Whyise: a Way For Making An Impact

What do you get when you merge an impact designer with a tech developer? You get Whyise, Amman-based impact analytics startup that has risen to success in a relatively short period of time (one year to be exact) amongst organizations and investors in Jordan.

In 2018, Reem Khouri and Eyad Hodiani began their Whyise journey together after realizing that many corporations faced a common challenge – Data. Most organizations lack data, and even if they do have data, they don’t usually have access to the data real-time or they lack the ability to analyze that information, attain insights, understand the trends that are happening and finally design solutions based on evidence.

Khouri comes from a background of working with the private sector, not-for-profit community organizations and impact design after having worked with Aramex for a few years while Hodiani has more than 25 years of experience in technology development and managing projects related to operating systems. After witnessing a problem first-hand, the Whyise team saw this as an opportunity to design a solution that solves the problem of accessing and analyzing data. “Everything we developed and designed was actually led by what people and customers want. And we did this through a design thinking approach,” explained Khouri.

A data solution for all

Whyise was created with a purpose in mind – to bring more visibility to organizations and their impact in real-time so that they can be smarter about their initiatives, products, or services.

By providing more transparency, organizations will be able to assess their operations. As Khouri says, “In 2019, everything is about evidence based impact and so many organizations don’t have access to the data and information they need to exponentially multiply the impact of their products and services.”

For instance, a business can automate its sustainability reporting through Whyise and have access to real time analytics on the impact their initiatives have created but more importantly see the correlation between their sustainable business practices and overall performance, including the change they created for stakeholders, where and how their resources were deployed, and how their sustainability initiatives generated profits and/or savings.

In the case of investors and funders that use the impact analytics platform, they’ll be able to conduct their due diligence through the platform and seamlessly measure and assess how their resources are being deployed and whether they are creating a positive impact. The fact that they won’t have to wait to make assessments and evaluations and intervene in real time based on data allows them to be more efficient, transparent and multiply their impact.

Through this, organizations will be able to make evidence-based decisions. The genuity here is that organizations will be able to design impactful initiatives, products or services and deploy resources transparently. Khouri went on to say, “It’s really about bringing clients the evidence they need to design and deploy resources for exponential impact.”

A promising entrepreneurship journey in Jordan

Now made up with a team of seven, the Whyise endeavor is already on a promising path to success. They have already secured investment from Amman-based accelerator Propeller and were selected aong other promising Jordanian startups by Beyond Capital to join their scale-up program.

Propeller and Beyond Capital have both helped match and connect Whyise with potential clients, and mentors that have helped with some aspects of the solution design, guidance, fundraising, pricing and even recruitment.

“As a company, I think the most challenging experience throughout our journey is the race against time – from onboarding clients to even developing new features. Also, considering the fact that we are a tech-driven business, some skills are difficult to find in the local market, such as product managers, data analysts and scientists.”

A spotlight on big data and AI

These days, AI is attracting a lot of attention especially when it comes to data. Khouri explains, “We have partnered with Mondobrain to bring augmented intelligence, a mix of human and artificial intelligence to provide clients with the ability to understand the variables affecting their impact and create scenarios and simulations for better decision making.

Looking at the next five years, Khouri hopes individuals will see just how important data truly is. Only through data that is available can organizations and governments be able to design much better solutions, have more transparency and accountability. Khouri says, “Technology can be a tool to multiply impact and reduce corruption, we need more transparency and accountability on how resources are deployed and how investments and aid money are being disbursed.”

What is the future of Whyise after garnering such strong success?

The startup further plans on a geographic expansion with the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the US in mind. But another important aspect lies on enabling impact-based smart contracts. By deploying and leveraging technology, businesses can then benefit by “less is more,” meaning they can utilize the Whyise platform to the lower percentage of their costs for a higher impact.

When asked on how Whyise was able to achieve such success, Khouri said, “We have a world class team that believe in the mission and vision. Through a holistic cultural fit, we are able to grow and succeed together.”

Whyise is certainly a great example of Jordan’s talented and high-skill entrepreneurs that are rising to success while they impact the future and beyond.