In this guide 6 sections
Before moving centre collections off paper, an MFI should clean member and group lists and fix each centre’s day and officer. It should also agree schedules, test mobile signal at centres and decide how branch cash is matched. GullySystem’s Loan Management System holds members inside their groups and centres.
Clean the member, group and centre lists
Paper registers drift. Members leave groups, groups merge and centres change meeting days. Before anything moves, each branch should produce one list per centre and check it at the next meeting.
Each centre needs a fixed meeting day and a named loan officer. Each member needs to sit in exactly one group.
- One list per centre, checked at a meeting
- Meeting day and loan officer for each centre
- Each member in exactly one group
- Members who left marked, not deleted
Agree schedules and opening balances
Every running loan needs its schedule, the instalments paid and any arrears. Part payments are where paper and software disagree most. Check them first.
Compare each member’s figures with her loan card. Where they differ, settle the difference before go-live and note why. A branch manager should sign off each centre.
Test the collection screen at real centres
A browser-based collection screen needs a mobile signal. Visit a few centres with a phone and try it during a real meeting. Note where the network fails.
Where signal is weak, keep the paper sheet and enter receipts at the branch the same day. Decide this per centre, not per branch.
Train loan officers on the meeting screen first. Decide who may edit a receipt once it is saved, and who may only enter one.
Decide how branch cash is matched
At the end of the day, cash counted at the branch should equal receipts entered for that day. Decide who counts, who compares and who deposits.
The deposit should then match the bank statement. Any difference goes on a list with a reason and a name.
- Cash counted against receipts each evening
- Deposit slip matched to the day’s total
- Bank statement matched to deposits
- Differences listed with a reason
Start with one branch
Run the first branch with paper and phones side by side for several meeting cycles. Compare totals centre by centre after each meeting. Stop the paper sheet only when they agree.
Then move the next branch, using what the first one learned. Keep a short list of what stays outside the system, such as bureau checks done on the bureau’s own portal.
Branch go-live checklist for centre collections
A one-page checklist per branch with five blocks: lists, balances, signal, cash and pilot. Each line has a tick box, the person responsible and the date it was checked. The branch manager signs the foot of the page.
Open a blank worksheet to printQuestions owners ask
Should paper sheets stop on the first day?
No. Run them beside phone entry for several meetings at the first branch. Stop once totals agree centre by centre.
What if some centres have no mobile signal?
Keep the paper sheet there and enter receipts at the branch the same day. A browser-based collection screen needs a working network.
Who should own the move at the branch?
The branch manager, with each loan officer checking member balances for his own centres. Head office checks the totals before go-live.