PLATFORM / GROWTH RECORD ENGINE

One live record for every business.

The Live Growth Record is the centre of Mothusi. It brings together the business profile, MGS tier, evidence, uploads, check-ins, learning, mentoring, interventions, readiness, risks, support history and movement over time.

It is not a static SME profile or a one-off diagnostic. It is the working record of the business: what is known, what is evidenced, what is missing, what changed, and what should happen next.

Illustrative, anonymised example. Real records update live.

Bonolo Logistics

Logistics · Phokeng · 14 employees
Operating → Established
62MGS
Evidence confidence: Medium
Current blockers
  • Financial discipline
  • Buyer proof
  • Compliance freshness
Evidence this month
  • 2 invoices uploaded
  • 1 repeat order confirmed
  • Tax clearance updated
  • Pricing task completed
Next actions
  • Prepare buyer pack
  • Complete cash-flow forecast
  • Mentor review scheduled
Updated 4 minutes ago · 24 signals captured
DECISION SNAPSHOT

What can we say about this business today?

The business is active and improving.

Repeat customer activity, recent invoices and completed mentoring actions show positive movement.

It is not yet funding-ready.

Customer proof is strengthening, but the cash-flow forecast is incomplete and management accounts are missing.

The next intervention is clear.

Strengthen financial evidence and prepare the buyer pack before routing to lenders or larger buyers.

The record is becoming stronger.

Five new evidence items this month moved evidence confidence from Low to Medium.

THE CORE IDEA

A business should not start again every time it meets a new programme, funder or buyer.

Most SMEs are assessed repeatedly. The result is duplication, weak evidence, slow review and poor continuity. Each business should instead build one Live Growth Record that travels through support, learning, funding preparation, buyer readiness, programme activity and reporting.

The same business is asked for the same story, again and again:
  • ProgrammeAsks for a diagnostic.
  • MentorAsks for background.
  • FunderAsks for documents.
  • BuyerAsks for proof.
  • Reporting teamAsks what changed.
  • New opportunityAsks for the business story again.

Scattered across

  • Forms
  • Spreadsheets
  • Emails
  • PDFs
  • Mentor notes
  • WhatsApp updates
  • Site visits
  • Funding applications

One structured record

  • One Live Growth Record
  • MGS state and movement
  • Evidence confidence
  • Readiness status
  • Risk signals
  • Next best actions
  • Reporting outputs
WHY IT MATTERS

Activity is not the same as progress.

A business can attend training, upload a document, speak to a mentor and submit a report without being any stronger. The record separates activity from movement, by showing what changed and what the evidence supports.

It separates activity from movement, by showing:
  • What the business claimed
  • What evidence supports it
  • How strong that evidence is
  • What changed since the last review
  • Which levers improved
  • Which gaps remain
  • Which support actions were delivered
  • Whether the business is closer to readiness
Movement over the quarter
Last quarterToday
MGS54 / 10062 / 100
Evidence confidenceLowMedium
Customer proofSelf-reportedInvoices + repeat order
Compliance freshnessLapsingTax clearance current
Programme statusNeeds diagnosisOn buyer-readiness pathway
WHAT THE RECORD CONTAINS

The full operating picture of the business.

  • 01

    Business profile

    Name, sector, location, ownership, team size, trading history, products, services, customers, markets and operating context.

  • 02

    MGS state

    Current score, tier, tier movement, levers, issue clusters, evidence confidence and readiness signals.

  • 03

    Evidence

    Documents, uploads, invoices, contracts, certificates, bank statements, customer proof, compliance records, photos, site-visit notes, learning outputs and reviewer confirmations.

  • 04

    Check-ins

    Monthly updates, weekly mentoring activity, business-health signals, revenue updates, customer changes, risks, blockers and wins.

  • 05

    Learning

    Assigned courses, completed lessons, assessments, applied tasks, outputs created, trainer feedback and learning evidence.

  • 06

    Support history

    Mentor sessions, interventions, workshops, referrals, field visits, funding-readiness support, buyer-readiness support and partner activity.

  • 07

    Readiness

    Funding readiness, buyer readiness, procurement readiness, compliance freshness, financial discipline, customer proof and operational gaps.

  • 08

    Actions

    Recommended next steps, assigned tasks, overdue items, evidence requests, mentor prompts, intervention recommendations and programme escalations.

  • 09

    Movement

    What changed over time: score movement, tier movement, lever improvement, evidence added, blockers reduced and unresolved risks.

