GRIT TORONTO

(Gathering Residents to Improve Technology)

Putting the ‘us’ in usability

GRIT Toronto offers a usability testing service which connects technology creators from the private, public and nonprofit sectors with diverse and underrepresented communities in the city.

Technology is changing our cities like never before, but too often that technology is conceived, designed, and tested in a way that excludes broad swaths of society.

Inspired by successful initiatives in Chicago and New York, Civic Hall Toronto and Code for Canada launched GRIT (Gathering Residents to Improve Technology) Toronto in 2018. The program facilitates better, more inclusive and accessible usability testing that engages residents in the creation of the technology that’s meant to serve them.

GRIT is available as a service to Civic Hall Toronto members, as well as anyone who wants to validate their products with a diverse and representative group of local residents.

If you’d like to get involved with GRIT Toronto, email marisa@codefor.ca, or click below to sign up to as a tester or product developer.

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Help shape tech in Toronto

Become a usability tester with GRIT and get paid to give input on cool new technology products in the city. Fill out our registration form and start contributing!

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Build better products

Are you a technology creator? GRIT can help you get feedback from a diversity of Toronto residents so your products will deliver the impact your users really need.

Why GRIT Toronto is unique

One question we’ve been getting a lot lately is, “how is GRIT different from traditional market research firms?” To us, the answer is simple: it’s all about people.

Real residents

We’re assembling a representative pool of testers with a diversity of backgrounds, lived experiences and behaviours.

Respect & accommodation

We connect with testers where they live, we ensure our testing environments are respectful and accessible, and we compensate testers accordingly.

Real relationships

We recruit testers and engage communities one at a time to ensure we build lasting trust and forge meaningful relationships.

Building capacity

Whenever possible, we share out the results of our tests and our processes so others can learn from our experience.

Privacy is paramount

GRIT Toronto is committed to operating in a way that respects testers’ privacy and their right to know, understand and control how their data is used.

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