Introducing our new Project Manager, Claire

Introduction

Since ActivityInfo is expending, with almost a tenfold user increase over the last half year (a great start for ActivityInfo’s 5th year anniversary this year!), our team at BeDataDriven is expending. From April onwards Claire Barnhoorn is working as Project Manager for ActivityInfo. Claire… the name might ring a bell for some of you, since she had a similar position in the earlier years (2010) of ActivityInfo. In 2012 she lead the roll-out of ActivityInfo in Mali for UNICEF. Claire is a NOHA graduate, MSc humanitarian assistance, and has over 7 years of experience in humanitarian project management; mainly in NGOs. Hence an added value next to the more technical persons writing all the code to make sure ActivityInfo is up to your requirements.

Interview

So, Claire, what can we expect from you as Project Manager, and what are you going to do?

In once sentence, I am looking forward to help all of you with the use of ActivityInfo. I will be the point of contact for focal points within your organisations using ActivityInfo, assisting with development requests as well as streamlining those requests, updating the website and news items, training material, consultancy questions, and all sorts of inquiries for new and existing users/organisations.

Why ActivityInfo?

Years ago I met the developer of ActivityInfo, and we started to chat about shared experience and frustration (many of you might have similar experiences) of data collection. There is so much great data out there from aid responses, but we are often unable to capture it correctly. Un-matching units of measures making datasets incomparable, spreadsheets in excel not opening because of corrupted macros or different excel versions, reporting the same data over and over again, but in new formats. For example conducting a baseline nutritional survey while figuring out another NGO did a similar exercise only a year ago, but the data can not be retrieved since their project manager left. The list of stories are endless, we are often spending so much time on reporting, that real analysis and reflection only takes place high up in the HQ, while you want to be able to have this reflection happening in the field too. When the developer started to explain about ActivityInfo, I was sold, this was the tool I wanted to know more about, to help out with. While I could only join for a several months project at those days, I stayed in touch with ActivityInfo, leading to an assignment in 2012 to lead the roll out in Mali. When Alex called me earlier this year to rejoin the team for ActivityInfo, this time for a real position, I didn’t have to think twice. Since I am really looking forward to help as many people and organisations out with simplified data collection and real analysis, to make sure that our resources are targeted as much as we can to those we serve and assist and meeting the needs.

What are you looking forward to?

I am really looking forward to hear stories of people using ActivityInfo, and see how organisations use it. Would be great to start capturing lessons learned and share experiences. If anybody likes to share their experience, write a blog or see if we can conduct case studies, please contact me! Furthermore I know about the great new features coming up, conducting real statistical analysis with your data, is something I can’t wait to see happening (yes, live in 2014!). Conducting real analysis without being a statistician, as you don’t have to be a GIS expert to make maps with ActivityInfo as you all know.

To finish off, can you describe your role for people only reading this question?

My role this time will mainly be talking to you and future users: provide support to all our partners, answer questions, align development request, help out with research requests, update the website, assist with learning and training; all in all: helping to improve (with feedback from you) ActivityInfo.

I am looking forward to meet you all eventually, online, in the field or at your office one day.