THE EVIDENCE MODEL

Not every signal carries the same weight.

A business saying "we have customers" is useful. An invoice is stronger. A signed contract is stronger again. A bank transaction or verified buyer reference may carry more confidence than either. The record keeps those differences visible, so it shows what is known, how it is known, and how much confidence to place in it.

  1. 01

    Self-reported

    The business provided the information.

  2. 02

    AI consistency checked

    The information has been checked against the wider record for obvious gaps, conflicts or missing context.

  3. 03

    Document-supported

    A document has been uploaded to support the claim.

  4. 04

    Live-data verified

    A trusted data source supports the signal.

  5. 05

    Third-party reviewed

    A mentor, programme officer, field officer, funder, buyer, auditor or approved reviewer has confirmed the evidence.

ClaimEvidenceConfidence
The business has recurring customers2 invoices + 1 repeat orderDocument-supported
Tax compliance is currentTax clearance updatedDocument-supported
Service delivery is activeField visit completedThird-party reviewed
Cash position is understoodForecast incompleteEvidence gap
Bank activity is currentAccount not connectedEvidence gap

Observed is not verified. An SME may have an observed tier based on submitted responses; as stronger evidence is uploaded and reviewed, confidence improves. Programmes can start supporting businesses early while the evidence gap stays visible - and funders see exactly what still needs confirming before a serious decision.

Under the hood, the Mothusi Growth Score reads 57 levers across 5 tiers. You only ever see what matters for the decision in front of you.

HOW THE RECORD IS BUILT

The Growth Record strengthens as the business works.

It is not built in one sitting. It grows through normal business and programme activity.

  1. 01

    Onboarding

    The business profile, baseline diagnostic, initial MGS state, issue clusters and evidence gaps are created.

  2. 02

    Backfill

    Existing businesses submit current records, documents, contracts, compliance files, financial evidence and support history so the record starts from what already exists.

  3. 03

    Check-ins

    Monthly updates and weekly mentoring sessions capture what changed, what is stuck and what needs attention.

  4. 04

    Uploads

    Documents and evidence are uploaded, reviewed, classified and linked to the relevant levers or requirements.

  5. 05

    Learning

    Courses, assessments and applied outputs add capability evidence to the record.

  6. 06

    Support

    Mentoring, workshops, field visits, interventions, referrals and partner activity are logged against the business.

  7. 07

    Readiness work

    Funding packs, buyer packs, compliance refresh, cash-flow forecasts, proposal support and procurement preparation strengthen the record.

  8. 08

    Review

    Programme teams, mentors, funders, buyers or approved reviewers review sensitive items where human judgement is required.

  9. 09

    Reporting

    Dashboards and reports read from the same live record, so reporting is based on the work already captured.

WHAT MAKES IT LIVE

The record changes as the business changes.

A Growth Record is live because it updates through ongoing signals. It is not a report written after the fact - it is the place where the facts are built.

  • A monthly check-in is submitted

    Revenue changed, customers changed, risks changed and new blockers are captured.

  • A document is uploaded

    The record updates the relevant evidence area and flags whether review is needed.

  • A pricing assessment is completed

    The learning result updates the relevant capability lever.

  • A mentor session happens

    Notes, actions and follow-ups are captured.

  • A buyer order is confirmed

    Customer proof and buyer-readiness evidence improve.

  • A compliance document expires

    The record flags freshness risk and creates a renewal task.

  • A funding pack is prepared

    The record shows what is ready, what is missing and what needs review.

  • A field visit is completed

    Site evidence, photos, observations and action items are captured.

DIFFERENT VIEWS OF THE SAME RECORD

One record. Multiple decision views.

The record supports different users without creating different versions of the truth. Each view reads from the same underlying record, with permissions configured for the deployment.

What should I do next? What is missing? Which levers matter?

Complete the cash-flow forecast and refresh tax clearance. That moves Bonolo from "promising but incomplete" toward buyer readiness and lender review.

SAMPLE RECORD STRUCTURE

Bonolo Logistics: progress without pretending everything is verified.

Strengths

  • Repeat customer activity
  • Active service delivery
  • Recent invoices uploaded
  • Mentoring actions completed

Gaps

  • Cash-flow forecast incomplete
  • Tax clearance needs refresh
  • Customer proof not yet reviewed
  • Management accounts missing

Readiness

Funding readiness
Not ready yet
Buyer readiness
Emerging
Evidence confidence
Medium
Compliance freshness
Current

Open risks

  • Cash-flow visibilityWeak - no current forecast on the record.
  • Bank verificationPrimary account is not yet connected for live confirmation.
  • Management accountsMissing - financial discipline cannot yet be evidenced.
Recommended next action

Complete cash-flow forecast

Triggered because financial discipline is the weakest lever and no current forecast sits on the record.

