Collective intelligence platform for humanitarian & development teams
Turn scattered project reports
into shared, searchable
organisational memory
Propel helps NGOs and development organisations capture lessons from the field as structured learning stories - so teams in any country can quickly find what worked, in which context, and adapt it to new crises without reinventing the wheel.
The big organisational learning gap
Your teams are learning every day.
But your organisation isn't.
In humanitarian and development work, every project, crisis response and pilot generates valuable knowledge. But most of it stays trapped in long reports, forgotten in emails - or leaves when staff move on.
Meanwhile, teams in other countries are facing similar challenges without seeing what's already been tried.
- Lessons buried in documents - Valuable insights sit in end-of-project reports that few people ever read in time to act.
- Knowledge walks out the door - When staff move on, their experiences and “how it really worked” vanish with them.
- Teams work in silos - Country, regional and HQ teams repeat mistakes and duplicate efforts in similar contexts.
- Impact slows down - Programmes adapt too slowly because the right knowledge doesn't reach the right people when it matters.
One place for your organisational memory
Capture field experience once, reuse it across projects, countries and crises
Propel turns project experiences into structured, reusable learning stories. Instead of burying insights in PDFs, teams record what worked, what didn't and recommendations for the future - in a guided way that makes reflection part of implementation, not an afterthought.
Capture
guided learning stories
Teams in the field are walked through simple prompts:
- What were you trying to achieve?
- What worked well - and why?
- What didn't work - and in which context?
- What do we recommend for the future?
Connect
collective intelligence across your portfolio
Propel automatically tags learning stories by location, theme and context. AI-powered suggestions surface similar lessons from other projects - so teams don't start from scratch when facing familiar challenges.
Apply
adapt and act faster
Country teams, regional advisors and HQ can search and filter organisational memory in seconds. Use lessons to adapt programming, inform strategy and respond more confidently in new crises.
Features built for impact organisations
Not another generic knowledge tool - a learning platform built for NGOs
Most tools were built for office workers, not programme teams working across time zones and emergencies. Propel is designed around how humanitarian and development organisations actually learn.
Make learning part of delivery, not an afterthought
- Guided templates to capture lessons during implementation
- Simple, story-based inputs that field teams can complete in minutes
- Prompts that connect activities, context and outcomes
Find relevant lessons in seconds
- • Powerful search across projects, themes and geographies
- • Automatic tagging by location, sector and target group
- • Filters to see "what worked in contexts like ours"
Spot patterns across your portfolio
- • AI-suggested connections between similar projects
- • Portfolio overviews of recurring challenges
- • Evidence for strategy, funding proposals and MEL
Bring new staff up to speed quickly
- • Role-relevant views for teams, advisors and leadership
- • Learning story collections for priority themes
- • Less reliance on "who has been here longest"
From a single project to organisational memory
Climate adaptation lessons in rural Kenya, reused across countries
Imagine you're managing a climate change adaptation programme in rural Kenya. Your field team tests new farming techniques that help communities recover from recurrent droughts.
With Propel, those lessons don't stay hidden in a report or someone's inbox. The team captures a learning story that documents: what they tried, what worked, what failed, and why the local context mattered.
Propel tags that story by location, theme and context. Months later, another country team facing similar climate challenges can:
- Discover the Kenya learning story instantly
- Understand what to reuse and what to adapt
- Build on proven practice instead of guessing from scratch
Every project builds on what came before - so your organisational learning accelerates, and your impact goes further.
Built for the way impact organisations actually work
Support learning across countries, teams and partners
Country & field teams
Capture lessons while delivering programmes, so your day-to-day experience shapes future decisions - instead of getting lost in reports.
MEL & knowledge management teams
Build a living organisational memory that goes beyond indicator tracking. See patterns across projects and support adaptive management in real time.
Regional advisors & technical specialists
Quickly find relevant cases and proven approaches when advising multiple countries - and share back new insights across the network.
Leadership & donors
Use concrete lessons and evidence from your portfolio to inform strategy, de-risk innovation and show how you learn from both success and failure.
Fast to start, simple to scale
Make Propel part of your learning cycle in three steps
Onboard a pilot team or programme
We help you identify a suitable project, set up your themes, and connect Propel to your existing tools where needed.
Capture learning stories as you implement
Field teams use guided templates to record key experiences. MEL or KM staff can support and curate where helpful.
Share, search and reuse across the organisation
As your learning library grows, teams in other countries can discover, adapt and build on prior lessons - and leadership can see portfolio-level insights.
See if Propel is a fit for your organisation
Book a conversation with the team to explore your context, existing tools and learning goals.
Book a DemoWhat users are saying
Propel turns dozens of scattered lessons into concise, usable insights.
"Each of our projects has at least 50 learnings. Propel brings short and punchy insights we can actually use across teams."
Adam Severson - Asia Displacement Solutions Platform
Questions from humanitarian & development teams
Is Propel another tool or a different way of learning?
Is Propel a project management or M&E system?
No. Propel complements your existing PM and M&E tools. It focuses on capturing and reusing experiential learning - the 'how and why' behind your results - so teams across your organisation can adapt faster.
How does Propel work with tools like SharePoint, Google Drive or Notion?
Many organisations already store documents in those tools. Propel doesn't replace them - it gives you a structured learning layer on top, so people don't have to search through folders to find what matters.
How long does it take to get value?
Most organisations start seeing useful learning stories within a few weeks of a pilot. Because Propel uses guided templates, teams can capture insights quickly without heavy training.
What about data protection and security?
Propel follows strict security and privacy standards suitable for organisations working in sensitive contexts. We're happy to share our data and security assessment and work with your IT team.
Is Propel suitable for smaller local NGOs?
Yes. If you're working on multiple projects or in partnership with other organisations, having a shared space for lessons can be even more valuable.
Stop losing hard-won knowledge
Ready to turn your projects into a living organisational memory?
If you're tired of seeing valuable lessons disappear into reports, inboxes or staff turnover, Propel can help your teams learn faster, act smarter and extend their impact across countries and crises.