Scaling Wacif’s web presence during a global pandemic
At the Washington Area Community Investment Fund (Wacif), I led the launch of three websites in collaboration with PJUX.io
Wacif is a community development financial institution (CDFI) that provides resources and funding to low-and-moderate income entrepreneurs in the Greater Washington, D.C. area.
I joined Wacif in April 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic was taking off. As the world rapidly changed, Wacif expanded its efforts to meet the growing needs to entreprenuers, securing funding from federal, state, and private stakeholders. These investments supported major initiatives, including the launch of the Enterprising Women of Color DMV Business Center in partnership and the Greater Washington Center for Employee Ownership.
Over two years, I went from having minimal web experience to leading the successful launch of three new websites, with a fourth nearly completed before I moved on. I also managed content across six websites on both WordPress and Squarespace, nearly tripling the original scope.
Key contributions:
- Led the content strategy and launch of three WordPress websites (with a fourth near completion).
- Managed website projects from development to deployment across organizational teams.
- Expanded website management from two sites to six across WordPress and Squarespace.
- Solicited, evaluated, and awarded BIDS to website contractors.
- Collaborated with PJUX.io to ensure smooth site deployment.
- Directed art and visual strategy across all sites in collaboration with program managers and senior leadership.
- Helped established new brands in partnership with Brandire Agency, ensuring capability across assets.
This experience reinforced my ability to navigate large-scale web development projects, content strategy, and digital communications — skills I continue to apply across platforms and industries.
Enterprising Women of Color DMV Business Center
February 2021 | Washington Area Community Investment Fund (Wacif)
In 2020, the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) awarded Wacif the funds to launch the Enterprising Women of Color District, Maryland, Virginia Business Center.
The award came at a crucial moment during the COVID-19 pandemic.
My team was tasked with launching a website ASAP so Wacif's programs team could provide coaching and financial services to women of color entrepreneurs through the Center.
Once the wheels were in motion, we put out a Request for Proposal (RFP) to get a web team on board and moved forward with Washington Area Network Services (WANS) and their project lead, PJ, with PJUX.io.
In less than two months, we launched https://ewoc.wacif.org, and in 2022, our team received the 2022 AVA Digital Award - Gold for the website.
Greater Washington Center for Employee Ownership
July, 2021 | Washington Area Community Investment Fund (Wacif)
The Greater Washington Center for Employee Ownership (GWCEO) website went live in July 2021.
The goal of the Center is to promote and support employee ownership throughout the region by preserving businesses, increasing job quality, and building community wealth.
Our team used the web template developed for the Enterprising Women of Color DMV Business Center as a starting point. We looked at the analytics and made informed decisions to determine what we could do better.
Washington Area Community Investment Fund
April 2022 | Washington Area Community Investment Fund (Wacif)
Wacif's corporate site required a total revamp to resolve the site's back-end issues threatening the security and resiliency of the site. In short: it had to go.
Another goal of the new site was also to position it as the "one site to rule them all."
For example, instead of manually publishing an event or blog post multiple times across Wacif's growing suite of websites, you only needed to do it one time. Improving efficiency and reducing room for human error is everything in a fast pace environment.
Results
Metrics once the new corproate site was launched
View all web projects
Related Posts
