Welcome to a journey of transformation and innovation in social housing, where technology meets tenancies to create a seamless experience for both housing providers and their residents. In this article, we will explore the transformative journeys of Housing Solutions and Beyond Housing, two forward-thinking Social Telecoms customers who have embraced the power of modern contact-centre technologies to revolutionise customer engagement, satisfaction and service delivery.
Housing Solutions’ journey
Housing Solutions has been on an ambitious digital transformation journey, underpinned by a clear strategy to enhance customer experience and operational efficiency. Richard Harvey, Housing Solutions’ assistant director of digital transformation and organisational design, has been a key figure in this journey and has been instrumental in identifying and integrating innovative technologies to streamline operations and improve tenant interactions.
In 2023, Housing Solutions outlined a digital strategy that focused on creating an environment where employees, residents and the board could thrive. This strategy was influenced by its corporate objectives, emphasising the importance of being safe, satisfied and sustainable.
At the Housing Technology 2024 conference, Richard Harvey shared his insights into the integration of 8×8 AI-powered solutions, such as the Intelligent Customer Assistant (ICA) and Contact Centre Analytics. These technologies have redefined customer engagement, allowing for more streamlined and effective communication. For example, ICA is designed to provide immediate, round-the-clock support for customers, addressing a wide range of enquiries and significantly improving the customer experience.
Richard Harvey said, “Our digital transformation has been a strategic endeavour to enhance both customer experience and operational efficiency. By integrating AI with a digital assistant and contact centre analytics, we’ve not only streamlined our operations but also redefined customer engagement.”
A digital assistant can manage routine enquiries and not only enhances customer satisfaction but also frees up the valuable time of contact centre advisors, allowing them to focus on more complex, high-value interactions.
The combination of AI and analytics provided Housing Solutions with deep insights into its customers’ behaviour and preferences. This data-driven approach enabled it to tailor its services more effectively, ensuring that it met the needs of its customers in a more personalised and efficient manner.
Beyond Housing’s transformation
Beyond Housing’s journey through digital transformation has been marked by innovation and a focus on enhancing customer service. At the heart of this journey is the integration of cutting-edge contact centre technology and a robust housing management system; together, these have propelled Beyond Housing to the forefront of customer service excellence.
Leanne Thistle, Beyond Housing’s customer services manager for digital, has been instrumental in implementing and embedding the 8×8 contact centre system into the business. Her expertise and knowledge of the system have been invaluable to the company’s success, enabling Beyond Housing to provide a seamless and efficient service to its customers.
Leanne Thistle said, “Post-merger, we recognised better communication as something we needed to strengthen to improve customer satisfaction and 8×8 provided the clarity we required. We’ve looked into the quality management tool to identify team training needs, ensuring our advisors deliver superior first-contact resolutions. We’re now exploring speech analytics to gain deeper insights and have already seen benefits from optimised call-flows, leading us to rebuild our IVR.”
The integration of 8×8’s Contact Centre and Logicdialog’s digital assistant has revolutionised Beyond Housing’s customer service capabilities. This scalable and efficient system has significantly reduced call and email volumes, increased agent productivity and improved first-contact resolutions. The advanced features of Logicdialog’s digital assistant, such as a knowledge base with clickable links and sentiment analysis, have enhanced the customer experience by providing quick, accurate responses and a more personalised service.
Beyond Housing’s collaboration with MRI Software to build a brand-new housing management system has been a key milestone in its digital transformation journey. This initiative was part of a conscious decision to combine systems, including 8×8 and Logicdialog, to create a long-term plan that benefits customers. The organisation’s efforts were recognised at the Housing Technology’s 2024 awards, where Beyond Housing was commended for its achievements in Digital Transformation.
Comparative analysis
When examining the journeys of Housing Solutions and Beyond Housing, several key themes and strategies appear, highlighting the transformative impact of technology in the housing sector. Both organisations embarked on ambitious digital transformation projects, with a focus on enhancing customer service and operational efficiency through innovative contact centre solutions.
Housing Solutions and Beyond Housing have both embraced AI-powered customer experience solutions to elevate their service delivery. Streamlined omni-channel communications have enabled both organisations to offer comprehensive 24/7 support, addressing a wide array of enquiries efficiently.
Both organisations recognised the need to address the inadequacies of legacy systems and meet the growing demand for modern digital communications. They each took an approach to consolidate systems and create long-term plans that help customers, reflecting a shared understanding of the importance of customer-focused service delivery.
A key element in their strategic approaches was their use of the PfH Telecommunications Framework, which provided a structured and cost-effective procurement route for their telecommunications needs. This framework allowed both Housing Solutions and Beyond Housing to access a range of services and solutions that have been pre-checked for quality and compliance, ensuring they could implement the best possible systems.
Technological Impact
The technological impact of AI-powered systems in the housing sector, particularly through the services provided by Social Telecoms and its partners, has been significant, offering a suite of advanced functionalities that have redefined the customer service landscape for housing providers.
Beyond Housing’s use of an intelligent IVR system is a prime example of this impact. The intelligent IVR system uses AI to understand and process voice commands, allowing customers to self-serve or handle a majority of their preliminary questions through virtual assistance.
The digital assistants provided by 8×8 and Logicdialog offer an intuitive and responsive interface for customers, allowing for natural language interactions and quick access to information. This not only improved the efficiency of customer service but also increased satisfaction by providing immediate and relevant responses.
Conclusion
For Housing Solutions and Beyond Housing, the integration of AI-powered contact centre solutions has been game-changing. These technologies have not only streamlined operations and improved tenant engagement but have also set a new standard for customer service excellence.
For prospective customers considering their own contact centre communications, it’s essential to recognise the value that such technology can bring to your organisation.
By using Social Telecoms’ position as no.1 ranked supplier on the PfH Telecommunications Framework, housing providers can access a range of pre-vetted services and solutions, ensuring quality and compliance while meeting their telecommunications needs.
Embracing AI-powered customer experience solutions is not just about keeping up with technology; it’s about taking a proactive step towards enhancing your service delivery and making a lasting impact on your community. As proven by Housing Solutions and Beyond Housing, the right technology can empower your organisation to deliver exceptional service and drive forward with a clear, focused vision.
Pippa Saunders is the senior business development manager at Social Telecoms.
