Technical Stack Development for Karandaaz Development Impact function

Karandaaz Pakistan Terms of Reference

Individual Consultant for Technical Stack Development for Karandaaz Development Impact Function

Position:                                          Individual Consultant

Reporting Line:                             Head Development Impact

Location:                                         Islamabad

Duration of Assignment:             8 weeks

TOR issuance date:                       February 12, 2025

Profile submission date:             February 19, 2025

Expected Start Date:                    March 1, 2025

Expected End Date:                      May 1, 2025

About Karandaaz Pakistan

Karandaaz Pakistan (Karandaaz), established in August 2014, promotes financial inclusion of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and individuals through a commercially directed investment platform and by employing technology enabled digital solutions. The company has financial and institutional support from leading international development institutions - the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF).

Karandaaz Pakistan has four core work streams:

• Karandaaz Capital provides wholesale structured credit and equity-linked direct growth capital investments in micro, small and mid-size enterprises (MSMEs) with compelling prospects for sustainable growth and employment generation in Pakistan.
• Karandaaz Digital focuses on expanding the poor’s access to digital financial services in Pakistan by working across the ecosystem with all stakeholders including regulators, policy-makers, government departments, businesses and researchers and academics in four key work areas: policy and regulation, seeding innovation, experimentation and solutions development, and scale and outreach.
• Karandaaz Innovation Investments provides risk capital and technical assistance to support innovative and practicable solutions aimed at financial inclusion and entrepreneurship. The three verticals under Karandaaz Innovation include GreenFin Innovations, Women Ventures, and Innovation Challenge Fund.
• Knowledge Research supports the company’s core financial inclusion goal by developing and disseminating evidence-based insights and solutions to influence markets and the financial ecosystem.

Objectives of the Consultancy

The Development Impact (DI) team intends to develop a comprehensive technical stack to support the automation and integration of data for periodic monitoring and reporting. This technical stack will enable the Development Impact (DI) team to effectively assess and track the development impact of the portfolio, monitor progress, measure outcomes, and support evidence-based decision-making across the organization. The objectives of the assignment are:

1)     Data Integration and Automation by logically understanding and integration of multiple data sources into the dashboard, providing a unified and up-to-date view of key metrics and insights through an automated system.

2)     Design and Development of a Custom Dashboard and Refine Current Tools (PSI Score, Annual Review Scoring model & Log frame): to refine and consolidate current tools being used i.e. Impact Score, Annual Review Scoring & Log frame. This will be achieved by creating an interactive, user-friendly dashboard using a suitable analytics platform (for e.g. Power BI or Tableau) that enables real-time monitoring, and evaluation, of the organization's key performance indicators and results achieved. The dashboard will specifically focus on automating the calculation and visualization of Impact scores, results frameworks, annual and review score.

3)     Enhanced Decision-Making Capabilities: To provide a tool that allows stakeholders to make informed decisions based on up-to-date and accurate data. The dashboard should facilitate easy access to critical information, enabling evidence-based decisions that align with the organization’s strategic goals.

Scope of Work

a.  Needs Assessment:

• Conduct meetings with Karandaaz Development Impact (DI) to understand the specific requirements for the dashboard, particularly focusing on the transition from fragmented data points towards a consolidated platform.
• Review existing Development Impact (DI) frameworks, including PSI scores, log frames, and impact indicators, to understand current data parameters and projects. Gain understanding pertaining to the currently active projects (around 60) which need to be mapped on the dashboard to track impact and performance.

This need assessment will be conducted with the objective to enhance the usability and effectiveness of essential current Development Impact tools i.e. the Impact Score, Annual Review Scoring Criteria, and Log frame. The aim is to streamline these tools to improve their clarity and ease of use, while also increasing their adaptability and flexibility for future modifications.

b.  Data Integration, automation, and Dashboard Design:

• Integrate relevant data sources, including legacy data from the Excel and Word documents (Impact scores, impact dashboard and log frame), and future data inputs from different verticals and affiliate entities into the dashboard and ensuring that the development of a dynamic dashboard to maintain real-time data updates.
• Automate the calculation and display of Impact scores and refine the existing layout/ design elements of the impact score toolkit, impact dashboard metrics, and log frame results within the dashboard. Implement rules and formulas to handle data processing and ensure accuracy in real-time reporting.
• Develop a detailed design of the dashboard, including wireframes, data flow diagrams, and user interface (UI) mock-ups. The design should accommodate the consolidation of data from multiple formats and sources.

c.  Development of Dynamic Dashboard for analytics:

Develop the dynamic dashboards using relevant analytics platform (for e.g. Power BI or Tableau or other such tools), for enhanced data visualization and user experience (UX) design. The dashboard should support interactive features, such as filters and dynamic reporting capabilities, to allow users to drill down into specific data points and perform business sensitivity analytics.

d.  Testing and Validation:

Conduct rigorous testing of the tools and dashboard to ensure accuracy, reliability, and user- friendliness to validate the dashboard with the Karandaaz Development Impact (DI) team and make necessary adjustments based on feedback.

e.  Training and Documentation:

Develop a brief visual training content and provide training sessions for key staff on how to use, interpret, and maintain the dashboard and a comprehensive user manuals and technical documentation of the updated toolkits for future reference.

Evaluation Criteria, Experience and Skills of Consultant

The Technical Evaluation Committee for the procurement of the Consultant will use the following metrics of experience and skills:

Applicants scoring at least 70% marks of the technical evaluation score (out of 100), will proceed to the interview/presentation stage. This score will not be carried forward and made part of any further assessment.

Next, the Technical Evaluation Committee will use the following evaluation criteria to score the candidate interviews:

Only the candidates receiving highest marks in his interview will be called to discuss their financial negotiations.

Karandaaz Pakistan may negotiate the price and terms with the top ranked candidate, If the outcome of the negotiation is unsuccessful with the top ranked candidate, Karandaaz may then negotiate the rates with the next in-line candidate and so on down the list as per rank until a satisfactory outcome is achieved.

Deliverables and Timelines

The technical stack development is expected to span approximately 8 weeks followed by 6 months of support, from initiation to deployment, with the following milestones:

The consultant is expected to remain available on need basis and provide troubleshooting for 6 months following assignment completion.