[design for social impact
Intro
Many of us use the internet to access up-to-date information about what to eat, where to go, and whom to trust. However, as of 2019, around 26% of the population in Turkey still lacked internet access. To help close this digital divide, Türk Telekom partnered with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Habitat Association to increase internet usage across the country.
Between 2014 and 2019, more than 50,000 people benefited from face-to-face introductory trainings on internet technologies—over 61% of them were women. Motivated by this success, the project team aimed to redesign the program to better address the gender gap in digital access and planned to relaunch the in-person trainings.
The project was planned to follow a clear graduation process: initially, 5,000 women would receive training in digital literacy and digital marketing. From this group, 500 women would be selected to participate in more advanced design thinking workshops. Finally, 100 women would be chosen to receive mentoring. This step-by-step approach was designed to build skills progressively and ensure that support was focused where it could have the greatest impact.
However, just as the project was set to restart in early 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and by the end of the year, the initiative appeared to be at risk of failure. At the time, I was managing the project and worked closely with my team to adapt it in response to these unexpected challenges. Using a human-centered design approach, we restructured the initiative to continue addressing the digital gender gap under the new circumstances. I facilitated the process, ensuring that the needs and perspectives of various stakeholders guided the direction of the project and its potential for social impact.
How Might We?
Using a stakeholder map, the project team identified a pattern among previous beneficiaries, who could be classified into two distinct groups. Group A consisted of individuals with little to no knowledge of the internet, while Group B was more familiar with Web 2.0 technologies, including e-commerce, social media, and the creator economy. The mapping process involved identifying everyone affected by or involved in the project, analyzing their levels of influence and interest, and understanding their unique needs and challenges. This helped prioritize engagement strategies and tailor the project design.
Through a series of workshops with the project team, beneficiaries and trainers, using a human-centered design process, we redefined the core challenge: How might we redesign the project to adapt to the circumstances brought on by COVID-19 while continuing to address the digital gender gap?
Design Intervention
Redesigning a project can be a tricky process—there are so many things that can go wrong. Even with careful planning, unexpected challenges can arise. And when a global pandemic hit, it created a whole new level of difficulty, especially for a national NGO that relies heavily on face-to-face trainings with beneficiaries across the country.
By conducting immersive interviews with project trainers and listening closely to beneficiaries, we created an empathy map to identify key areas for intervention. Designing the training setting was relatively straightforward, as most communication shifted to virtual platforms. But the biggest challenge was that neither the team nor the beneficiaries were fully comfortable using virtual tools to follow the trainings.
As we began the virtual mentoring sessions, something interesting happened. Members of Group A asked questions, and members of Group B started answering them—organically and without prompting. This peer interaction created a more dynamic and engaging environment than we had expected. Recognizing this, we decided to build it into the design: instead of relying solely on external experts, we formed curated peer groups where experienced participants from Group B could mentor those in Group A. This approach not only increased interaction but also lowered technical barriers by making the sessions more relatable and supportive.
Over five mentoring sessions, the project team reached its annual target of mentoring 100 women while staying within budget and timeline despite prolonged lockdowns. These sessions equipped women with the skills to use e-commerce platforms to sell their handicrafts and create additional sources of income.
Impact
Despite the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the project successfully met its core targets and delivered meaningful results. A total of 5,000 women completed digital literacy and digital marketing trainings online. From that group, 500 participated in design thinking workshops, and 100 received mentoring. These milestones were achieved while staying within budget and timeline—despite the shift to virtual formats and the limitations of prolonged lockdowns.
What’s more significant is that the project did more than just transfer its original structure online—it evolved. Peer interaction emerged naturally during the mentoring sessions, when participants with more experience began supporting others without formal facilitation. Recognizing this dynamic, we adapted the program to emphasize peer learning, which improved engagement and helped bridge technical gaps. This allowed participants not only to gain skills but also to grow confidence in a more collaborative, accessible environment.
From a project management perspective, the shift to virtual delivery required a different kind of investment: more time in one-on-one support, ongoing communication, and volunteer coordination, rather than traditional centralized training events. But the outcome was a resilient and responsive program that stayed focused on women's empowerment.
This experience highlighted the importance of regularly reflecting on a project while it's running—not just before or after. Beneficiaries' needs can shift, and unforeseen dynamics like organic peer learning can emerge. Being ready to observe, adapt, and iterate in real time makes a project more impactful and better aligned with the people it’s designed to serve.
