#9 :: Starting at Yes to Solve the Digital Divide, with Megan Steckly - Comp-U-Dopt
Of low-income households, 46% don't have access to a computer at home and 44% lack access to a quality broadband internet connection. Megan Steckly, CEO of Comp-U-Dopt shares how her organization is solving this digital divide, and how they’ve achieved transformational growth by empowering leaders at every level.
Comp-U-Dopt: https://www.compudopt.org/
Recorded on 12.01.20
TRANSCRIPT
[Music & Intro]
Andrea Spirov: As so many of us made big shifts in 2020, moving to remote work from home and online schooling, we've likely taken for granted the fact that we have computers, internet connections, even a special area in our homes where we can set up an office and continue with our projects and studies. These tools are what makes work from home and homeschool even possible for us, and the companies we work for. Next time you sit down to your computer you might remember that not everyone has this access. Today, we're welcoming to the show Megan Steckly, Chief Executive Officer of Comp-U-Dopt, Inc., a national nonprofit that works to bridge the gap between those who have access to this technology and those who don't. This year Comp-U-Dopt served over 21,000 households in need, and their programs include providing economically disadvantaged students with computers, teaching them cutting edge technologies and exploring the career paths around those industries. Megan you have spent... First of all, welcome.
Megan Steckly: Thank you. Yeah. Happy to be here.
AS: You've spent 13 years solving the digital divide, or working to solve it. Can you begin by telling us about this problem, and like the breadth of it and the related issues and how the events of 2020 have compounded things for those who are affected by it.
1:58
MS: Yes, absolutely. So as we all know that digital divide has been an issue that's been quadruple underlined during the Covid-19 pandemic. But of course it's been something that's existed long before that and it's still something that's continuing to go on despite the efforts of organizations like ours, as well as school systems and local city governments. In fact, Pew Research Center did a study in 2019, and they discovered that 46% of low income households don't have access to a computer at home. And, by computer we mean a laptop or a keyboard enabled device, and that includes tablets so they may have a smartphone but they don't have a computer. In addition, 44% of those households lack access to a quality broadband internet connection, which of course we know in addition to the tool that's the other piece of the digital divide that's really critical to making sure that families have access to the wealth of content and knowledge that's otherwise beyond their reach. In the United States broadly that 46% translates to about 13 million households with children who lacked access to a computer pre-pandemic, which is just unbelievable iIn this day and age to imagine that 13 million households in our country still don't have access to a computer at home, which feels almost like food in terms of a basic need or a television or something that we, you know, as you well articulated kind of take for granted in terms of having in our home. So it's a widespread issue. But the good news behind it is, it's incredibly solvable. And the work that we've been doing for the last 13 years, it not only is a sustainable solution to solve the digital divide, but has a really positive environmental impact as well.
And so, one other fun fact about the work that we do is that we know that there's about 40% of computers that just go into landfills and are e-waste and while they may no longer work in a corporate environment or, you know, they're the laptops that we all have on our closet shelves that we don't know what to do with. And, you know, these are the tools that can become a dream come true for a young learner who doesn't have access to a computer and that's really what our solution is, is that we take those computers. We recondition them and make them feel like they run like new. And then we identify the families who are most in need and we get those devices out to them.
4:39
AS: That’s amazing work. I think the last time we talked you mentioned some other issues that go along with these digital divide issues. Can you touch on those for a second?
