Discovery process
Due diligence before we build anything.
Reporting is only as trustworthy as the understanding behind it. Every engagement starts with a structured discovery so that scope, data, risks and price are clear before any build begins.
Typical duration
One to two weeks, depending on the number of reports and source systems.
Your time needed
A discovery call, one definitions workshop and short check-ins with report owners.
What you receive
A findings report and a fixed-price proposal. No obligation to proceed.
Step 1 in detail
Mutual non-disclosure agreement
Signed by both parties, by mutual agreement, before any confidential information changes hands.
Prefer to use your own template? Send it through and we’ll review and sign it, provided the obligations are mutual.
- Mutual obligations. Both parties agree to protect the other’s confidential information. You share loan and business data; we share our methods, templates and pricing. Each side is protected equally.
- What counts as confidential. Loan, borrower and portfolio data; financial and funding information; system designs, schemas and reports; commercial terms; and anything marked or reasonably understood to be confidential.
- Purpose only. Information is used only to carry out the discovery and evaluate a possible engagement. Nothing else.
- Need-to-know access. Shared only with the people directly involved, each bound by the same obligations, and protected with at least the care each party gives its own confidential information.
- No third parties. Nothing is disclosed to anyone else, including subcontractors, without prior written consent.
- Personal information. Any personal information is handled in line with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles, de-identified wherever possible.
- Standard exclusions. Information that is already public, already known to the receiving party, independently developed, or required to be disclosed by law (with prompt notice to the other party where permitted).
- Return or destruction. At the end of discovery, or on request, confidential information is returned or securely deleted, and this is confirmed in writing.
- Duration. Obligations continue for an agreed period after discovery ends, typically three years, and indefinitely for personal information.
- No obligation, no licence. Signing the NDA does not commit either party to an engagement, and does not transfer ownership of any intellectual property.
- Governing law. New South Wales, Australia, unless agreed otherwise. Signed electronically for speed.
The eight steps
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1
Confidentiality first: mutual NDA
Before any data, documents or commercially sensitive details are exchanged, both parties sign a mutual non-disclosure agreement. Mutual means the obligations run both ways: we protect your information, and you protect ours. See what the NDA covers.
- Mutual NDA signed by both parties before anything confidential is shared
- Your NDA template or ours, whichever you prefer
- Single point of contact and approver agreed
- Scope of the discovery confirmed in writing
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2
Discovery call
A 30-minute conversation about the reports you run today, who reads them, how long they take and where the pain is. We ask you to bring one report that causes the most trouble.
- Current reporting landscape and audiences
- Deadlines: board, funder, trustee and regulatory
- Known issues, workarounds and key-person dependencies
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3
Secure, minimal data access
We agree how we will look at your data before we touch it. Our default is read-only access inside your environment, or de-identified extracts, so personal information does not leave your control.
- Least-privilege, read-only access, approved by you
- Personal information masked or excluded wherever possible
- No data copied to personal devices or unapproved services
- Access removed when discovery ends
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4
Report and source inventory
We list every report in scope, where its data comes from and how it is produced, including the spreadsheets, macros and manual steps in between.
- Report register with owners, frequency and consumers
- Source systems, tables and extracts mapped
- Manual steps and hand-offs documented
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5
Definitions and business rules
We write down the definitions each report depends on, such as net balance, days in arrears, hardship, product class and exclusions, and confirm them with your credit and finance teams.
- Data dictionary of agreed definitions
- Conflicting definitions between reports flagged
- Rules confirmed by the business owner
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6
Data profiling and reconciliation baseline
We test the data before building anything. Balances and loan counts are reconciled to the loan system and general ledger, so we know the starting point and any gaps.
- Reconciliation to loan system and GL control accounts
- Data quality issues logged with examples
- Known timing and suspense differences explained
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7
Risk, compliance and dependency review
We look at what could affect delivery or the integrity of the reports: privacy obligations, funder and trust deed reporting requirements, audit expectations, system changes and staff availability.
- Privacy and data-handling requirements noted
- Funder, trustee and audit reporting obligations identified
- Upcoming system changes and dependencies listed
- Risks rated with proposed mitigations
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8
Findings and fixed-price proposal
You receive a short written findings report and a fixed-price proposal for the first deliverable. There is no obligation to proceed, and the findings are yours to keep either way.
- Findings report with current-state map and issues
- Recommended first report to automate
- Fixed price, timeline, assumptions and acceptance criteria
How we handle your data
Lenders hold sensitive borrower information, and we treat it that way from the first conversation.
- Your environment, your control. We prefer to work inside your systems with access you grant and can revoke.
- Minimum necessary. We only request the data needed for the question at hand, de-identified wherever possible.
- No secondary use. Your data is used only for your engagement and is never used to train tools or build products.
- Clean exit. At the end of discovery, access is removed and any working files are returned or securely deleted, and we confirm this in writing.
See our Privacy Policy for how we handle personal information more generally.
Start with a discovery call.
Thirty minutes, no obligation. Bring one report that causes you pain.
Book a discovery call