11.22.2012 User Meetup

Owned by Ed Cable
Last updated: Nov 22, 2012

Agenda

Before each meeting we'll post a proposed agenda.  You can add any item you would like to cover to the agenda by emailing the user list or editing this wiki page. 

Session

Description

Presenter

Time

Introduction

We will also have an introduction of everyone on the call so the community can get more personally connected.

Ed Cable

5 min

Implementer Show & Tell

Kongalend - Semba FundaSemba Funda

20 min

Discussion

Security in general

Ed/Lukasz

10 min

Demo/Tutorial

Demo of Mifos X Maker/Checker Workflow

Keith

20 min

Open Office HoursSupport/feedback 5 min

On the Call

  • Keith Woodlock (COSM - Ireland)
  • Lassaad (enda - Tunisia)
  • Vishwas (Conflux - Bangalore)
  • Praveen (GK - India)
  • Semba (Kongalend - Namibia)
  • Tshoombe (Kongalend - Namibia)
  • Lukasz (SolDevelo - Poland)
  • Praveen (Hugo - India)
  • Madhukar (Hugo - India)
  • Miguel (SBS - Mozambique)
  • Natu (Afrisis - Mozambique)
  • Marco (Quipu - Peru)
  • Kakha (FINA - Georgia)
  • Amit (Digamber - India)
  • John Woodlock (COSM - Ireland)
  • Ed Cable (COSM - USA)

Notes

From: http://sync.in/xIvYFDy2tt

Agenda
  • Security Discussion (follow-up from Summit)
  • User Presentation from Semba Funda of Kongalend
  • Demo of Maker/Checker workflow in Mifos X
Kongalend Presentation
  • Development-centered MFI based in Windhoek, Namibia - promoting financial inclusion
Why Mifos?
  • Most software using before - had high license fees including per-user cost fees just to do standard transactions in the system - became very costly as portfolio grew.
  • Available support was poor - one-man shop behind the scenes
  • Didn't support future growth where they wanted to move ahead.
How they Implemented
  • Led by Miguel and Natu from Mozambique
  • 1.5 months including customization.
  • Miguel and Natu traveled all the way from MOzambique to get requirements analysis together
  • Was a little challenging because this was first time with this process
Challenges
  • Migration from previous system to Mifos
  • Natu developed script to extract from database into Mifos
  • Support for debit-order collection system where most of payments come in from
  • Bank collects money from clients and then upload data from that banking platform.
  • Distance challenges
  • Internet connectivity was a fairly big challenge
  • Accounting - integration with Pastel - interface between the 2 systems.
  • Challenges with allocating payments
  • Operational Challenges
  • Reporting - unable to extract aging summary for a specific time period - like to know which client in arrears, how many months so they can follow up. 
Mifos Benefits
  • Ability to customize products with the help of specialist
  • Upgrading to Mifos 2.5 in the next year - many of current challenges will be addressed in the upgrade.
Advice for Others
  • For Specialists to get all the requirement gathering correct and explicitly explain them so everyone on same page - avoid future misunderstandings, etc. 
Kongalend's Current Focus (Tshoombe & Emmanuel)
  • These three are the key drivers of Mifos adoption in the organization - make sure tools for informatino provision are properly configred to respond to needs.
  • Regulatory Compliance - broadenin service offering in terms of range of products they're offering - want correct mix of products and only report level of uptake - group, individual, agribusiness, housing loans, launching savings products as they get licensed to accept deposit
  • Reporting is ever more critical - need accurate reporting on loan officer performance, branch performance, product uptake
  • Would like update in Pentaho Reporting for PAR in terms of date, time, amount - essential for risk management.
Question/Answer
  • Challenges with current Pentaho report - need to have a timeline view  (i.e account in arrear by one month, if two months - take another action).  Need to characterize and segment the PAR to take action so don't lose the whole customer)
  • Input from Miguel:
  • One of our major implementations - very proud to take help from community - on this next implementation - will be using efforts of hugo technologies to map accounting transactions from Mifos to Pastel.
  • Joint efforts with our team, help from community as they begin upgrade in January.
Security in Mifos and Demo for Maker/Checker
  • Security in general for Mifos X
  • Currently have typical authentication and security elements in Mifos X - dependent on if it's run locally or in cloud
  • Maker/Checker
  • View it more as a process/workflow feature
  • Will improve data quality and control
  • Philosophy - have role of maker and checker - with intermediary layer
  • With Mifos X - for any state in the system you could add the extra maker/checker approval step
  • this also came up when you needed transactions coming in from external sources like SMS
  • Today - very small demo of starting up doing and will be implementing as core design/feature of Mifos X.
  • Currently only around the create/edit/delete client area
  • Over time will add the maker/checker workflow around any permission.
  • Any where you change data/make a transaction - will have queue-based maker/checker system in place. 
  • Demo
  • Create client - when 'maker-checker' enabled for this task it goes into queue. 
  • Queue shows tasks and then links to review/take action (i.e. approve) - have done reject/modify scenarios yet wait to see what people think.
  • Edit Client - when 'maker-checker' enabled for this task, it detects what changes are and queues the task.
  • If someone was to look at the client details screen it would show the client details and also the fact that there are changes 'queued' for this client
  • At present this is just a highlight in red box with the number of changes queued - can present whatever level of detail here i guess - interested in what people think should see here.
  • When you view the 'proposed changes' after an edit/update - it shows all the details of the client and highlights fields where the 'differences' are
  • Interested in feedback
  • What rules people want to put around maker-checker process e.g. ability to restrict the person who creates or makes from also doing the 'checking' or approval
  • What queues would like to see?
  • Queue of all items I as a user can 'approve' or check
  • Queue of all items I as a user created but have not yet been 'approved' or checked
  • System-wide to turn off/on and granular to turn off or on for any specific area. 
  • Questions
  • Praveen: Any change log for maker/checker in Mifos X?
  • Yes will support full audit trail.
  • Amit: Will the concept be based on financial transaction and non financial transactions
  • Yes, any data that goes into system can be maker-checkerized. 
  • Natu: will it replace current approval process in Mifos 2.0 (i.e. partial application)
  • This will complement that so you could have both there side by side or separate - i.e. maker/checker could work on top of loan approval workflow.