Branch Operations

HR&S Sweden establishes HR&S Local Branches in Sub-Sahara African countries. The Branches represents HR&S Sweden in the country, and develop relations with Institution managements, local authorities and other relevant stakeholders. The Branches also manage RISE Centres, which provide support to local social entrepreneurs, researchers and innovators to offer their products and services to the local community.

Operations in general

Motivation, Professional development & team-building – HR&S Local Branches

HR&S is a very firm company, our strategies are profound, but we are nothing without the hard work of our team-members.

Team-leaders call for monthly local meetings with the local team, the purpose is team-building, work motivation and individual development of each team-member.  Team-leaders shall understand and act on the needs of each team-member, offer clear instructions related to each assignment, address any challenge that the team member experiences and ensure reward in the sense of reimbursement as well as personal and professional development.

Services

Each Centre has its own set-up, depending on the needs and the context. Besides the support programmes to the member programmes,  the Centres offer consultancy, seminars and workshops addressing the HR&S Management Srategies.

Establishing Relations With Potential  Institution Management Partners In Our Target Countries.

Benefit from https://www.humanrightsandscience.se/offer-to-scientific-institutions/
We establish links within the management at institutions in SSA countries, seeking relations with individuals with agency for change and do persona research to empower the relations.  We will involve our network members to support with identifying persons to be our ambassadors at the management level at their own institutions. We will prove our performances through free seminars where we present our services and our previous results.  We seek to understand the challenges of the institutions and propose how we can support with addressing those challenges. We present a reasonable price for the services that we offer. Then we remain in professional contact, invite to events, and update on our activities.

Expected Output: 
– Team-leaders identify names on door openers in their own institutions. Indicator: ten names.
– Network coordinators reach out to the network members for names/door openers. Indicator: ten names.
– A list with 20 names of persons with whom we have had contact, affiliations and done persona research.
– Five, 30 min seminars where we strengthen the relations with potential partners.
Expected outcome:
– Ten powerful connections that we maintain where we have i) identified their ambitions and outcome challenges, ii) proposed activities and milestones and iii) informed about a reasonable price.
Progress markers:
– One signed coaching agreement. We will offer free of charge 30 min seminars or one hour,
but webinars need to be paid for. The coaching we offer to the management includes webinars on the strategy for change, helping them develop progress markers for their own curricula. We shall put effort into identifying the outcome challenges and then propose how we solve the challenges through activities and milestones.  In addition we can provide training for their researchers and technicians, and that is then an activity within their SfC. Not stand-alone events.

The institutions pay directly to HR&S Sweden for the service of giving the webinar.

Webinars

Invite to, and manage the exam after, webinars  arranged by HR&S Sweden and by HR&S advisers, as well as the Certificate of those passing the exam. The fee from individual participants (EUR 10) is a direct income to the Local Branch.

Keep the networks active

  • Researchers: Kenya & Burkina Faso
  • Technicians: Uganda & Rwanda
  • Entrepreneurs: Nigeria & Zambia
  • Development stakeholders: Liberia & Togo

External corruption control

Each centre develops good relations with a lawyer, a representative from the police and the bank.

Team Of Operations Members running businesses

Our main challenges is to identify accountable loan-takers. We need role-models. If the team of operations also runs businesses, but benefit from loans, we have role-models who both see the challenges with being a loan-giver as well as a managing business finances. It seems it will serve the HR&S mission well. The assessment is that taking a loan by the team of operations has potential conflict of interest. 

One of our strengths is that we impose on ourselves the challenges that we want to guide our partners to manage, meaning we have direct experience. If we want to guide a partner on how to increase the number of customers in this targeted country, do we know how to increase the number of customers for RISE in this country? If we do, we can also give training to our RISE member. If we do not know how to increase the customers for RISE in this country, then the training we give RISE members may be more of theoretical, and not base on own experience and own understanding, and we may risk wasting our members time time. Score low on the Progress Markers.

HR&S training Events

RISE members and team of operations attend all HR&S  training events for free. RISE team may as well participate in HR&S training as presenters and/or support staff.

