Community for vocational education teachers (in Dutch: MBO)

Through ‘MBO Connect’, vocational education (MBO) instructors can connect with each other. They collaborate in subject groups, stay updated on developments in vocational education, exchange knowledge, and voice their opinions. The platform is built using Yunits community software.

Online community for educators

The Professional Association for Teachers in Vocational Education (BVMBO) aimed to facilitate easier communication among instructors. An investigation among the association’s members revealed that many educators lacked opportunities to share knowledge and collaborate. Therefore, the association sought a suitable platform.

The result is MBO Connect. On this platform, MBO instructors assist each other with various questions and stay informed about sector developments. Moreover, they can easily network with one another.

“The work of an MBO educator is becoming increasingly complex. This demands something from a teacher or instructor. Sometimes you want to consult with others about this, or your colleague asks you for advice,” writes mboconnect.nl about itself. “It’s good to know that you’re not alone. BVMBO specifically facilitates a digital community for you: MBO Connect.”

MBO Connect is unique: it’s the only online community at a national level focused on MBO instructors. The community now has over eight hundred members and covers various themes. Participants regularly share their knowledge, post news, and discuss their personal experiences.

Integration with CRM system

The community platform is designed to be as user-friendly as possible. To achieve this, a seamless solution was developed under the hood of the platform. The platform is integrated with PerfectView, the CRM system used by BVMBO, as well as many other industry and professional associations.

Through the integration between MBO Connect and PerfectView, instructors and schools can easily become members. This membership is automatically processed in PerfectView. You can sign up for a new membership for yourself or for an entire school. When a school becomes a member, all employees of that organization can use MBO Connect. If they register, they only need to fill in the email address of their school. Based on that, they are automatically recognized.

Launch

MBO Connect was launched by Stientje van Engelshoven, former Minister of Education, Culture, and Science. “It is important that teachers themselves can work on improving education. After all, education is primarily something for the teacher,” she said at the launch. “By working together more as a community of teachers, education can further improve.”

About MBO Connect

MBO Connect operates on Yunits community software and offers numerous options for knowledge sharing. With this software, participants can easily read content, publish their own, or initiate conversations. This ease of use was a key factor in MBO Connect’s decision to choose Yunits. Additionally, associations such as FNRS, NEVI, and business network MODINT utilize this software for their community platforms.

The content on the platform is partly public and partly restricted. Restricted content is only visible once you are logged in. Furthermore, the platform is fully responsive, ensuring that all components are accessible on mobile devices. To further simplify access for MBO instructors, a dedicated app is available for both Android and Apple devices, allowing them to participate in the platform seamlessly.

Corporate website integrated

After the launch of MBO Connect, BVMBO decided to also integrate the corporate website with Yunits. A significant advantage of this integration is that BVMBO now manages both MBO Connect and the corporate site within one system, making it easy and efficient. Yard provided a new design for the homepage, featuring a fresh design in the style of MBO Connect. The site was then integrated into the existing platform. Through bvmbo.nl, you can access both the corporate website and the community platform.