Role Overview

Save the Children engaged me to lead the creation of a dedicated online portal for the International Development and Early Learning Assessment (IDELA). Acting as the Product Manager, I directed the project’s strategy, vendor management, and execution to deliver a secure, interactive platform for early childhood educators and advocates. The platform was designed to facilitate access to research, tools, and community resources, supporting Save the Children’s mission and grant requirements.

Key Project Contributions

Project Strategy and Scope

• Scoping and Requirements: Defined stakeholder and grant specifications, translating them into actionable product roadmaps and technical priorities.

• RFP Development and Vendor Selection: Crafted and led an RFP process, evaluating and selecting a digital agency that aligned with budget constraints and IDELA’s technical needs.

• Cross-functional Coordination: Oversaw all phases of product development from concept to launch, ensuring alignment with organizational objectives and compliance with grant stipulations.

Content Strategy and User Experience

• Digital Content Strategy: Conducted a comprehensive content audit to transition offline resources into a structured, accessible online repository.

• Taxonomy and Information Architecture: Designed a dynamic taxonomy to enhance resource discoverability for diverse audiences, ensuring intuitive navigation and search functionality.

• User Research and Testing: Led stakeholder interviews, usability testing, and card sorting exercises to refine the platform’s functionality and ensure user-centric design.

• Design and IA Evaluation: Collaborated with the digital agency to review wireframes, designs, and prototypes, ensuring alignment with project goals and best practices in usability.

Content Management and Staff Training

• Content Optimization: Partnered with subject matter experts to digitize and adapt policy and academic materials for online engagement.

• Staff Enablement: Created WordPress training materials and governance guidelines to support long-term content management and sustainability.

Impact

The IDELA portal launched as a robust, mobile-responsive knowledge hub for early childhood education professionals, featuring:

• A dynamic, taxonomy-driven archive of resources tailored for educators, researchers, and policymakers.

• Secure, members-only areas for restricted content access.

• Interactive data visualizations powered by Tableau, providing users with actionable insights.

This launch successfully met Save the Children’s technical, user experience, and budgetary goals while establishing a scalable foundation for future enhancements, reinforcing IDELA’s role as a leader in early childhood education resources.