MS: Yeah, so I think that, in general, when we talk about the digital divide - and this has been a common messaging throughout the pandemic in particular, we think about kids and we think about distance learning. And, of course, that's a critical thing that you know having access to a computer at home does solve. But it's not the only thing, right? These devices are much more than just computers; they're much more - they solve more than just distance learning. In fact, they're the devices that keep families connected. I've been thinking a lot about how we've been encouraging everyone to have virtual holidays. And there's been you know morning shows that are showing kids cooking with grandma over their laptop and making her traditional stuffing for Thanksgiving and suggestions that this is similar to how Christmas should go to keep us all safe and help prevent the spread. And every time I see one of these it kind of breaks my heart a little bit because you know it, I get it, it's the right thing and it's hopefully what families are leaning towards this holiday season, but if you don't have access to a computer, if you don't have access to one of those tools at home, how isolating is it, right? You're not able to connect with your loved ones in the same way near or far during this. And in addition, outside of that I mean the other issues that are presented without having access to a computer are telehealth appointments, you know, eviction court has gone online. How do you attend those appointments? Workforce skills development, which I really believe is going to be the next wave of focus for us in coming out of this pandemic and recovering our economy. There are going to be skill development programs that are required to help people get jobs into other sectors, so that they can get back on their feet. Well, if you don't have a device, or if the only device you have in your home is, is your kids school-assigned laptop, which is content restricted. You can't participate in those programs, and it's not really a viable solution to closing the gap.
7:02
AS: So, Megan, you have shared with us that one of your greatest skills in handling exponential growth and achieving transformational growth and you've definitely stewarded that this year with Comp-U-Dopt’s explosive growth that you've had. One of the things you attributed to that success is that leadership needs to happen on every level. So first off, can you tell us about this growth that you've achieved during this tumultuous year? And then also, can you tell us about the particular skills and tools that you find helpful in achieving this?
MS: Yes, absolutely. So, I am a transformational growth leader. It's where my skill set is, it's what motivates me. It's what gets me up in the morning and I really firmly believe that when you work in nonprofit in particular, but really any mission-driven organization for profit or nonprofit, you should be in the business of almost putting yourself out of business, right. And the digital divide is a solvable problem and so when I get up in the morning my intention is that we solve that, and there aren't any boundaries on that.
You know, I had a meeting this morning about potentially doing a project in India in Q1, which is incredibly exciting because back in March of 2020, we only existed in Houston and Galveston, and when I joined Comp-U-Dopt five years ago, it was me and about two and a half other people. We were serving maybe 700 students per year through one program at our location in the Houston Heights area. And pre-pandemic we'd grown our organization, we added four education programs, and we had 35 staff. We were serving at 72 locations. We had upped our budget from $280,000 to $2.1 million, and we'd opened a new facility in Galveston. And that itself felt like exponential growth and really it was right for, you know, four years of time. And with the pandemic now, just in the last eight months, we've gone from serving 3,500 students annually to serving 21,000 households this year alone in the last eight months. And we've also been able to deliver services to 10 cities across the United States. And so now beyond Houston and Galveston, we've served in Covington, Kentucky, Corpus Christi, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Washington DC, and we're looking very healthy to be adding New York and Miami to our list, probably early next year. When we had a lot of this growth happen this year I really thought, you know, these are pop-up sites, right, you know we're successful in this because there's so much demand right now and we're just able to be responsive to the demand and say yes to it. But they're all holding on. They're all looking like sites that have legs for us to really establish ourselves more long-term in these communities, which is really exciting because, you know, sustained service is actually what solves this problem long-term. And, you know, and we want to be more than a band aid. But the only way that this has really truly been successful is because we have had exemplary leadership on every level, it's not just me, right.
You know, about this time last year, so November of 2019, or so. I went to my board and said, you know, we've had this exponential growth here in Houston and, you know, it's wonderful but I really feel like I've done what I can. For this site this location, and, you know, as I said earlier, I'm passionate about expansion. And that's where my skill set lies, and you know there are plenty of people who are really excellent at keeping the trains running on time and that's who you should have in here doing this. And, if the board is interested in setting a strategic vision to really mandate national growth, I'm excited about that and I want to be a part of that and that's what we should have a conversation about, and I think that I am extremely blessed there's not a lot of nonprofit leaders, or probably for profit leaders that are able to go to their board and draw a little bit of a line in the sand and say, you know, let's do this, and really push and have them show up in the way that my board has really showed up this year and so they really see the opportunity, and they believe in this work, they believe in solving the problem, it's not a line on their resume, and they want to be a part of the solution and they put their whole hearts, and their whole networks, and you know their pocketbooks in with them when they show up for us. And so they mandated national growth for us in February of this year and we were, we restructured the organization, we put plans in place to position ourselves to be able to accept national expansion; we promoted my extremely capable chief of staff in Houston to an executive director role and he took over the day that the pandemic hit, which is certainly a trial by fire. And it really made it possible for me to back away from any operational responsibilities in Houston, and say yes to all of the opportunities that came towards us nationally this year.
