Aukaha has a long history in the Otago region and offers a range of consultancy services and expertise. They strive to make their region a better place to be, with initiatives that link their communities together, providing shared understanding and enhanced benefits for all. Their services include; trade training for Māori and Pasifika, business development and procurement, health services, resource management and cultural services.
General Manager of Mana Tākata at Aukaha, Chris Rosenbrock, heard about Noted from another kaupapa Māori organisation and was intrigued by the system. He discovered how Noted could streamline data collection, enhance staff workflows and collaboration, keep client data private and secure, all while providing easy business and funder reporting.
Challenges of a growing kaupapa Māori organisation
Chris shared with Noted his challenges of managing a growing organisation.
“We struggled with trying to manage multiple contracts and reporting back to funders who all need different information. We were using a range of different databases and very complex spreadsheets to manage our client data, and generating any reporting from this was a very time consuming and difficult task to complete each month.”
Aukaha started off as a small organisation, which meant there was never enough time or funding to build a system themselves, or even have the time to search for an existing system to implement. To ensure the growth of the organisation, Chris needed to find a solution that would help them secure more funding. However, to secure more funding he needed access to information to show the impact they make in their community, which was not possible using spreadsheets. He knew they had to do something as their current system was about to fall over as their organisation and client base continued to grow.
Moving to an online CMS
With Noted’s strong experience and track record with other kaupapa Māori organisations and having built custom forms and workflows that were reflective of the type of work and services Aukaha delivered - conversations began with Noted, the local Aotearoa-based tech company.
Efficiencies
A common problem that health and social service providers have, is that their teams struggle with paper based forms and processes which demand that they spend hours of time on admin tasks. Aukaha needed a system that would not only allow them to grow their organisation and scale their services and contracts, but also create efficiencies and better workflow for their existing teams.
Paul Miller, who is the Kaiwhakatere for the Regional Appreciation Initiative, recalls their old paper-based system that was extremely time consuming and limited the access to client information.
“The online access to client data in Noted has streamlined my workflow. I can easily find my way around the data and system using the tags to bring up a client base of those with the applicable skills for the opportunities identified with employers - this allows me to be faster and more informed when out on the road.”
Data security
Moving to an online solution means that all of their client data is now protected and safe within the one online application, and no longer relies on the limited security of spreadsheets and databases. An online CMS not only provides a solution to control access to client data, but also reduces their risk of data loss and file corruption.
Chris notes, “There is only so much we can do with a spreadsheet in terms of security of information. With Noted - client numbers are automatically generated so client details can remain private in our overall reporting.”
Customised forms and workflow enhancements
A comprehensive Discovery process was undertaken to ensure the digital forms in Noted were reflective of the services the organisation provides. This crucial discovery process also identifies where efficiencies and consistencies in recording client data can be made.
“Noted’s discovery process is absolutely wonderful. Joe and Raewyn interviewed our team to understand our requirements and went away to work with the forms and workflow we had. When I saw the custom forms in Noted for the first time I thought - this is exactly what we were missing, access to up to date information on clients alongside easier reporting to funders.” - Chris Rosenbrock
As part of the onboarding services, Noted provides detailed training to the workers who will be using the system to record their data everyday. Paul noted, “It was great to have someone here showing us how to use it. The Noted team are very understanding of our industry with their previous health knowledge working with social services.”
Reporting was made easy for the Aukaha team, with customised forms that consider the entire organisation’s reporting and workflow requirements. Noted is the one system that encourages team collaboration and data quality monitoring. It empowers management with a system to monitor the quality of data being recorded and the ability to measure the impact of care being given.
Reporting
As the health and social care sector undergoes significant change throughout Aotearoa, it is now more crucial than ever to provide evidence of impact. Noted has allowed Aukaha to capture their client data in a way that will inform their practice, performance, and decision making. Their data now tells a story about the areas that may need more support and funding, allowing them to effectively address these issues and make a greater impact in their community.
Chris saw Noted as the best solution for Aukaha, “We can view information and trends around whānau to show the evidence of where support is needed, where the issues arise and trends in this data, to inform our funders of what is happening out there in the community.”
The reporting capability within Noted means that Chris and his team no longer struggle with spreadsheets each month. They save time and by not having to pull data together for their multiple funders. Noted makes it easy with saved reports and shared access controls so the data can tell an informed story about their impact in their community. Chris noted, “There are so many possibilities here with reporting, I am very excited about the future developments of the Noted software.”
The Noted team are passionate about providing these custom solutions for community-based health and social care providers in Aotearoa and are thrilled to hear how the software is making such a difference in the lives of health and social care workers.
