Creating a sustainable future for Catalyst Housing Group

Catalyst Housing Group is an award-winning, independent charity that provides over 21,000 homes in London and the South East.

In 2012, Catalyst Housing Group embarked on a £5 million internal change programme, which involved the consolidation of legacy systems to an Orchard solution. Faced with a number of challenges internally, the programme fell behind schedule.

We were subsequently invited to conduct a review of the programme and to make recommendations with a view to getting it back on course.

Our revised delivery schedule, which encompassed an Agile delivery methodology and structured governance, impressed Catalyst and we were invited to deliver the programme. We were able to complete this within 18 months – one year ahead of the previously-planned delivery. The following year, Catalyst reported tangible benefits in increased customer satisfaction, a reduction in rent arrears, a reduction in complaints and also flexibility in meeting future challenges and opportunities, in addition to better operational efficiencies through streamlined processes.

Project Scope:

As a response to this business turbulence, the housing group Catalyst identified three strategic objectives:

  • To radically improve their customer focus
  • To increase profitability in order to create more of their own capacity to invest in homes and services
  • To grow substantially by new development and enlarging the Group - thus housing more people, improving efficiency and increasing their influence

6%

Overall increase in customer satisfaction

1%

Reduction in rent arrears

5%

Increased satisfaction with complaints process

M & A

Opportunities enabled by flexible platform

Our Approach:

  • We produced an extensive report that was presented to the leadership team at Catalyst. This report clearly stated that in order to be successful; the programme must have the vital engagement of the business rather than just being focussed on IT change.
  • The report was received favourably by the senior team at Catalyst, who actioned the recommendations immediately and asked Mosaic Island to lead the delivery of the programme.
  • In the space of eight weeks, the programme was entirely reorganised. Mosaic Island took a pragmatic approach when working on Catalyst’s Diamond Programme and installed an Agile Delivery (Scrum) team onsite.
  • Our team used Agile to deliver the programme, and as Catalyst were keen for the skills to be shared with its own permanent team members, we trained them in the skills required.

Results:

  • The programme was completed in June 2014 and with key processes now consolidated, legacy systems decommissioned and manual interventions significantly reduced, Catalyst now has a management system that produces better operational efficiencies.
  • Streamlined processes allow staff to work more efficiently, creating more visibility and the ability to make decisions.
  • Catalyst has reported both tangible and intangible benefits from its new strategic efforts which includes the Diamond Programme.
  • This has increased overall customer satisfaction by 6%. Rent arrears have decreased by 1% and profitability increased by 3%
  • The leadership team at Catalyst have stated that Mosaic Island has helped them to achieve a major step change in business capability – and the perception of IT within the business has also fundamentally changed for the positive.

Mosaic Island has transformed the way our business copes with major Information Systems change. Every level of the organisation, from Income Officers through to the Finance Director, is able to understand the programme and actively contribute to it. We now have a platform from which we can confidently deliver innovation and growth to meet the challenges of our industry for years to come.

- Rod Cahill, Chief Executive Officer

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