GOALie, AI chatbot for knowledge discovery

GOAL Global works in some of the world’s most challenging humanitarian contexts, where rapid access to accurate information is essential.

Over time, thousands of documents spread across multiple SharePoint sites, creating a fragmented knowledge base with inconsistent tagging and duplication. Staff spent excessive time searching for information, and regional teams often struggled to find the correct, authorised guidance.

Marino partnered with GOAL to build GOALie, an AI chatbot embedded in SharePoint that provides fast, secure, and context-aware access to organisational knowledge through natural language queries.

Client	Challenge	Solution	Outcome
GOAL Global, 1,200 staff across 20+ countries	15-minute average document search time across fragmented SharePoint sites	GOALie, AI chatbot integrated into SharePoint	6,700 hours saved annually + 20–30% reduction in helpdesk load

Challenges

A global organisation losing time to search, duplication, and inconsistent knowledge access.

Fragmented knowledge repositories. GOAL’s SharePoint environment had grown organically, resulting in decentralised libraries with inconsistent metadata and structures.

High search burden. Staff spent significant time searching for documents. When information couldn’t be found, teams often recreated work, reducing productivity.

Distributed workforce. With teams worldwide, GOAL needed a fast, secure way for staff to access only the content they were authorised to use.

Need for secure, scalable automation. Any AI solution had to align with SharePoint’s ACLs, deliver high accuracy, and reliably support hundreds of users at once.

The solution: GOALie

Marino created GOALie, an AI assistant embedded directly in SharePoint, giving GOAL staff fast, secure, and intuitive access to organisational knowledge.

Key capabilities

• Continuous indexing. Automatically ingests new and updated SharePoint documents, including OCR on image-based files.
• Multilingual queries. Supports English at launch, with Arabic, French, and Spanish planned.
• Retrieval-augmented answers. Uses Amazon Bedrock and LLMs to generate accurate, synthesised responses backed by source content.
• Citations & highlighting. Links answers directly to the exact page or slide in SharePoint for transparency and compliance.
• Secure by design. Fully respects SharePoint ACLs so users see only authorised content.
• Embedded SharePoint experience. Built with SPFx and hosted on AWS for seamless performance and GOAL-branded UI.
• Feedback & copy tools. Built-in feedback and one-click copying improve usability and continuous improvement.
• Sustainable ownership. Comprehensive documentation and training ensure GOAL can independently maintain and extend GOALie.

Impact and measurable ROI

Faster onboarding & organisational learning. GOALie acts as an always-available guide for new joiners, reducing dependency on senior staff and speeding up knowledge transfer.

Reduced support load. Increased self-service access to knowledge, with helpdesk load reduced by 20–30%, letting technical teams refocus on higher-value work.

Improved accuracy & consistency. Answers reference only authorised SharePoint documents, reducing misinformation and strengthening compliance.

Significant time savings.

• ~2,600 queries per month (based on 1 in 10 staff using GOALie daily)
• 33,800+ minutes saved monthly (~560 staff hours)
• 6,700 hours saved annually, nearly 4 full-time staff reclaimed

Faster access to information. Before: ~15 minutes manually searching SharePoint per query. After GOALie: answers in under 2 minutes. Net time saved: 13 minutes per query.

Collaboration and co-development

A core success factor was the close collaboration between GOAL and Marino’s AI engineering, UX, and product teams. GOAL’s internal development team was heavily involved in each phase, ensuring sustainable long-term ownership of the platform.

Marino’s support included end-to-end architecture design, AI model selection and optimisation, ingestion pipeline engineering, secure SPFx integration and UI development, knowledge-transfer workshops, technical documentation and co-development sessions, and guidance on governance, security, and future enhancements.

Why GOALie matters

GOALie is more than a chatbot. It is the evolution of how GOAL discovers, uses, and shares knowledge. It’s now the fastest and most reliable way for GOAL staff to find organisational knowledge. By transforming knowledge into an instantly accessible resource, GOALie empowers staff to focus on their mission.

GOALie marks a major step in GOAL’s digital transformation. With secure architecture, thoughtful UX, and a scalable AI foundation, GOAL now has a reliable, future-ready platform for global knowledge access. Marino’s partnership ensured strong governance, sustainable ownership, and lasting operational impact.