Notes
Field notes on building operational systems for lenders, schools and design practices in Africa.
Lending
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The lender with no borrowers
Starting a loan book from zero is an advantage, not a handicap. Why a new lender can build clean and bake in regulatory reporting from day one.
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The number the phone says and the number the book says
Why the hardest part of running an African micro-lender is the gap between mobile money and the loan book, and what closing it actually takes.
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The second investor you do not have yet
When a second investor funds the same loan book, every repayment has to reach the right pool. Why to build for that before the second cheque clears.
Architecture
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The loss you find at the final account
A busy, respected practice can still lose money on half its projects. Project profitability you can see in time: billable versus cost rate per employee.
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The variation nobody wrote down
Variations agreed verbally on site become disputes months later. Why a variation register protects a firm's money and its professional standing.
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Why the last ERP failed
The real reason a firm's first ERP failed is rarely capability. It is per-seat pricing and forcing a practice into software built for selling products.
Schools
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Further behind than she really is
The most common mistake in ACE schools is counting credits per year. Why ICCE certificate progress must aggregate across years, not within one.
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The workbook that was not on the shelf
In a self-paced school the store cupboard is the real bottleneck. How demand-driven replenishment keeps each child's next PACE workbook on the shelf.
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The boy the system marked complete
Software built for a class of thirty breaks where every child is on a different PACE workbook. Why an ACE school must track the child, not the number.