Collaboration with institutions
Testimony: Many institutions seems to be dependent on aid support in all respects. The reason being that  this is the way they have been introduced to and they have adapted. Actually it is a very solid state. Anything that is different will come with a friction. 
-We can find people who want to make a change and be self-driven but the system will swallow them up.  With time they may give up. We will try to bring those person with an mind for change to join HR&S. Maybe we can use social media more to find the change makers.
-One problem can be the “system”, that we have to follow protocol. For example, people may not talk in meetings not to offend anyone. Then HR&S can then have a role, and come in as an outsider and talk about that we have a common goal, and we need to listen to everyone to find a solution.
-There is also a bureaucracy that hinders smooth management. Issues have to pass too many levels. HR&S may, as an outsider, have access to many levels to deliver the message.

Webinars
The tasks are: develop a flyer, attract participants, compile names, affiliations and e-mails of participants, control that participants have paid, encourage good internet, run the webinar, have a session where we ask for reviews, offer one examination occasion,  possibly offer one follow-up exam session, develop a list of those who passed the examination with exact names, develop the certificate template, produce the certificates and distribute.
Distribution of tasks:
– Joint activities: develop a flyer (we want to share the information three months in advance, it takes time
for institutions to process the pay). produce the certificates and distribute. We will plan the distribution of the joint tasks for the full year in January.
2022 proposal:
*March SfC researchers and technicians – Uganda and Rwanda, *April manuscript writing – Kenya and Burkina Faso,
*Sept SfC social entrepreneurs – Zambia and Nigeria,
*Oct proposal writing – Togo and Liberia.
– Branch specific: attract participants, compile names institutions and e-mails, control that participants have paid, encourage good internet, possibly offer one follow-up exam session, develop a list of those who passed the examination with exact names and share with those who produce the certificates.
– HR&S Sweden or Expert adviser: run the webinar, have a session where we ask for reviews, offer one examination occasion.
Preparations: We should develop standard templates for the flyer and the certificate.  Good also because people will start to recognise our material.They can always be fine-tuned.  Good also because people will start to recognise our material. The templates may be bilingual.

Accountability
Testimony: Some of the projects that we support fail on accountability, and accountability is key. Reason being that when white people support financially, partners in Africa will consider the support a donation. Therefore, we need to grow our members in relation to accountability, both in terms of the person and the business. Challenges to pay back may be small to start with but can scale with time and make the situation impossible to handle. It is crucial to ensure a good relationship within the RISE Centres to openly discuss challenges, before it is too late.

The HR&S  Branch team of operations members, typically support RISE members by benefitting from the same expertice as they operate with in the Branches.  Independent auditors are  assigned for both the Branches and RISE members when the capital exceeds EUR 10,000. 
Probation period: Persons who seek to join RISE Centres Operations team are welcome on a probation period of maybe six months. If they prove themselves to be active, responsible and take initiatives, they step up and become HR&S Branch Operations Team member. Operations team members must have access to good internet connection.

Direct Understanding And Experience

One of our strengths is that we impose on ourselves the challenges that we want to guide our partners to manage, meaning we have direct experience. If we want to guide a partner on how to increase the number of customers in this targeted country, do we know how to increase the number of customers for RISE in this country? If we do, we can also give training to our RISE member. If we do not know how to increase the customers for RISE in this country, then the training we give RISE members may be more of theoretical, and not base on own experience and own understanding, and we may risk wasting our members time time. Score low on the Progress Markers.
That is why we may also encourage members of the operations team to become loan-takers, in order to get direct experience; from being boat a loan-giver and a loan-taker.

Team work

The different coordinators shall work together, targeting their individual assignments in a supportive and joint manner.

 

Coordination procedures

Physical meetings

  • The coordination is preferably performed through face-to-face working sessions.
  • The face-to-face meetings are arranged as often as agreed in this contract; minimum quarterly, preferably every second month or every month.
  • The work sessions should be in the form of; one-on-one tuition, group advice sessions, large-scale workshops and large-scale seminars.
  • Each session has a duration of one – four hours.
  • All staff assigned to be part of the coordination event attends the working sessions as prepared by the Coordinators.

Follow-Up Meetings In-Between Physical Meetings

  • The coordination includes additional phone calls and group calls as required.

Visit To Programme Sites

  • The coordination includes visits to the programme sites as required.

We need to arrange with good internet and computers for the branch team-members.

Emergency fund

Each RISE centre has an emergency fund put aside so that they can assist where needed, and the RISE Centre fundraise for the emergency fund, it-self.

