Well I know everyone always says this but I can’t believe how quickly this project has come to an end.
After the excitement of the SAP Press Conference the SAP Social Sabbatical team went into a phase of handovers in the lead up to the Closing Ceremony. Some groups had already commenced this prior to the Press Conference; however, at AMI we had a huge Scope of Work and decided that we would provide as much detail as possible to AMI and cover off some areas that were not necessarily asked for.
In my previous blog I mentioned the areas of AMI that we reviewed in order to come to the recommendations. It really came down to understanding our stakeholders and revalidation with them prior to recommending the final product.
AMI already has competitors in the learning lab/classroom training space. Due to this we were asked to not provide too much detail in terms of the end product outside of AMI. What I can say is that the final report came to 101 pages and in addition to meeting the Scope of Work deliverables on a comprehensive Franchise model we also provided further deliverables on detailed technical options, a Sales Pipeline Dashboard and Customer Relationship Management system recommendations. The potential agents that we met with were all interested in piloting the model for AMI. The CEO is excited about this and looking to pilot our recommendations after the launch of AMI’s new branding and courses. Here is a small piece of the feedback we received from Rebecca Harrison (CEO AMI):
“Thanks again for the AMAZING work. We will be sure to stay in touch to keep you abreast of the ongoing impact. I'm confident the work you've done over the past month is going to make a HUGE difference in the lives of many individuals and organisations. Time and effort well spent! Please do stay engaged, we would love love love to pick your brains from time to time and perhaps even have you mentor one/a few of the team on an informal basis? If there are specific ways you'd like to stay engaged then do let me know!”
The A Team (Celine and Christian) provided me with wonderful insight into areas of corporate world that I have not experienced. As you can imagine, in order to deliver the product it was not as simple as using our existing skills. None of us has worked on creating a franchise before. I found designing the financial model for AMI and a potential agent within my comfort zone, however, I really enjoyed learning and thinking about how AMI could recruit and retain agents from Celine. I had worked with CRM systems before; however, it was a huge advantage having a developer (Christian) on our team who could design a Sales Pipeline Dashboard in SAP Lumira in around 10 minutes!
The most common question I have been asked by the Kenyan people I have been working with plus those I have met just in the course of travel is “What has been your favourite thing about Kenya?” It is hands down the people. Everyone is so happy, grateful for all they have and humble. Most of the Kenyans that I met in the client scene had more qualifications then the average Australian and were far more tech savvy and though they were extremely ambitious and looking to further their careers they had a passion for helping others. I still go back to my day in the classroom when I sat through an AMI training course with some lovely Kenyan ladies and they told me that one in particular had gone to university because her village had raised funds for her to go. She was so proud that she had the opportunity to live and work in Nairobi. In speaking to Mercy in the AMI office about whether she felt disadvantaged being born a female she proudly advised “Yes it may have been that way a few years ago but in the last few years it has become a more level playing field. Kenyan women are strong and starting to pave the way in business.” All of the staff at AMI were impressive not only for their skills and entrepreneurship but for how they wish to make a difference in Kenya.
Experiencing Kenyan culture and working for AMI is the most enriching experience I have ever had. The SAP Social Sabbatical program director Alex asked us all to document this program. I have to say that it has helped me to reflect and I feel extremely lucky to have been given this opportunity.
To all in the SAP ANZ office – I have really missed you and look forward to seeing you next week. A big thank you to those who covered me while I have been in Kenya. I will be forever grateful and hope that I can do the same for you, especially if you need time to participate in a social responsibility program :-)!
Cheers
Gina
A full team shot of AMI and the A Team:
Team Harambee outside the Strathmore Business School:
