Platform hilf-jetzt.ch
National platform for neighborhood assistance
Network for the development and support of self-organized neighbourhood help in the Corona pandemic.
On March 13, 2020, shortly before the first coronavirus lockdown, we thought about how we could use our skills to help overcome the crisis. Together with PublicBeta, we created hilf-jetzt.ch, a platform for initiating, coordinating and supporting self-organized neighbourhood help, within just a few hours. Overwhelmed by the demand, we had to massively scale, professionalize and communicate the platform within a few days. At its peak, a team of around 30 people, mainly volunteers, were working almost around the clock to support over 1,200 newly created local support groups across the country. And all of this was done remotely.
The Challenge
Tens of thousands of helpers were ready in no time at all to support other people in the coronavirus crisis. It was clear to us that for the aid to work in real terms, it had to be hyperlocal. Shopping for the neighbors in the house and support in the immediate vicinity. Nevertheless, requests for help need to be coordinated. And helpers need a network that supports them, provides them with tangible information and can also take over if they themselves are unavailable or overloaded. Creating all of this from scratch in a very short space of time was a major challenge for our skills as organizers and project managers.
A directory for help groups so that helpers and those seeking help can find each other
In the first version of hilf-jetzt.ch, we already offered a directory of existing and newly founded support groups. This was ready for use within a few hours thanks to a quick-to-use and tried-and-tested database application. Groups were able to enter and manage themselves and their contact details. People looking for help or other helpers could immediately find groups in their area using a list or Google map search. In the backend, we were able to manage further detailed information about the groups in order to stay in contact with the groups and the people responsible for them.
Help for self-organization for groups: Guidance, tools and best practice
The rapid growth of the groups was possible because we offered the appropriate assistance and actively supported the groups with a community team. To organize the groups, we recommended common and easy-to-use tools such as WhatsApp or GoogleDocs and formulated best practices for their efficient use. Guidelines and instructions for all challenges enabled the groups to operate successfully in a constantly changing environment. And we created a feedback loop of well-functioning groups, allowing us to quickly disseminate successful and proven tactics and make them accessible to other groups. In addition, we worked with experts to create guides on specific areas of expertise such as hygiene measures, mental health, legal frameworks, among others.
Scale by a factor of 10 in less than a week
On Friday, March 13, three of us started, by the following Monday there were six of us and by Thursday there were already twenty people working on the project. This enormous scaling was necessary as the demand for help was correspondingly high. And we couldn't risk taking any health risks for helpers and those seeking help in the very unclear coronavirus situation at the time.
Thanks to our large network, our experience in working with volunteers, in recruiting staff and in setting up similar projects, we were able to expand hilf-jetzt.ch very quickly from a shaky pilot operation to a stable platform. We relied on a mix of volunteers and paid staff and divided the employees into several teams: Community (contact with the groups), best practices/guidance, French-speaking Switzerland, fundraising, and communications and public relations. The whole thing was held together by a managing director and robust project management. Various organizations also helped us out with staff (thank you very much!). At the same time, thanks to various donors and foundations, we were able to secure funding for the salary costs very quickly.
The outcome
Up to 200,000 volunteers in 1200 groups
Thanks to surveys and our own research, we know that up to 200,000 volunteers have organized themselves in over 1,200 groups registered on hilf-jetzt.ch. There was an overcapacity of volunteers in most regions, and we encouraged them to get involved in their immediate environment.
Over 100,000 people seeking help were supported
Thanks to the direct coordination of hilf-jetzt.ch, it was ultimately possible to support over 100,000 people seeking help. Many people were supported for weeks and many support contacts made in the spring were reactivated in the second wave in the fall.
A neighborhood support network for crisis situations
During the extraordinary situation in spring, hilf-jetzt.ch made an important contribution to crisis management. If the necessary restrictions for the population had become even more severe, hilf-jetzt.ch would also have been able to scale up its capacity even further within a very short space of time. The project has also created a great deal of know-how and networking, which can also be used for civil ad hoc aid in future crisis situations. This is why we did not close the project, but handed it over to the Swiss Red Cross for longer-term support.
