Jennison Asuncion’s Post

Choosing the tech for your business is a huge deal. Like, the biggest. We chose Circle to be the home of our private member community for the ActiveCampaign Academy in 2021 and it is undeniably the best tech choice we made. If you’re looking for community tech, and you ask my advice, I’m going to say Circle, every time. Their CEO says set out to be undeniable in the space, and for my money, they’ve been that for a while now already. Testament to the value of Circle in my business is this story from mid 2023. They changed a feature slightly in a way that made it less useful for our specific technical B2B community. I literally cried about it when it rolled into my account and I saw what had changed. And that was when I realised exactly how much we depend on this platform to serve our customers the way we do, with connection, fluency, and speed, every single day. The happy ending…? Circle listened when we explained why it was such a bad change from our perspective, and for our community. And within 24 hours they’d rolled back the change, with apologies for making me cry. Boom. That’s how it’s done people. Link in comments if you’re looking for a community platform for your business - spoiler: go with Circle.

Good insights so far coming out of the UIIN Ireland Forum here today at Atlantic Technological University Sligo. Fascinating perspectives on external engagement from a wide cross section of education providers both from here and Northern Ireland. Micro-credentials notably featuring as a really valuable way to upskill and reskill. #collaboration #highereducation #MicroCreds

📦💫 Unwrapping the Google GDSC swag kit with pure excitement as the Lead at GDSC Nişantaşı University 🚀 Grateful for the support in fostering a vibrant tech community. Let's dive into this exciting journey together! 🌐 #gdsc #GoogleForDevelopers"

🎆 Happy Fourth of July from Digital Respons-Ability! 🎆 Wishing you a day filled with celebration, joy, and reflection. As we honor this special day, let's also remember the importance of digital responsibility in our connected world. Stay safe, enjoy the festivities, and keep learning! 🇺🇸 #FourthOfJuly #IndependenceDay #DigitalResponsAbility #DigCit #digitalcitizenship #summervacation #education #educators #HealthyScreenTime #KidsandTech #DigitalParenting #digitalsafety #digitallearning #educationresources #parentresources #classroomresources #educationforall #edtechtools #edtech

Hackathon voting is live… have your say in determining the question to be solved.

Please take 2 seconds to vote for Scope Zero for #SHRMLabs Better Workplaces Challenge Cup (BWCC)! https://lnkd.in/eG6kymzM We were selected as 1 of 25 finalists (of over 600 applicants) for BWCC! You can learn more about the competition here: https://lnkd.in/eYmjn8Xf SHRM #EmployeeBenefits #TotalRewards #CorporateESG #ESG #FinancialWellness

My reflections on this year's Two+Two are mainly ones of gratitude. It's hard for a small business to find the time and money to run an event like Two+Two, we could never have imagined how it would scale, and without the generosity in time and money from the industry it would never have taken off. This year was more challenging than usual, a tough trading year last year meant it would be fiscally irresponsible to do it really. However, the support, in money and resources, we were pledged meant we were able to go ahead, all rather more last minute that usual, but we got there! The result? I say the best yet every year, but it really felt like it was. We kept it tight and trim and for the first time it was fully funded, thanks to some very generous organisations: Ian Lenehan at McCann Manchester, Clare Roberts (Assoc CIPD) at Brandon Consultants, James Lawton-Hill at APS Group, Holly Harkin at Havas Lynx, Jenny Jones at Sound & Colour Film all offered to be Event Partners. Then one of our clients, Ian Cox of Avark, pitched it to one of their clients, Katie Harries of Coinbase and we had a generous, fantastic to work with Headline Sponsor and a cracking brief! Web3 and Blockchain demystified! Ian Lenehan introduced us to University Academy 92 (UA92), what a fantastic venue, absolutely perfect for our needs and so well organised that the wonderful Creative Resourcers were not broken this year. We had an additional slot, Lisa Jones of Couch and a Two+Two stalwart, gave a great talk on how the students can get the best out of their attendance post-event. If you were there and you're reading this, do the things she said! Two+Two in numbers: Once we reached 46 industry mentor volunteers from 33 agencies, we had to very apologetically say we couldn't accommodate more and we capped student numbers at 170, from 16 northern Universities. We were joined by 19 talent managers and networkers. We had 5 streams each with 7 teams of students, 35 teams competing to win, and have a great experience along the way. 5 judges, chaired by Tom Richards, Global CCO of 21GRAMS and Cannes Lions Jurist; Imogen Tazzyman, ECD McCann Manchester, Paul Dunleavy, CD APS Group, George Goldhagen & Peter Stilwell from Coinbase. We had not 1 but 2 videographers @james harper from Sound & Colour Films and Patrick Mcdermott from Mojo M3dia, and 1 photographer Simon Rhodes from APS Group. And we had 7 finalists; 5 stream winners and 2 wild cards. There can of course only be 1 winner and this year it was the Red Snakes, but all 7 teams win a prize each; mentorships, internships, agency visits, all kindly donated. To every person and organisation who helped, came along and supported in some way, thank you so very much. Hope you enjoy the video highlights from Sound & Colour Films, a glimpse of a wonderful day. See you in 2025! https://lnkd.in/gfjMRzSn

