This is an illustrative pattern, based on how development organisations generally run projects across several districts. It is not any particular client project.
Field data on paper, one master Excel file at head office, and a separate beneficiary list for each of six projects. This is where most organisations in this pattern start.
What we checked first
We did not start by proposing software. We took the six beneficiary lists and matched them against each other, and found that roughly one in nine beneficiary records appeared in more than one project list. Nobody had done anything wrong; there was simply no way to check.
Nobody was hiding anything. The record was just kept in three places.
What we built
One beneficiary register with household references, offline collection for field officers, and a project dashboard for management and donor reporting. Officers collect on a phone without network, and it syncs when they reach coverage.
How it rolled out
One project, one quarter, running alongside the existing paper system. Only after that quarter closed cleanly was it extended to the rest.
Where it stands
Field data reaches head office the same day. The quarterly donor report comes out of the system. Audit queries are answered from one place instead of collected from everyone in a hurry.
Beneficiary lists kept separately
One register for all projects
Paper forms typed twice
Entered once, in the field
A month to produce a report
Ready the same week