Thanks to the Credit Suisse Global Citizens Program, I was able to join Aflatoun International in Amsterdam for a week on a volunteering assignment. It proved to be a valuable and interesting experience.
The aim of my assignment was to provide Aflatoun with ideas on how to convince financial services institutions to engage with Aflatoun either by donating, sponsoring or partnering with the organization. But after spending time with Aflatoun’s CEO, Roeland Monasch, my assignment contacts David and Cindy, I felt the need to think of more solutions for Aflatoun to increase its overall brand awareness and website traffic.
Important for me was to point to the “low-hanging fruit”- communication adjustments / tweaks, Search Engine Optimization tips & tricks, and concrete ideas that can be implemented by Aflatoun in a fairly quick and straight-forward way.
In my opinion the week was fruitful for both parties. I was able to share some of my (digital) communications know-how whilst Aflatoun taught me about ‘ Social Franchise Models’ and provided me with a much better understanding of the NGO world. And last but not least, Aflatoun has proven to me how constructive and pleasant it is to work in an environment in which 25 people enjoy collaborating towards a common goal.
It was refreshing, inspiring and insightful.
Thank you Aflatoun & Credit Suisse!
Suzanne Rovers, UX Research & Design