But when we talk about success in growth and expansion, when we talk about leadership at all levels, I think that one of the critical things that has made us successful is that we all start at Yes. And even if we end up in a place where maybe something doesn't work out, you know, being able to have the conversation, and investigate how we can be of service in these opportunities has really truly made it made it possible for us to expand and explore projects that are, how we now have 10 locations in eight months, and why we're now having conversations about global expansion, without even having been national for 12 months. And that's a really core company value that exists, not only through my leadership, but through the board's leadership, and through my executive directors in Houston and in Chicago, all the way down to our training staff and our program staff who work with our partners who if they're asked, you know, can we do this this way instead, they start at Yes. Um, and I think that that's, I think that that's hugely important, but it also requires trust, from all levels, right. It requires that I trust that the decision making that happens at the lowest level at our trainer, you know, boots on the ground level is happening in a way that's in line with our values, that pushes our mission forward. And that, you know, we give all of our staff, the benefit of the doubt that they get up in the morning, wanting to do the best job possible and showing up to close the digital divide.
15:00
AS: Another question I have here - I don't think we'll have time for all of them. The issue of school districts.
MS: You know, we really admire what school districts have done during the pandemic. You know, principals and teachers and administrators and district leadership, all scrambled to find a distance learning solution for our students across the country, really across the globe. And, and in a lot of cases I think they've been somewhat successful. And I know how hard it's been in other spaces. You know, one of the questions, the common questions that we get either from funding partners or from community members is, you know, is, why not just use the school-based devices? We really don't see the school-based devices as a long-term solution to closing the digital divide. And school-based devices are content restricted, meaning students can only access certain websites or portals that are linked to the school. They're also owned by the schools themselves. So again for the families that we're serving, these are the only computers in their home. So it's not just used by the student, it's used by Mom. It's used by Dad. It's used by brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles and, and this is a tool for the whole family. And so, a school based device that is content restricted that doesn't allow those family members to attend telehealth appointments or do skill development or, um, you know, access webinars or anything like that is not really a solution for the whole family. On top of that, you know, having to give the devices back to the school at the end of the year means that the family is now left without a computer again throughout the summer, or when students graduate, again that tool is gone. So there's a number of reasons there, that mean that solutions like ours, which use reconditioned devices that give them to the families to keep happily ever after, like they went to Best Buy and is a much longer term solution, right. It really takes out the stress of, you know, wondering what they're going to do when that computer does go away, or if they're evicted and or need to move their housing, and they move out of that school district, you know, how do they have a device between those periods of time. And so, you know, I think, school-based devices solve distance learning for that child, which is great. And it's important. It's not solving the digital divide.
17:40
Laurie Pillow: You just talked about being in business and working yourself out of business. How are you both sustainable and working yourself out of business at the same time, especially at a time and in a context where the world is going to need your service?
MS: In terms of, when we talk about working ourselves out of business and doing so sustainably in a time when our commitments are on the rise. I think that the way that the way that I think about that is, is that we simply need to constantly be centering ourselves on what our core mission is and what that one wildly important goal is that we set for ourselves every year and focus on solving and achieving that. There are always going to be problems to solve - mission creep is never a problem or is always a problem, depending on how you look at it, and so if you can stay focused on solving the issue that you entered the market intending to serve, there are always going to be nearby things where you can pivot across to, and and start shifting resources and energies towards solving those issues as well. Right. So we work predominantly with youth, right up to age 26, opportunity youth but there are disabled populations, there's elderly populations, there's entire other demographic groups that we can take our model, when we've solved it for kiddos and pivot over and solve it for those demographic groups. So I think that it's about taking a long term and short term view simultaneously and making sure that your operational tactical objectives are tied to your short term view. But keeping an eye on the long term perspective of like how how close are we to actually solving this and do we need to be considering what's next, or what other opportunities are out there to make sure that our organization is sustainable and that we're doing the right thing and being responsive to the community and what the community needs are.
