How to Achieve Customer Experience Excellence in Housing

8th February 2024

by Jimmy Rogers

Key housing leaders came together for the first of our Change Network series of events, to discuss top advancements and strategies in the housing sector. Their goal: to shed light on critical aspects of customer engagement, service design and implementation. Here are some highlights from our lively discussion, looking at how to achieve customer experience excellence in housing.

Revolutionising service design in housing

Kate Lindley, Director and Co-founder of Change Network, drew on her extensive 20-year experience to emphasise the need for a customer-centric approach in the housing sector. Focusing on service design, she highlighted the shift from traditional methods to more inclusive processes — stressing the importance of involving real people from diverse demographics in the design phase. See Kate’s presentation.

Her presentation emphasised a holistic approach, cross-functional collaboration and a consideration of the human experience throughout the customer journey. Key points discussed included:

• Why users from various demographics should be included in the design process
• Emphasis on holistic approaches and cross-functional collaboration
• The evolution of service design towards inclusivity and engagement
• Sharing an example of a repairs process, highlighting the need for end-to-end design.

Digital transformation in practice

Neil Tamplin, Digital Delivery Manager at Valleys to Coast, shared real-life examples of streamlining the housing complaints process — and the challenges and solutions in adapting to regulatory changes. His approach reinforced the importance of collaboration and involvement of key users beyond the project board.

Neil’s success story includes a significant reduction in average complaints time. He delved into the organisation’s technology landscape, touching on the move to the cloud and the exploration of low-code solutions to enhance service delivery. See Neil’s presentation.

In implementation of their service design, Neil discussed their adoption of an agile approach and incorporating a low-code developer and a business analyst as a service designer. This transition from a waterfall approach to an agile one was emphasised, along with the significance of continuous iteration, collaboration and real-time problem-solving.

You can read more about Valleys to Coast and how they have transformed the colleague and tenant experience with a single case management solution, Tenant Hub. .You can read more about Valleys to Coast and how they have transformed the colleague and tenant experience with a single case management solution.

Top lessons learned

• An agile approach and adapting the double diamond design process
• Cultural shift towards collaboration and real-time problem-solving
• Importance of reflecting often and engaging with teams regularly
• Lessons learned: Trusting the process, embracing continuous improvement.

Addressing challenges and sharing experiences

The Q&A session provided an opportunity for deeper insights into the practical aspects of these innovative approaches. Neil’s responses covered topics ranging from team creation, governance in low-code development, to organisational challenges in gaining buy-in for low-code solutions.

The session touched on:

• The importance of collaboration and standardisation for efficiency
• Governance in low-code development to avoid complexity without discipline
• Building trust by exposing internal data to a small group of customers
• Addressing organisational challenges in gaining buy-in for low-code solutions.

The event showcased a wealth of knowledge and experience, underlining the transformative potential of customer-centric service design and innovative approaches like low-code solutions in the housing sector. As the industry continues to evolve, these insights provide a useful roadmap for other housing organisations aiming to enhance services and improve customer satisfaction. 

With Liberty for Housing, you can build trusted citizen experiences and empower your staff with connected workflows, data and AI–powered processes. Transform your digital transformation journey and achieve customer experience excellence — whilst driving greater efficiencies and cost savings.