Consulting position, Bangladesh
Database configuration and reporting expert
Location: Dhaka, Bangladesh
Level of Effort: up to 15 days
Reports to: Project Manager
ShoreBank International Ltd (SBI) advises financial institutions and their funders in emerging and transitional economies in small business, micro and housing finance. Since 1988, SBI has delivered services to over 200 financial institutions in 76 countries, thereby extending access to capital for un(der)served individuals, households and entrepreneurs globally.
With funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, ShoreBank International Ltd (SBI) is helping to build the capacity and outreach of a new technology company in Bangladesh which aims to provide mobile money services throughout the country, reaching a large segment of Bangladesh’s low income population.
Under this project, mobile money services are offered to customers exclusively through a network of “agents” – small independent retail stores who are able to sign up new accounts and perform cash-in and cash-out transactions. To date, over 8,000 agents have been recruited, and are managed by a number of different regional and national “distributors” who in turn are overseen by the company’s Sales and Distribution (S&D) team.
In order to ensure effective management and visibility, a contact management system (“Sage ACT”) has been configured to include both basic contact details as well as more specific information such as GPS coordinates, photos, and profiles. A large percentage of this data has already been captured and is in the process of being enhanced based on data received from the various distributors. The additional ability to record observations and issues from field staff, and combine profile data with transactional output in the form of analytical reports, will prove invaluable in gaining an in-depth understanding of agent behaviour and patterns as the service becomes more widely used.
This assignment is focussed around refining and expanding a series of reports that have already been developed using MS Access to combine ACT database information with extracted transactional data from the mobile banking platform.
Specific activities will include:
· Reviewing the previously configured reports and updating as necessary to ensure they provide the S&D team with meaningful information on which to base decisions
· Liaising with the company’s Business Solutions and Operations (BSO) team to determine which data can be extracted from the transaction processing system on a periodic basis and configuring processes that allow it to be combined with the ACT data as needed for consolidated reports
· Configuring ARC GIS (or similar if recommended) to enable the extraction of combined ACT/transactional data and its presentation on maps in a meaningful way
· Determining whether other more general socioeconomic data and/or information from other sources within the company can be combined into the maps
· Training the relevant S&D team members in processes required for importing data, running reports and producing maps
· Reconfiguration of existing MS Access reports and data import processes to fit the S&D department’s needs
· Development of new MS Access reports as required
· Configuration(s) of GIS tool to enable extraction of a range of data from combined ACT/transactional systems and presentation on maps
· Demonstrated success in designing databases and reports for business analysis
· Expertise in working with GIS data and integrating geospatial information with other types of data, preferably including financial transactions or outputs of banking systems
· Ability to design a sustainable data extraction, integration and report production process
· Training and knowledge transfer experience
· Experience living and working in a developing country
To apply, please send resume, cover letter and writing sample to Lara Pawlak, Recruiting Manager, at [email protected].