Equal partnership

In a business relation both parties must benefit, or the relation will not last long. For both parties to benefit, both parties must try to find opportunities for the other party and therefore also have a deep interest in understanding the other party’s situation, ambitions, and challenges. There is a challenge related to the tradition of seeing mzungus as givers; money, training, travels, mentoring, coordination, administration, equipment, repair. But as we know from 60 years of aid, aid has proven to increase poverty. Moving away from looking for donation and a “Help-me” attitude to a proper equal partnership will empower all stakeholders, and create independent, self-sustained and powerful institutions. All members of the Branch operations team must have this understanding, which will result in that everyone will work hard to achieve results; attend all  meetings, propose ways of doing things, take on assignments, and deliver results in time.   The question changes from “how can you help?” me to “how can we help each other”. The HR&S management strategy is built on i) real-time outcome evaluation planning, ii) measuring impact using scientific methods, iii) managing transparency and accountability, and iv) needs and user-driven programmes. 

New RISE Operations Team Members To Understand HR&S 

HR&S is not aid but a social enterprise that establishes country representation. The RISE provides coaching to members, as well as, manages the centre and generates income. It is slow but firm process to establish a new RISE Centre, where the team members with time understands the concept and the meaning of the different assignments. It is a trial and error. All information is available on the website. The transitions from theory to actual practice can only be made organically.

Probation period

Persons who seek to join HR&S Branch Operations team are welcome on a probation period of six months, as a Support Team member. In the position of a Support Team member the persons are not eligible for reimbursement, but are welcome to attend webinars free of charge. They attend meetings and get small assignments.. IF they prove themselves, thus being active, take initiatives and deliver results in time, they step up and become HR&S Branch Operations Team member. 

HR&S Branch Operations team must have access to good internet connection and a computer or a cell-phone.

Manage a WhatsApp chat with RISE-members

The purpose with the joint chat group is knowledge sharing, on all aspects of business scaling. We do accounting, road-maps, team-building and more. It is also for the RISE members to have an opportunity to share between your-self and give each other advice as being social entrepreneurs in Kenya. The RISE members share the same capital that is used for loans, and we depend on each other. We have to make the RISE-members to fee comfortable sharing successes and challenges with each other. We are all together, supporting each other. We need transparency and accountability to thrive. Each RISE-member to stay strong and know they belong to a strong, kind supporting team.

Benefit from the lean-business model to ensure income to each Country Branch

We use an iterative  approach benefiting from the Lean start-up methodology. It is a data- and experiment-driven method of moving from assumptions to verified facts in as short a time as possible. Lean Startup is based on “fail fast – fail often” and by gradually increasing learning about customers and the market, the financial risk is limited.
 
  1. Problem.
    What are the problems that our product or service should solve for the customer?
    Aid dependency and the fragile infrastructure it creates.
  2. Solution.
    What is our solution to this problem?
    Empower self-sustained scientific research, social enterprising and innovation.
    Value proposition: i) Strategy for change road-maps for scientific institution managers, social entrepreneurs and sustainable developers, ii) business loans, iii) RISE Centre business scaling support, iv) products and services to under-served communities through social enterprising, and v) coaching the aid and private sector to embrace equal partnership.
  3. The customer’s options.
    How do customers solve their problem today?
    Aid financial donations and aid free services.
  4. Key figures.
    What measurement values do we want to use to check that we are on the right path?
    i) No of contracts with institution managements, ii) no of RISE members, iii) level of business loans pay back,  iv) level of social good delivered measure through TestE, v) no of contracts with the aid and private sector.
  5. Unique value proposition.
    What exactly makes our solution worth buying?
    xxx
  6. Our competitive advantage.
    Which one is it?
    SfC tool and cross-cultural understanding.
  7. Customer segment.
    What does the ideal customer look like?
    xxx
  8. Channels.
    In what ways can we reach our ideal customer?
    xxx
  9. “Early adopters”.
     What does the ideal customer who buys first look like?
    xxx

Social media

Each Branch develops a FB page in order to reach and discuss with individual Target partners.  HR&S and Action10 postings are shared and the PMone of followers are 500 per country.

Each Branch develops a LinkedIn page in order to reach institutions and sell coaching services. PMone of followers are 1000 per country.

Intrinsic motivation & Agency for change

The HR&S Local branches Team of Operations is composed of very, very special people. They are the fore-front of HR&S in each country; respected, appreciated and trusted by HR&S Sweden to represent HR&S in our target countries.

