If you’re ready to learn how HomeKeeper can help make your job easier and your programs better, schedule a program assessment and demo today!

HomeKeeper is a web-based app built by and for people that manage affordable home ownership programs.   HomeKeeper is much more than just a place to store information.   It’s a powerful tool designed to help you increase program transparency, improve operations, and maximize impact. According to Julie Brunner, Housing Manager at OPAL Community Land Trust, “HomeKeeper not only helps me do my job, it helps me do my jobs better.”

As part of our member outreach, we often meet with program staff to discuss their program and technology needs. This gives is us the opportunity have a more in depth discussion and assess their readiness to become a HomeKeeper member. Here’s a sneak peak and some of the questions we cover during this assessment meeting.

1. What data do you need to manage your programs and report outcomes?

HomeKeeper is designed to help you do more with your data in less time. With HomeKeeper, you can tell better stories, track your applications more efficiently, and generate more accurate reports for your funders. It is not meant to burden you with additional data collection and reporting requirements, but you’ll likely be tracking more information than ever before. The most successful users are not only serious about collecting accurate information, but are also curious about what their data will reveal.

• What kind of data do you currently use to tell your story?
• How do you use data to improve internal operations?
• How confident are you in accuracy of the reports that you share with stakeholders and funders?
• Are you willing to contribute Data to the HomeKeeper National Data Hub?

2. How satisfied are you with your current data management systems and practices?

Simple excel spreadsheets and organized files probably worked just fine for your first few homes, but if you have more than a dozen homes, you’ve likely already outgrown your original spreadsheets. Some of our most motivated HomeKeeper users are the ones who are the most frustrated with business as usual. They are tired of digging through paper files to answer questions, tired of spending a full day pulling information for a funder’s report and tired of memorizing where each applicant is in the homebuying process. New organizations lacking any existing data infrastructure see HomeKeeper as an opportunity to get organized from the start.

• What systems are you currently using to track program and organizational information?
• What systems will and won’t HomeKeeper and Salesforce replace?
• What are your current “pain points” when it comes to managing data?
• What other departments might be able to use the Salesforce Platform?

3. What are your hopes and dreams for HomeKeeper?

Some organizations can’t wait to consolidate excel spreadsheets, while others can’t wait to track their property portfolios. Others are looking for a better solution to manage waitlists or manage inquiries and track applications. If you’re an executive director, you might be hoping for a more global picture of impact, or a reduction of staffing costs. If you’re managing a program, you might be ready to reduce your reliance on post-its and generate reports quickly.

• What does a successful HomeKeeper implementation look like?
• What will be easier and better after you implement
• Are you interested in online application forms?
• When do you want to be up and running?

4. Who will be your HomeKeeper Champion?

Your primary HomeKeeper user does not need to be an IT professional, but they should have the time and energy to learn how to use HomeKeeper in order to streamline program operations.     With the right person tasked with getting to know HomeKeeper and Salesforce, the possibilities are endless.

• Who is the best person to manage the transition to HomeKeeper?
• Will they be able to dedicate a time to the onboarding process?
• Will they encourage adoption among the program staff?
• Who will maintain HomeKeeper and Salesforce once you’re up and running?

5. How can you gather organizational support?

Adopting HomeKeeper takes time and money, two things busy organizations may not have a lot of, unless it is truly a priorty. So before you sign up for HomeKeeper, make sure your team and organizational leadership is on board and ready to devote the staffing and budget resources. Change is never easy and new member organizations are sometimes surprised at how much time it takes to get up and running, particularly if there is a lot of historical data to import.

• Is your staff in support of HomeKeeper, knowing that it will have a significant impact on the day-to-day operations of the program?
• Are you prepared to budget for HomeKeeper annually and set aside additional funds for customization, or other related apps?
• Do you have a plan for getting your existing data in?
• Is now the best time to transition to HomeKeeper?

Would you like to discuss these questions with us? Please contact us to setup a time to meet over the phone or schedule a one-on-one demo for you and your colleagues. If you’re ready to sign up, fill out our member application. Either way we’ll get back to you right away.