibility. Because Bisner still had some limitations, I also designed a separate website featuring community perks, mentors, and resources, which I seamlessly integrated into the AU portal using iframe capabilities. These efforts revolutionized member access to resources, creating a centralized hub that enhanced the member experience and fostered a more connected and vibrant community.

Conclusion

Through a thorough understanding of stakeholder needs and creative problem-solving, I contributed to the transformation of American Underground’s member experience. By consolidating communication channels, fostering a sense of community, revamping onboarding processes, and creating a comprehensive member portal, we successfully addressed key challenges and improved member satisfaction. The application of design thinking principles and a collaborative approach played a vital role in inspiring and mobilizing the team and stakeholders. With these enhancements, American Underground continues to thrive as a hub of innovation and support, providing its members with a dynamic and engaging entrepreneurial ecosystem.