Targets
  • Financial discipline
  • Cash-flow visibility
  • Funding readiness

Expected outcome Move from "promising but incomplete" toward lender review.

Evidence request

Refresh tax clearance and connect bank feed

Compliance freshness and revenue claims need stronger verification.

Mentor recommendation

Finance Readiness Mentor

The business has active sales evidence but weak financial discipline.

RECORD QUALITY

A serious record must show gaps, not hide them.

Institutions do not only need success stories. A record that shows only positive activity is not credible; a record that shows both progress and gaps is useful. The Growth Record makes weakness visible.

  • Missing documents
  • Stale evidence
  • Unsupported claims
  • Low-confidence signals
  • Unresolved risks
  • Overdue actions
  • Incomplete learning
  • Weak financial discipline
  • Thin customer proof
  • Compliance gaps
  • Unclear ownership or governance
  • Intervention needs
EXPORTS AND OUTPUTS

Build the record once. Use it in the right format for each decision.

  • MGScard

    A concise summary of tier, score, readiness, evidence confidence and current gaps.

  • Evidence manifest

    A structured list of documents, signals, evidence levels and review status.

  • Funding pack

    A business summary, use-of-funds note, financial evidence, customer proof, gaps and reviewer notes.

  • Buyer pack

    Products, services, compliance, customer proof, delivery evidence and a buyer-readiness summary.

  • Mentor brief

    Current blockers, recent actions, evidence gaps and recommended session focus.

  • Programme report

    Cohort movement, intervention activity, evidence created, issue clusters and unresolved risks.

  • M&E summary

    Outputs, outcomes, movement, evidence confidence and progress against programme indicators.

  • Data export

    Where permitted, structured data for reporting, monitoring, partner review or institutional systems.

WHO READS IT

One record. Different decisions.

For SMEs

The business keeps its own story, so it never starts from zero.

  • Build a profile, upload documents, track customers and complete check-ins
  • Prepare programme, buyer and funding packs from one record
  • See why an opportunity is not yet a match, and what to fix first
For programme teams

One record for delivery, support and reporting, instead of work scattered across systems.

  • See which SMEs are active, stuck or blocked, and which evidence is missing
  • Track interventions, overdue learning and documents going stale
  • Turn programme delivery into a live operating view, not a year-end reconstruction
For DFIs and funders

Better evidence before formal review, with every claim linked to confidence and history.

  • Pipeline preparation: who is close to readiness and who needs support first
  • Evidence packs and funding memos prepared from the record
  • Technical-assistance tracking, post-funding monitoring and portfolio intelligence
PERMISSIONS AND GOVERNANCE

Structured access to the right evidence for the right purpose.

The record can contain sensitive information. It supports role-based visibility, consent, document permissions and deployment-specific governance. A record does not mean uncontrolled visibility.

  • SMEIts full business journey.
  • MentorThe context needed for support.
  • BuyerSupplier readiness, products, services and approved proof.
  • FunderFunding-relevant evidence and readiness gaps.
  • Programme officerCohort and intervention data.
  • AdministratorExports, access, review status and sharing rules.
WHAT IT IS NOT

Decision support, not the final decision.

  • A credit score
  • An underwriting engine
  • A replacement for due diligence
  • A public business profile by default
  • A guarantee of funding readiness
  • A guarantee of buyer readiness
  • A claim that all information is verified
  • A static diagnostic report
AI AND THE GROWTH RECORD

Mothusi AI makes the record usable.

The record gives Mothusi AI the context it needs. It reads from the record and writes useful outputs back into it - which is why the AI is grounded in the business record and the MGS framework, not generic.

  • Explain what the record means
  • Guide the next action
  • Request missing evidence
  • Review uploads
  • Prepare content and draft packs
  • Support check-ins
  • Recommend training or mentoring
  • Summarise progress
  • Surface issue clusters
  • Prepare reports
GET STARTED

See the record behind the score.

A platform briefing shows how the Live Growth Record is created, updated, reviewed, permissioned and used across Mothusi - the MGS connection, evidence confidence, check-ins, uploads, learning evidence, funding and buyer readiness, reporting outputs, governance and deployment configuration.

Mothusi turns SME activity into a live, evidence-backed record of growth.