Focus on the People and Places Most Impacted by Housing Instability

Make Housing Programs More Accessible and Easier to Use

Because housing is foundational to a full life and thriving state, we must make housing programs accessible and easier to use. When people face housing instability, especially when their lives are in crisis, knowing where to turn to get quick access to resources is vital for establishing housing stability. The process to get assistance should be free of unnecessary barriers, which can become overwhelming. Our programs, processes and systems must also be accessible and, wherever possible, easier to use for our partners who administer our programs, particularly the smaller and emerging partners who are not as familiar with our work.

Trusted community-based organizations, often small and led by the community, are critical to serving the communities most impacted. These are the organizations to which people, particularly those who do not trust government, turn for support and guidance, and they provide culturally effective services and have the deepest community understanding and trust.

Human-centered design is a critical step in making programs accessible and easier to use. It is an approach for designing/redesigning products, services, processes and systems that puts the customer at the center of the design process to create results that resonate with and are tailored to the customer’s needs. It is also an effective strategy for pursuing innovation and equity.

Key Metrics

Percentage of Minnesota Housing programs that have gone through an improvement process using human-centered design principles and practices and include an ongoing customer feedback loop (coming soon)

Actions

Use Human-Centered Design to Improve Our Programs, Processes and Systems

Train staff throughout the Agency in human-centered principles and practices
Use human-centered design as staff carry out their regular, ongoing reviews and assessments of the Agency’s programs, processes and systems
Regularly get feedback from customers (our program partners and the people they serve) about their experiences and act in partnership with the customers to co-create and achieve continuous improvement in removing barriers, increasing access, reducing disparities and achieving better and more equitable outcomes

Increase Awareness about Housing Programs

Engage and hire people with lived expertise and trusted community-based organizations to carry out culturally effective engagement, outreach, marketing and education activities
Use a wide variety of marketing outlets to reach targeted populations including social media, TV, radio, direct mail, texts and signage
Develop a comprehensive and easy-to-use housing-resource list that explains available housing resources and how to access them quickly

Reduce and Eliminate Barriers

Carry out a top-to-bottom review of programs by:
- Examining program requirements and restrictions,
- Identifying the basis of each (federal or state regulations, Agency rules, legal requirements, etc.),
- Evaluating the need and impact of each, particularly from the perspective of communities most impacted and people who have been historically excluded, and
- Removing unnecessary requirements, restrictions and barriers, and seeking legislative or rule changes as needed
Engage and hire trusted community-based organizations to be an access point to our programs and to provide culturally effective services
Collaborate across state agencies and sectors to align and simplify access to and the operation of intersecting programs, such as our Family Homelessness Prevention Assistance Program (FHPAP) and the Department of Human Services’ Emergency Assistance

Simplify Applications, Processes and Reporting

Implement new and update existing processes and systems to be accessible, streamlined and efficient for applicants, which will result in a better customer experience
Reduce the collection of duplicate information across programs, forms and systems
Use plain language
Create tools that will help users understand and navigate our programs, processes, systems and requirements

Provide Technical Assistance to Program Partners and Renters/Homebuyers on How to Access and Use Agency Resources

Engage and hire community members and organizations that have lived experience with our programs to provide culturally effective technical assistance to partners administering our programs and the renters/homeowners receiving the assistance
Create business development teams for all programs to be active and engaged in the communities we serve and the organizations with which we partner
Establish a knowledgeable, internal team with members with different expertise (e.g., finance, operations, legal, policy, information technology, research, etc.) to serve as a resource for program teams in developing programs and delivering technical assistance

Speed Up Processes Whenever Possible

Work with our program partners to create streamlined, accessible program applications with unnecessary requirements and steps removed
Evaluate and document internal decision-making processes and delegate authority depending on the frequency, risk and importance of the decision

Increase Flexibility in Program Eligibility and Use of Funds

For select programs, carry out a top-to-bottom review and implement changes to increase flexibility when appropriate, and if needed, pursue changes in laws and rules
Adopt policies that reduce barriers and meet community needs, such as: (a) allowing chosen-family structures (nontraditional, multi-generational, etc.); (b) making it easier to use housing development funds in small, rural communities; and (c) pursuing other options

Expand the strategic plan table of contents to navigate the plan's strategic objectives and their dashboard metrics.

Contact

John Patterson, Director of Planning, Research and Evaluation

Director of Planning, Research and Evaluation

john.patterson@state.mn.us

651.296.0763