AS: So we always do a fun, or personalized question at the end. You've studied and worked overseas including time spent in Australia and Japan, is that right?
MS: Yes.
AS: How has the influence of other cultures shaped who you are as a leader today.
20:08
MS: I have spent time living overseas. I've lived in Canada, Australia and Japan. In fact I hold three citizenships for the US, Australia and Canada. And if I had one piece of life advice for the world, it would be to spend a considerable amount of time in a country that maybe feels like a little bit of a reach and stretches you outside of your comfort zone. And that has been - my time overseas has been probably one of the most inspiring, shaping, challenging experiences that I've had. And I remember a moment when I was in Tokyo. And I think I'd been there maybe a week, and I saw a moving van, and I, you know I moved to Japan a passionate American despite having two other citizenships and this moving van, opened from the side, not from the back, but from the side and I just had this moment, sort of an epiphany of going like, oh my gosh this is the most brilliant thing I've ever seen. Why do moving vans open from the back where you have to carry everything all the way down the truck when you're moving, and it was probably more poignant because I had just moved internationally from Australia to Japan, and lugged suitcases and suitcases of stuff into trucks. And this was just such a simple solution, and what it made me realize was just how much I could learn from living in another country, from being in another culture and that even simple things like moving vans could have such an impact on how I approached thinking about the world and what lenses I looked through and what perspectives I could have. And I think it really set me up to be very open minded, which is a space that's challenging to get to but important whenever you live overseas and really at any point in your life. When you're making decisions. And, and it made me a lot more comfortable with change and uncertainty and the unknown. And helped me get excited about the opportunities that lie within and not just the fear that kind of comes with that sometimes. So I, yeah, I attribute a lot of my success and open mindedness to that one moving van that opened from the side. I still wish that we had them here in the United States when I, when I moved back to the US. I thought about it many, many times. And, but yeah that's that's been probably one of the best experiences that I've had.
23:07
AS: Amazing. Always recommend living elsewhere, Laurie, and I will concur with you. So Megan, how can people support Comp-U-Dopt. What do you all need and who do you need it from right now?
MS: Yeah, so everybody can play a role in closing the digital divide and it's a really exciting time to be a part of supporting an organization like ours. We take philanthropic contributions 365/24 hours a day like all nonprofits. For information about what levels a certain gift can make an impact you can visit our website which is www.compudopt.org. And we also take donated equipment, so corporate equipment in particular is really helpful for us. We recondition those devices and get them out to kids, when we purchase computers to give out our cost per household is about $275 per household. When those devices are donated our cost goes all the way down to just $50 per household. Which means that we could solve this very inexpensively for our country.
We also need people who simply want to talk about and share our story. The more people are educated about the digital divide and the fact that 46% of our population are still in need, the better opportunities come up for our organization to be able to help close that gap. So those are my three primary ways to recommend that people get involved. Give philanthropically. Donate your old equipment, if not to us, to one of the other great organizations doing similar work. Um, and then tell our story, reach out, get connected and let us know that you'd like to be a part.
AS: Megan Steckly thank you so much for being here today and for the powerful work that you're doing.
MS: Thank you. Yeah, my pleasure.
LP: Hey, guys, we hope you've enjoyed today's episode. And if you did, please share it with your friends and colleagues who also have to navigate this leadership stuff. As you can see, this project is about to be a mini masterclass in every episode. Best part. It's free. So if you like it, please do us a favor and take a screenshot, share it on social with the hashtag #100CEO. That way we can say thanks and share it in our stories. And finally, if you've got some insights you'd like to share and you're a CEO, we'd love to hear from you. You can find us at 100CEOProject.com, or on LinkedIn at the 100 CEO Project. Until next time, keep leading by example.
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Hosted by: Andrea Spirov, Laurie Pillow
Writing and research: Andrea Spirov, Laurie Pillow
Edited by: Laurie Pillow
Produced by: Andrea Spirov, Laurie Pillow
