Problem
The Slenky founders had pitched a fantastic idea to Sony Mobile but were getting push back on how they could deliver, being that there were only two of them in the core team.
Take Your Shot involved recruiting 25 young people, giving them a range of Sony tech products including mobile phones, laptops and software, so they could go on a journey to meet 5 influential mentors each, learning how to make it in their area of passion (music/film/gaming/fashion/business) and share their stories via social media and a web based hub.
“We love the Skills Hive model at Slenky. The team have been running projects for us for several years, allowing us to scale up and deliver for major clients such as Sony and Microsoft, while we keep fixed cost infrastructure lean and agile.” – Cec Richards, Founder
Solution
Having heard about the SkillsHiveX model, a Project Sidekick was appointed to help re-pitch to Sony with a clear way to access all the skills needed for such a major initiative.
The decision makers were now convinced that it could be delivered, unlocking the c. £100k budget, and work began on creating the brand, the web portal, the recruitment process for the “Slenkasters”, the mentors and the team of creatives needed to capture, edit and communicate it all.
Success
The initial project involved somewhere near 100 team members over the course of a year, combining internal resource from several Sony departments, three boutique agencies, and a multitude of freelancers and consultants from those still studying to those about to retire.
The client sponsor at Sony was so impressed, not only did he stand-down his internal project manager to switch budget to the project, he commissioned a second year of Take Your Shot activity on an even grander scale.
