Selected innovators from the Spotlight on AI for Career Readiness - Kinia, DesCodeuses’ Vibe AI, and Daydream Believers - gathered for a workshop hosted by HundrED on measuring longitudinal impact. To help facilitate this workshop, HundrED invited teams from The Opentree Foundation (creators of Using Play to Better our World) and WOOF to share their experiences collecting data and tracking the impact of their own work.
The goal of the workshop was for participants to develop a better understanding of their reasoning behind and capacities for conducting a longitudinal impact study and planning their immediate and long-term next steps. The participants were given the opportunity to dialogue with The Opentree Foundation and WOOF, organisations selected to HundrED’s Global Collection 2025 that have conducted impact studies in the past. During the workshop, each team was invited to voice their current challenges and future plans, and received constructive feedback from their peers.
Impact Measurement remains a challenge for educational organisations
Impact measurement is a daunting task for many educational organisations. Two main challenges we identified are: how to keep track of programme participants over the long-term, and how to effectively present the data collected.
Organisations working with learners often struggle with collecting data from programme participants who have graduated and are no longer enrolled in the institution where the programme took place. One way to stay in contact with these participants is to build stronger relationships with partners who will remain in connection with them.
DesCodeuses Vibe AI Programme
For example, DesCodeuses receives participant referrals from other organisations, such as the unemployment office, who work closely with young women. Once the women complete the workshops, they are no longer in contact with DesCodeuses, but may stay in contact with the referral organisation. By building stronger relationships with these partners, DesCodeuses can gain more insight into how their training has supported women in gaining meaningful employment.
Organisations also need to consider the goals of their impact studies. Are they conducting the study to improve their product/service? Are they aiming to collect data that can be communicated to their stakeholders (i.e., funders, collaborators, etc.)? Does impact measurement look different for each audience?
Workshops enabled organisations to strategically reflect
A main reflection from the workshops was the importance of tailoring impact documentation to the target audience. Kinia noted the importance of telling an emotional journey for stakeholder buy-in. Numbers and quantitative evidence are important, but it might be more effective to balance research-based impact measurements with the emotional impact of qualitative data or storytelling.
“It has left us wanting more and wanting to meet again”
Daydream Believers asked the question in another interesting way: How do we get both industry partners and educators to value creativity? They have also been thinking about how to tailor their messaging to appeal to industry partners and package their story in a compelling way.
Daydream Believers fosters creativity
HundrED's capacity-building workshops have provided these organisations with an important and much-needed space for reflection and strategic planning. We often hear that innovators feel that they are isolated in their work as they deal with daily operational challenges, and it is hard to find time to pause and reflect.
“It has left us wanting more and wanting to meet again,” expresses Helena Good, Director of Daydream Believers.
Peer-Learning is beneficial to everyone involved
The peer-learning process was not only beneficial to the organisations receiving feedback, but also the ones giving it. “The workshop created a space for exchanging ideas and suggestions, something that organisations in the social impact sector should do more. Getting exposed to other organisations' work helped understand diverse ways to address problems that cut across contexts,” shared Aditya Joshi, Manager of Innovations & Research, The Opentree Foundation.
Getting exposed to other organisations' work helped understand diverse ways to address problems that cut across contexts
It is rare for organisations to have the opportunity to receive feedback and learn from their peers. We thank our co-hosts in this workshop, The Opentree Foundation and WOOF! for their participation in co-designing, engaging, and providing their insights and experiences to inform the session. These workshops demonstrate the power of fostering global education networks like the HundrED community, allowing for fruitful connections and collaborations to emerge within the sector.
We look forward to continuing this learning process with these Daydream Believers, Kinia, and DesCodeuses' Vibe AI. Upcoming workshops will be focused on keeping up with developments in AI, planning for scale, and building communities of practice.
Keep up to date with our scaling work with these innovations on our website hundred.org. Learn more about our Spotlight on AI for Career Readiness.
Header Image: Kinia