🚀 Join the 2024 Solution Challenge Kick-Off Event! Are you ready to make a real impact? The 2024 Solution Challenge, hosted by Google for Developer Student Clubs, it is your chance to leverage the power of technology for positive change. Mission: Solve for Sustainability: The Solution Challenge aims to address the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) using Google technology. This is your opportunity to be part of a global movement, where innovation meets social responsibility. What to Expect: Engage with like-minded individuals passionate about making a difference. Explore the possibilities of using Google technology to create solutions. Learn about the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and how your ideas can contribute to a better world. Who Can Participate? All GDSC members from universities worldwide are invited to be part of this transformative experience. Don't miss the chance to collaborate with bright minds from different corners of the globe. How to Get Involved: Join a GDSC at Conestoga College or your university. Attend the 2024 Solution Challenge Kick-Off Event for insights, inspiration, and to connect with fellow change-makers. Save the Date: January 11th, 2024 10am 🌐 Find more about the Solution Challenge and RSVP for this event HERE: https://lnkd.in/euTXgtJd

Do you wish you made time to broaden your influences more? We do. The Five Cs - part of Knowledge Quarter's KQ CONNECT strand - is a new monthly reading, listening and chatting group, initiated by ODAC, for people working, volunteering - or otherwise deeply interested - in the themes of cities, communities, curating, culture and change, and their intersections. Vital but overused and co-opted, let's ensure these backbones of our society are more than hollow buzzwords. We want to read more widely, and we also just want to meet some other interesting and interested people, and have some good chats! It’s an informal monthly meet-up for those in the Knowledge Quarter and beyond, who want to develop their thinking and practice through cross-disciplinary gatherings, and meet new people who are thinking about the same things. Sign up at the link below.

Congratulations! We are celebrating our 60th birthday! 🎂 It's okay and even necessary to celebrate small successes. We invest so much, so we deserve to celebrate. 🥂 Just before another event, we're at Vickathon, celebrating 60 hackathons! And there's nothing like a birthday to share 6 tips from our journey so far: 1) It is essential to get out of your comfort zone and try things for the first time—that's how I started with hackathons. Somewhere in 2013, I attended a hackathon event without knowing what it was about. I was hooked, and the rest is history. 2) Be creative 💡 and look for opportunities even in difficulty. Instead of getting confused when COVID-19 entered our lives, we developed a platform for hackathons. That's how we entered the virtual hackathon market and, from there, the international hackathon market. 3) Listen to your customers. The reasons they want your product/service can be various. Each customer is unique, and for each customer, we need to make adjustments👌. These adjustments help us improve the product/service for future customers. 4) When you're just starting out with a new product or service, it's critical to find a very specific audience willing to experiment. It's not easy, and sometimes you have to cast many fishing lines 🎣 to catch one or two customers. But that's all you need at the beginning. And if what you're offering is good, others will join later. 5) Keep learning and developing in your field and also in adjacent fields. This will give you an advantage over others and signal to your customers that you are professional. 6) Most importantly: Enjoy the journey💫. When we do things out of passion and enjoyment, we radiate that outwards, and ultimately, it attracts others. If you too have insights to share from your entrepreneurial journey, please share 🙂