  1. The HR&S Local Branches Operations team members must make an effort to understand the core values of HR&S and then make a well-informed decision on if they want to become members.
  2. The HR&S Local BranchesOperations team members must be active, they must take own initiatives. They are free to improvise. Free to make mistakes. In HR&S we see mistakes as an opportunity to learn. If we do not make mistakes, then we also do not try new things. What we are proud of is that we learn from our mistakes, make informed decisions, and do not repeat the mistake.
  3. Cross-cultural understanding. In every country can it be difficult for the formally educated community and the illiterate community to understand each other. Thereby we may lack trust and respect and efficient communication may become a problem. In HR&S we depend on the coordination between groups with different capacity and experience, all being equally important, when improving livelihood for the under-served community; may it be the capacity to perform according to university education or to manage a programme within an under-served community. HR&S therefore depends on establishing teams of members with cross-cultural skills.
  4. As a result of the Aid industry, the expectation of persons seeking to become members of the local HR&S team of operations many be the donor-driven structure. Persons may expect that their salaries and other programme running costs shall be paid for by foreign donors, that foreign donors shall provide administrations services, pieces of training as well as equipment, consumables, service and maintenance, free of charge. But HR&S team members must agree with that salaries are not paid for by HR&S, training is not given for free by HR&S, programmes are not funded by HR&S. Instead the HR&S local RISE centres are social enterprises that generate the income required to do local social good, in deep, close and caring collaboration with HR&S Sweden. HR&S benefits from the Lean startup model, the Lean business model and the Agile strategy.

Assigning new members: Potential new members must be able to answer a few questions about HR&S proving they have studies carefully and understood HR&S very well.  Potential new members are also assign on trial for six months before becoming full team members. During the six months of trial they will get assignments to deliver on and join a few meetings with partners. They have to prove that they will take initiatives, be active and attend meetings, show cross-cultural respect with other communities and not be judgmental, and accept that RISE are social enterprises that pay costs and reimburses team members from income generated by RISE itself.

Attend RISEtalks of other branches to share knowledge.

Offer webinars, within the country or region or internationally, to share expertise knowledge.

Infrastructure

During the pilot phase, we aim for the team leader to have good computer and internet access.
We also aim for a zoom account.

HR&S runs webinars, where our practical strategies and core values are addressed. This is a good opportunity for new and potentially new  operation’s team members to understand HR&S, our Local Branches and RISE Centres.

HR&S is not an aid institution but a social enterprise that establishes country representation. The RISE provides coaching to members, as well as, manages the centre and generates income. It is slow but firm process to establish a new Local Branch, where the team members with time understands the concept and the meaning of the different assignments. It is a trial and error. All information is available on the website. The transitions from theory to actual practice can only be made organically.

Action_Invest

Substantiality

It is important that the RISE members has balance in their businesses. The ActionInvest capital shall not decrease as a result of members failing to pay back. As donations are collected, the capital on the Branch bank account shall always mirror the amount collected. 

Additional fees

HR&S does not charge any additional fees but the interest.

Accountability procedures

  1. Team-building and joint financial responsibility for the ActionInvest capital among RISE members, combined with accounting training and auditing with management reports.
  2. RISE member direct coaching and training of RISE members customers.
  3. Signing agreements with employers that loan and interest is withdrawn directly form the salary.

Calculation Examples

Long-term 10% if one year or more.
If we borrow EUR 100 we pay EUR 100+10 after one year, and 100+20 after two years.

With 36% annual interest / short-term one month
If we borrow EUR 100 we pay back EUR 100+3 after one month. Proposal for our programme in Liberia.

With 14% annual interest / short-term six month
If we borrow EUR 100 we pay back EUR 100+7 after six months. Proposal for our programme in Togo.

Examples from the programme:

  • Togo villages, loan-giver is a RISE member,
    six months loans paying 7% of the capital (A.3) 
  • Liberia employees,  loan-giver is the HR&S Branch,
    one months loans, paying 3 % of the capital (A.31). 
    Expected income: A capital of EUR 2,000 = EUR 720

10 % of funds transferred can be used to cover running costs as well as as financial reward to active Branch team members
Team members requesting a financial reimbursement  shall present a written activity report by the end of the year. In a RISEtalk due 15 February the Branch Team Members present their individual activity report and the Branch shares the reward funds as they find is right. HR&S approved the distribution prior to it being transferred to private accounts.
 Reason being that as it is demanding to get the ActionInvest to generate local income due to the level of corruption, our team needs another support to be able to operate. Previously we gave a reward to all team members, that did not work as many joined to get the reward but without contributing.

Annual reports

Each Branch delivers their annual report due 31 January.

