What will FLIT offer?
In the Weeds - Building SaaS is more than just building software
Between March and July 2024, I spoke with maybe 50 stakeholders - financial gurus, fintech entrepreneurs, business leaders, change and thought leaders. I sought to understand their perspectives on female finance, and what I perceived as a shortfall in financial guidance particularly experienced by women. By July, I believed I had captured the gaps, and could progress with designing an AI-backed software solution.
Now comes the stage I call "in the weeds". See this LinkedIn post (opens in a new window) by Hijinio Reynoso. He argues that unless we are willing to engage with the detail, we deliver (or receive) substandard products, which do not meet customer needs.
I've described this stage over the past few months as being "in the weeds" with FLIT
It sounds bad, but it's a good thing. Thanks to the generosity of key stakeholders, I've got access to top quality mentoring and business supports. These deconstruct the startup business model into individual components - problem research, problem-solution fit, market size, accessible market, timing of solution, buyer motivation and willingness to act, competitors, market forces, branding, marketing activities, go-to-market strategies, business supports, funding, business finance, legal & incorporation, sales execution, business processes, digitisation processes, AI as a supporting tool. Each aspect of the business model is examined and peer-reviewed to reduce risk (as apparently 90% of startups do not survive). This work is regarded as a pre-requisite to delivering software to customers, and it's where I'll continue to spend my time for the remainder of 2024. Meanwhile we continue UX and software development in the background ready for early adopter testing Q1 2025, with focus groups and workshops scheduled from January 2025.
| Programme/Sponsor | Key components | Benefit (FLIT) |
|---|---|---|
| TechStars | Official name "Techstars Weekend Startup Women Dublin" | Top-level business mentoring delivered intensively over 2.5 days. Team of 4 built initial business model. Pitch practice |
| LEO (Carlow) Mentoring and Masterclasses | Future Focus Masterclasses Caitlin O'Connor (Marketing) Brendan Byrne (Financial Entrepreneurship) Terry Harmer (Sales) |
Really useful, personalised advice from those who live in the SME world and understand startup challenges |
| Enterprise Ireland New Frontiers | Phase 1 TUD (Grangegorman) with Diane Hurley and Alan Carey - Bridgewater Management Consulting | Learning by "talking it out". Pitch practice |
| Rethink Ireland | Social Entrepreneur Training Programme & Accelerator (ongoing) | How to structure an Impact business so it makes money and survives. Supports available within the Rethink network. Pitch practice |
| Furthr | MasterClass Series (ongoing) | Practicalities across 6 dimensions for start-ups and scale-ups |
| Hackathons | Code Institute - PowerUP Point; Budget Busters; InfinityHub; TechIreland National AI Hackathon - HomeIE; Google Techmakers AI; AWS GenAI Loft |
Opportunities to build UX and problem-solving components. Pitch practice |
| TechFoundHER / Innovation Labs | InnovationLABS Programme: Bridging business and tech | Product vision and roadmap; practical use of GenAI; low-code and no-code approaches to clickable wireframes. |
| AwakenAngels / AwakenHub, InvestHER | Founder workshops and Peer supports | Fundraising, datarooms, co-founder agreements, legal and financial mentoring. Pitch practice |
| Institute of Banking | Qualified Financial Advisor Exams: Regulation, Pensions, Investments, Loans, Life Assurance, Financial Planning | Authoritative content |
Update: September 2025
Well folks, we emerged from the weeds. Not without a battle and good use of a scythe! We iterated through 4 MVPs before doing a soft launch of the FLIT.ie web site and training programmes during summer 2025. We were extremely lucky to be selected for Enterprise Ireland's New Frontiers Phase2 programme in SETU Waterford. The availability of a stipend during this 6-month period gave us some cashflow breathing space, and the chance to work on iterating MVPs with the help of developers Georgina Carlisle (front end HTML, Javascript, CSS), Stephen Winters (backend python and interoperability), operations support from Vasi (deployment) and myself Deirdre (python, product & vibe coding). During this time we had considerable practical support and mentorship from Aisling Foley and Margaret E. Ward - all funded by Enterprise Ireland. Liam Byrne helped with content, and Paul Dunne with marketing materials and business plan structuring. The quality and intensity of support from the EI phase2 programme was unparalleled, with really valuable networking supports. It helped a lot with credibility to be part of this programme. During this time AllSkills/FLIT completed the Rethink Ireland social enterprise accelerator. Co-incidentally, a tranche of follow-on funding for AllSkills Education CLG followed, which is allowing AllSkills Education to pilot the FLIT Financial Literacy education programmes through to Q4 2025. Immediately after the New Frontiers programme closed, FLIT moved from V3 prototype (python-django-html-css-javascript) development progressed via vibe-coded React onto the 6-week Lovable Shipped programme - a fantastic opportunity to get feedback from 10 x peer developers every week, which opened up the FLIT model to international finances - particularly for users in UK and Africa.