Discovery Channel ‘blown away’ by CONEL’s Media and ICT students

Discovery Channel UK held their annual Impact Day on September 20, 2019. As part of a company-wide initiative, employees run community events across the world to benefit the local communities they work within. The College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London was lucky enough to have Discovery Channel employees come in and run an employability workshop with our Media and ICT students.

The employability workshop focused on key skills that employers in the Creative Media and ICT industries are looking for, as well as giving insights into various career pathways within the respective industries.

In the workshop, the students split into two groups and were asked to create a product roadmap that outlined the key milestones when designing and building a digital service, designed exclusively for the 2020 Olympics on Eurosport.

The groups developed platforms to be released 100 days before the 2020 Olympics with the aims of driving subscribers, and creating enthusiasm and engagement. They also had to figure out how to promote the platform, whether this was through social media, email campaigns or other forms of media.

When asked about the workshop, Media student Ellis Bocking said: “The main thing we learnt today was the tips and tricks from experts in the media. They were teaching us how to be creative in different ways and in different areas within a creative team. You may be working in the analytical team with the numbers, but you still have to be creative in how you display and report them.” 

Leader of the ICT workshop and Discovery’s Digital Product Manager, Paul Usherwood, said: “The students blew me away. I thought the task was going to be too difficult, but it was great to see the amazing ideas they came up with in their groups, creating a plan targeted at different countries and cultures around the world.

“Their engagement was really good. I could see that the task was getting them to think and dream big. Within the workshop we focused on collaboration by working within groups and they had to listen to each other, but then they also had to work out how to document everything. The task definitely pushed their boundaries.”

Quality & Learner Experience Manager and organiser of the event Anthony Robinson, said: “Events likes these help our learners not only in the classroom but out in the real world. This workshop has helped all participating students develop both creative and collaborative skills that will be key when pursuing a career after college.”

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