NetWorker

A website to streamline mentor and mentee connections

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What is NetWorker?

NetWorker is a site that allows users to conveniently find mentors, mentees, and other professionals to network with, both in their area and online. Users can create a profile and identify their location and interests, to which the site will guide them to people and groups that match. Afterwards, users can request a meetup. This site provides a wide variety of capabilities but also keeps it simple for users to navigate its features.

Conceptualizing the Idea

We wanted a platform that could seamlessly integrate the parsing process of Tinder with the relationship tracking of sites like LinkedIn and ADPList. We found the best way to do this was to identify similarities in the users’ backgrounds and interests so they could bond over these, eventually leading to life-long connections.

We took inspiration from Tinder’s low-text interface and ability to quickly search through different individuals, as well as the way LinkedIn and ADPList prioritized information people look for when networking. We then compiled the features we wanted to highlight and the pain points of those current platforms, discussing solutions to address them. Most notably, we focused on keeping information per profile to a minimum, only emphasizing what would be used to encourage connection.

How We Built It

The frontend was built with Node.js and React along with HTML and CSS. The backend was built with Node.js and a PostgreSQL database. The database was connected to a server, which itself had an API that mediated between the front and backend. The interface and UI components were created with Figma.

Two of the solutions we implemented were mentor/mentee mode and the accountability system.

The purpose of mentor/mentee mode is to make it easier to look specifically for mentors/mentees. To implement this, we added the ability for a user to mark themselves as a mentor or mentee. We also added a toggle so users could control who they were looking for. If a user only wanted to network with anyone regardless of who they were, they could simply set the toggle to “general networking” instead.

To create the accountability system, we required registration through a validated email and phone number. This way, there would be a paper trail to any individuals should they try to abuse the networking tool. We also implemented a feature where users can leave a one to five star review on another user, as well as “endorse” one another by leaving comments on others’ profiles to label them as trustworthy.

Challenges

The time constraint was our biggest challenge. There was a lot we wanted to build but not enough time to do it all. That said, we wanted to completely plan out what the site would be like and all the steps a user would take. For some of us - having never built or designed an entire website before - it was a challenge to broaden our scope during the planning phase to account for everything the site should have.

Another challenge we ran into was connecting the database to the server. It was a challenge no one on our team had faced before, so we had to learn while doing it. We were unsure of exactly what the issue was and ended up spending a few hours on it, but in the end, we figured it out.

What we learned

While working on the UI and UX, we learned ways and methods of developing the website’s interface, such as a content audit to map out what to make. We also gained experience with how to create and follow a workflow on a tight schedule.

For the technical implementation, we learned how to work with Node.js with Express.js on the backend. We also learned how to connect a database with a server, using pgAdmin to streamline the process. As well, we learned how to create an API with Node.js.

Reflection

The biggest takeaway for us was what it was like to participate in a hackathon. Many of us had minimal hackathon experience. Some of us were unfamiliar with certain technologies, but we taught each other what we knew and had fun learning the rest together. Seeing our idea come to life was extremely rewarding; we found it to be a positive experience and would definitely participate again.

What's Next?

We hope to be able to test if the API can properly communicate with the frontend, since we were not able to do that due to time. We also hope to improve searching by adding more SQL queries for better information retrieval. Another thing we hope to do is create a dynamic homepage that changes based on the user’s interest and location.

Additionally, there were many components on the content audit we were not able to make. In the future, we hope to finally complete the website’s UI in its entirety and polish it with user testing.

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