Sprinting in Salesforce Tower

By: Anthony Adeloye & Jefferson Iweh, FreeFormers Academy Talent.

Salesforce Tower. The sheer size and magnitude of the building was a clear demonstration that whatever a person can conceive in the mind they can bring it into reality.

For the next 5 days we would be hosted by Salesforce, as part of our Freeformers Academy journey. The aim of the Academy is to take digitally savvy young talent, insert them into a business for 12 months to positively disrupt the way they work, and to arm the talent with the tools they need for the future today.

We joined the Academy because it focuses on both people and cutting-edge technology. Finding the balance between the two allows people to leverage digital tools and ways of working to improve their personal and working lives faster and more efficiently than ever before. Working for an organisation that invests in digitally experienced young people such as ourselves is great because we can learn how to apply our existing skillset to new business contexts. The experience has been fast-paced and hands-on, and there is no better way of learning than doing.  

Four times a year the Academy takes on a “Google Ventures-style” sprint. For our first sprint, we were incredibly lucky to have an environment that would spark our creativity: the breathtaking views from the 30th floor of Salesforce Tower. Looking out across London gave us a sense of belonging to a bigger purpose, knowing that we are all in some way working towards a greater good and setting the stage for us to take on the challenge ahead…

For five days of intense ideation and prototyping from zero to product, our mission was to identify solutions to “help people earn a more meaningful living”, supported by tools and guidance from industry-leading consultants Flux. The pressure of working in large teams and grasping everyone’s individual ideas forced us to pull out the strategies that we’d learnt in our Academy journey so far to make sure that we worked effectively and met the brief with minimal friction.

This experience coupled with the hospitality of Salesforce in the form of Russell and his colleagues, who volunteered time out of their schedules to guide us in times of need (from providing feedback to directing us to a quieter working space), helped further amplify the ideals and teachings that have been introduced to us from the beginning of our journey on the Freeformers Academy. To be presented a problem, disrupt the conventional way of thinking and then rebuild new solutions from the ideas we have formed together as a collective: This has prepared us with a foundation that means that whatever industry or business we go into we will have the tools to continue our personal growth, disrupt in a positive way, and present back solutions to the employees right through to C-suites in a clear manner.

Freeformers are so much more than just a digital transformation company. They accelerate growth through technology with people at the heart of everything. Freeformers are investing in the future – they want to make sure that tomorrow’s workforce have the digital capabilities to thrive in tomorrow’s economy. Future-proofing employees means facilitating the adoption of new technologies, strategies and mindsets that empower people to innovate, adapt and flourish in a digital age. And for every hour spent with corporate clients, Freeformers provide at least one hour of digital skills training to 16-25 year olds through their Upload Live events and Academy program.  Freeformers are also a key learning partner with wearedotdotdot, which closes the gap between diverse young people and opportunities in tech and digital

To Salesforce, Freeformers, wearedotdotdot and Flux we want to say a massive Thank You and – in our own personal way of expressing thanks – HUZZAH!!!

Learn more about Freeformers here >>