Building content communities
Joynels Ogbogu - Chair (Nigeria)
Damilola Aderombi (Nigeria)
Milly Shaw (UK)
Beatrix Holland (Japan)
From meet-ups to retreats, conferences to collectives... the content industry wouldn't have reached the maturity that it has were it not for the role that content communities play.
In this panel we will hear from those who have been at the forefront of building communities of interest in the content industry. We'll hear perspectives on what works and what doesn't in building and sustaining a community of interest.
We'll understand what they get from pouring many many hours of - often voluntary - time into these initiatives. And we'll explore what the future of those communities might look like as our industry matures.
Joynels Ogbogu (Chair) is a Content Executive at Sterling Bank. With over 6 years experience in content and User experience, she is dedicated to solving user problems with her copy through research and writing. She is also the co-founder of UX Writers Africa, a UX Writing community built to create a collaborative environment that celebrates knowledge-sharing and growth for UX Writers in Africa.
Also, she is the founder of UX Writing with Nels, a budding academy that is focused on helping people interested in starting out a career in UX Writing industry to find their feet.
Having worked across industries ranging from education, to healthcare and fintech, Joynels is highly committed to advocating for UX Writers as an intricate part of the product team wherever she finds herself in Africa and that’s why she thought a community will be one of the best ways to get a space in the tech industry.
When she’s not advocating, you can find her tweeting.
Languages spoken: English and Igbo Language
A global problem that you would love to solve: It should be how we can foster collaboration between the international and African communities. Also, how we can bridge the gap of location-based hiring for UX Writers in Africa.
Something that you can’t be without: My Phone
Damilola Aderombi has been a natural communicator since her earliest memories. With over 4 years of experience in both the copywriting and design industry, she now works at the intersection of people, products, and marketing.
With a keen interest in serving users and giving them the best experience possible, she designs content with user and business goals in mind.
To her, words, whether few or many, have a great impact.
As the co-founder of UX Writers Africa, she is dedicated to advancing the field, promoting inclusive design, and building solid communities.
Languages spoken: English, Yoruba
A global problem that you would love to solve: It’ll definitely be the problem of Quality Education. I’ve been involved in some projects that deal with this and I hope to do more soon!
Something that you can’t be without: Water
Milly Shaw is the Content Design Practice Lead at Opencast Software, a digital consultancy in the UK. She's worked as a content designer for several charities and government departments, including Citizens Advice, His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
Milly has given talks at several conferences including Button, UCD Gathering, and Utterly Content. She also runs Content Folks, a monthly online meetup for content designers.
Outside of work, Milly has recently swapped roller derby for ice hockey, and is learning to make electronic music.
Languages spoken: English, Spanish
A global problem that you would love to solve: Violence against women and LGBT people
Something that you can’t be without: Music
Beatrix Holland is a content strategist who focuses on product design. She has worked with brands including Indeed, Belong, Open Universities Australia, Medibank, Australia Post, and Telstra.
Whether she is working on strategy, structure or surface, Beatrix is user-focused and adept at collaborating with a range of stakeholders, from product management to user research to legal teams.
Beatrix regularly uses Figma, Miro, Google Docs and Sheets, and Confluence. She has also spent time using Sitecore, AEM, Invision, Balsamiq, WordPress, Ghost, and Gather Content. She likes to stay on top of it all with JIRA and Trello.
Beatrix has previously spoken at WebDirections, DigiDebates, General Assembly, the ICAA Conference, and the Emerging Writers' Festival, as well as guest lecturing at La Trobe University, RMIT and VCA.