The annual report are designed according to the the Branches preferences but shall contain the following chapters.

  1. Message from the Team-leader.
  2. Financial report.
  3. Management report.
  4. Compilation of the RISE members and their businesses.
  5. Compilation of services and products delivered to under-served groups.
  6. Compilation of Management Strategy for Change training and coaching.
  7. The year ahead,
    financially and concerning the programme.

During the May Team-leaderTalks the Team-leaders make narrative oral presentation of their annual reports.

Annual Branch Evaluation And Review

As a result of each year of operations, the team shall effectively evaluate and improve aspects of concern. The Team of Operations undertake to provide advice by developing a written opinion.

Annual RISE members Coordination Report per Branch

The Coordinators undertakes to draw up a joint annual  Coordination, report to be included in the annual Branch report.

  • The annual coordination report should present the coordination year’s activities, and include a written assessment.
  • The annual report should relate to the fiscal year financial report.
  • It should be developed in a way that it can help the Branch and the RISE members to evaluate the day-to-day activities.
  • The Coordination Annual report should include the following:
    • A presentation of the coaching programme; how it was planned and how it was implemented.
    • A presentation of the content of the RISE members programme.
    • Financial reports.
    • A compilation of  output, outcome and sustainable impact.
    • Outcome evidence are referred to (photos, videos, interviews)
    • Compilation of and reflection on lessons learned and proposed informed decisions.

Business Start- / build-up  capital for  team-leaders

 

We see it as favourable for HR&S, if team-leaders and deputy team-leaders are running their own businesses, as the team-leader will then be in a position to be a role-model for RISE members. But rather than approving loans to team-leaders, HR&S will ensure enough reimbursement to ensure a capital. By doing so we:

  • Avoid any accusation of fraud.
  • Avoid that supporter worries that loans are given in a biased manner, that is that team-leaders promote themselves as loan-takers before other potential entrepreneurs.
  • Avoid the risk of loosing excellent team-leaders as a result of debates around agreements of paying back loans.
  • Testimony “It would in theory be okay to give team leader loans. But from experience, if we do so, we run a risk of loosing those very team leaders especially if they are unable to clear the loan. If we want to go into the loan business for team leaders, then we must have an independent adjudicator whose role is to take care of collateral. Generally, people are never willing to repay loans if such loans were received on the premise of their morality and honesty. Eventually, they default and just cease to operate for the company. As a person who runs a financial services business with my sister, I know that even the most trusted and honest people will find it hard to repay loans of any amount of they have not been requested to deposit collateral. For example, person x wishes to invest in his coffee business, a business that takes up to maybe 2-3 years to generate income.  That is not only a long loan period but it implies that they may be unable to easily make timely repayments and should he default, then we could loose the person as a team-leader. Because the person will feel embarrassed to continue working after having defaulted him / herself. I rather, we pay the person annual fees for his/her continued efforts on the project and he/she can use those fees to invest in his/her other business. That way he/she owes the company nothing, there is no risk of default and the person can continue working well as he/she has been.”
unsplash - investment capital

Ensure access to internet

The aim is that each RISE Centre has good communication and work infrastructure.

Internet connection

The big difference between satellite internet and internet that comes from telemast (3G, 4G) is the range. Satellite is enough all over the world, while the masts are limited.
The speed of data traffic differs. Data traffic via satellite is much slower, and is primarily a solution for communication.

Satellite
Can always reach. By having a connection to satellite, we only need to keep the antenna free of obstacles. Satellite internet is stable.
IECT Sweden is the Swedish part of French IEC Telecom, specialize in satellite internet and offer products from quality brands such as Inmarsat, Thuraya and Iridium. The technology works maritime on land, and in the air. Services are aimed at both companies and individuals. Can offer encryption for businesses.  where this is interesting, such as the military. What is the difference between satellite and telemast?

Computer

Electricity

Service & maintenance

Safe guarding

Cost

Kenya

  1. Decent smartphone – 190 EUR
  2. Prepaid internet card- depends on the subscription package. The monthly one ranges from 8 EUR for 3GB.
  3. Standard laptop -340 EUR
Uganda
  1. Decent smartphone- 200 EUR
  2. Prepaid card/data- 5GB monthly data at 12 EUR
  3. Standard laptop – 350 EUR

Togo

  1. Decent smartphone- 200-300 EUR
  2. Prepaid card/data- 3-4-5GB monthly data at ~23 EUR
  3. Standard laptop – 550-600 EUR