This week, I worked on building a qualitative data bank across the Road to Growth, Road to Leadership, and Road to Finance programmes, covering hundreds of responses from Guyana, South Africa, and Kenya. I experimented with AI tools and developed prompts to conduct thematic and sentiment analysis more efficiently. I also began working with the Programmes team to research Nigeria's financial barriers for women entrepreneurs and the competitor landscape for the Foundation's programmes. I was proud of learning how to use technology to accelerate a large-scale research task while still implementing human interpretation to cross check outputs.

The biggest challenge was finding balance between efficiency and accuracy. AI allowed me to process large amounts of qualitative data much faster, but I learned that faster analysis does not lead to better analysis. Prompts sometimes produced inconsistent classifications or missed nuances in responses. I therefore had to repeatedly refine the prompts and check outputs rather than treating the initial results as definitive. I also learned which parts of analysis required human input while using automations for initial data cleaning.

The values of fast and curious were particularly apparent this week. I experimented with new tools and approaches rather than relying entirely on manual analysis. I also had to keep up with multiple tasks at once, which required time management and prioritization skills.

This week, I became more conscious of the responsibility involved in designing prompts and validating outputs. While I used technology to process data and support research, it could not replace my analysis, which added more depth to our findings. I also learned a lot about barriers that women entrepreneurs in Nigeria face when accessing capital and resources, which will help inform future research and projects. 

Next week, I will dive even deeper into the research team by working on projects relating to impact evaluation. I will also work more with the Programmes team to investigate programme curriculum and how to make the Foundation's flagship programmes more effective.