Direct to Consumer

Blockchain-based skills management

KMS Technology, a US-based custom software development and consulting company, envisioned a blockchain-based digital skills platform capable of identifying: 1) skill sets at risk of AI replacement and 2) areas requiring employee up-skilling to use AI assistance to do their jobs better.

KMS enlisted Future Forward Partners for product design, product management, and to bring a minimal viable product to market. 

Challenge

The primary challenge was to design and create a comprehensive platform that could:

  1. Assess company employee skills
  2. Recommend job-specific reskilling and upskilling needs
  3. Track progress against development plans
  4. Digitally capture and validate employee skills
  5. Provide self-owned digital wallets and resume-building capabilities

Solution

KMS Technology leveraged Future Forward Partner’s product management and design expertise to develop a market-ready, self-service platform with key features for both employers and individuals.

For Employers:

  • Management and tracking of employee validated digital skills
  • AI-powered assessment, planning, and modeling of employee capabilities
  • Alignment of skills with short and long-term company demands

For Individuals:

  • Request, validation, and receipt of digitally validated skills and credentials
  • Peer and manager validation
  • CV/resume management for career growth

Implementation

Future Forward’s implementation process followed a startup-like approach.

  1. Ideation and Validation:
    • Evolved initial idea into a product requirements document
    • Conducted market opportunity analysis and competitive intelligence
    • Validated problem/solution fit with potential early adopters
  2. Strategy Development:
    • Defined total addressable market (TAM)
    • Built go-to-market (GTM) strategy using a hybrid Product Led Growth (PLG) and direct sales approach
    • Forecasted revenues and expenses over a three-year period
  3. MVP Development:
    • Built smart contracts for minting customizable NFTs to capture validated skills
    • Implemented personal digital wallets for skill storage
  4. Testing and Refinement:
    • Conducted internal testing with KMS employees
    • Incorporated feedback and recommendations into the first version
  5. Launch:
    • Soft-launched in Q4 2022
    • Official launch in Q1 2023

Results

Future Forward delivered on KMS expectations and demonstrated significant potential, leading to:

  1. Successful development and launch of the platform
  2. Valuable adoption metrics and key learnings
  3. Identification of next steps for accelerating rollout and customer acquisition

While briefly placed on hold in early 2023, the project was quickly revived through a partnership with a KMS customer. This led to the evolution of the platform, introducing AI assessment services to support employer reskilling and upskilling needs and roadmapping.

Key Benefits

  1. The project showcased KMS Technology’s ability to transform innovative ideas into market-ready products.
  2. The platform’s unique combination of blockchain and AI technologies addresses critical needs in skills management and workforce development.
  3. Flexibility and responsiveness to market feedback were crucial in evolving the product to meet emerging customer needs.