Weeknote 24/01/2025
A weeknote from 24/01/25 What i've done this week, what I've thought about
I've never really done weeknotes (i even told a coach of mine it's never happening - look at me now Jesse), not because I don't think they are useful, it's just that they feel better for people in actual jobs, rather than someone like me who is all over the place. But hey ho, here we go.
What I've done this week
- Had a check in with client about their Data Portal. Have been helping to review where it is at and how they can take it forward. Produced a report and simple roadmap for them. Left them with some wider questions about product fit and considering different approaches they could take including api first design or simply licencing their data standard and methodology to other platforms.
- Had a board meeting for Tandem, a small charity I'm on the board of. Some interesting discussions about Strategy documents and how to make them practical. I suggested using the 3 questions from triple learning loop (below) as a way of aligning every day operational thinking with strategy.
- are we doing things right?
- are we doing the right things?
- how do we decided on the right things?
- Also discussed managing a difficult relationship with the combined authority who hold funding for Shared Prosperity Fund. The Authority delayed many things on the funding, and then expected the same outcomes even though 50% of a year had been missed.
- Checked in with two small charities as part of support via LBFEW. Both are reviewing their tech set up and use of data at the moment.
- Caught up with a previous client about some work on a data product. They've got a new CEO and are going to go in a different direction with it I think. The product is all open source though so I'm beginning to think about what direction we could take parts of it.
- Supported a Foundation with some grants analysis and preparing to get their grants up on 360Giving. Used the Charity Commission API and Companies House API to help with ensuring the Recipient Identifier for 360Giving was an easy find.
- Added an embed function to our Question Bank v2 to allow embedding of outside content. Had a fight with Notion Content Security Policies & Iframes.
- Sketched out a session I'm facilitating for a Local Motion area next week. It's a interesting systems change approach with multiple funders, national central team and local coordination groups. Add in that they aren't really funding traditional projects it makes it at times tricky to see how you make progress. I'm supporting them to think about that, and am focusing really on learning and decision making.
- Chatted with Stir to Action and Farming the Future about reusing some airtable templates for a funder and support connection prototype.
- Helped some people turn Gemini off in their Google Workspace
Kirsty Marrins
What I thought about
"Go big or go home" - this was a phrase used about wanting to go a different direction with a previous data product. In lots of ways I don't disagree, I think we have a tendency to think small when it comes to tech and data products in the social good sector. However as the term was attached to AI driven technology I am reminded that much of the challenge with data products in the sector is people and data, not technical platforms. So yes go big, but that's unlikely to happen without a lot of people coming with you.
I've kept quite a lot of stuff in Notion over the last few years. It's quite a quick and simple way of storing stuff and then sharing links out. Having wrestled with trying to embed a notion link into a website or app this week I wondered about digital moats. Notion is great at embedding lots of things from external into Notion. It is not good the other way round. And this challenges our Open By Default Principle.
Random things
Found out we've got a kestel sitting (and shitting) just outside my bedroom window. What a magnificent bird
Rubbish things
Had a fence blow down today. Managed to brace another fence up just, not sure it's a long term solution though, but at least get through this storm.
Had a half marathon cancel for tomorrow. It was moved from two weeks ago due to the ice, now it's cancel because its in a forest and with this storm it's just not safe. I try to do the half marathon every year because it's in the local forest which I love, and it's just a lovely race with an eco thoughtful race company
Things I saw
https://applerankings.com/pick-an-apple/ - who doesn't love rankings. And this one of apples is great with comments like Pinova (Piñata) Apple - "A Papier Mache Fruit Husk"
This on decarbonising user journeys was great - https://jameschudley.co.uk/2025/01/23/decarbonising-user-journeys/