Week 1: Mapping the Terrain
Starting this project, my main goal was to understand the lay of the land. I spent the week meeting with both teams, digging into their current workflows and needs, and listening to where they felt the weight of manual work that could be streamlined with the help of some automation and technical tools.
With Just Neighbors, our conversations quickly focused on the time taken up by county-level grant reports, each with different reporting timelines, reporting units, and required fields. I started mapping out a way to build a standardized reporting system that could pull data together automatically. At AsylumWorks, the challenge was different. They have a wealth of communication data, but it’s hard to track. So, I began the process of identifying all those data sources and thinking about how we could shape them into clear, measurable indicators of their impact.
By the end of the week, I had a solid grasp of the key data fields each project would need and a rough sketch for how to automate parts of their work.
The biggest lesson? I came in with an assumption that their data would be more standardized than it actually is. I had to hit pause on jumping straight to building solutions and first spend time documenting the inconsistencies and missing pieces. It was a great reminder that in this kind of capacity-building work, I can't just design an ideal system from on high level. I have to start by listening and auditing the concrete processes and tasks of staff on the ground.
This was a personal insight, too. I realized I tend to jump straight into solution mode. Working with the nonprofit staff taught me that real collaboration takes patience. I had to practice active listening and consciously frame my suggestions as options we could explore together, not as finished answers I was delivering.
It also shifted my view of leadership. In this context, it’s less about directing and more about facilitating clarity. By helping the staff articulate their own reporting pain points, I saw that leadership can be about structuring a problem so clearly that others can see the path to the solution themselves.
Next week, I’m ready to move from mapping to making. My plan is to start building the first version of the reporting pipeline for Just Neighbors, begin structuring the communications data for AsylumWorks, and keep checking in with the staff to make sure everything we build stays grounded in their practical needs.