Customer Portal Engineering for Social Housing Providers

12+ months
of continuous development and optimization
10
experts involved
Customer Portal Engineering for Social Housing Providers | Crunch-IS Case Study
Discover how Crunch-IS helped a leading UK social housing software provider enhance its legacy platform with a self-service customer portal.
Industry:

PropTech, Real Estate

Location:

UK

Team Size:

10

Duration:

1 year, ongoing

Technologies
ColdFusion
React
R
AWS
01

About the client

Our client is an award-winning provider of social housing solutions established in 1988. They specialize in engagement software for social housing providers and local authorities across the UK.

Their software helps organizations maintain steady revenue flows, stay compliant with regulatory requirements, and improve customer satisfaction through proactive communication.

Customer Portal Engineering for Social Housing Providers | Crunch-IS Case Study
02

Challenge

Since the client serves a large customer base, the Support team couldn’t keep up with manually configuring engagement calls, and the process was often error-prone. This made scaling difficult and time-consuming. To address this, they required a self-managed platform that would allow landlords to configure, plan, and run campaigns independently.

The key challenges also included:

  • Maintaining and extending a platform originally built on ColdFusion, a legacy technology requiring specialized expertise.
  • Utilizing data analysis to improve customer engagement and decision-making.
  • Ensuring new functionality is integrated quickly and smoothly with existing analytics modules while maintaining platform stability.
03

Project Scope

While having an internal team and capacity, the client entrusted us to build a self-service portal to accelerate delivery, shorten time-to-market, and reduce costs.

Our work began with a Discovery Phase, which was essential for aligning business goals with technical capabilities and establishing a clear foundation for the project.

During this phase, we:

  • Clarified objectives and requirements – worked closely with stakeholders to define priorities, pain points, and success criteria.
  • Conducted Business Analysis (BA) sessions – translated business needs into detailed functional specifications, user stories, and workflows.
  • Performed a technical assessment with a solution architect – evaluated the ColdFusion-built modules, integration points, and dependencies to ensure smooth extension of functionality.
  • Built a project roadmap – established timelines, milestones, and delivery strategy, including proof of concept validation.

The outcome:

  1. a shared understanding across business and technical teams,
  2. a validated approach to modernizing the platform,
  3. a well-structured plan that guided development with minimal rework and maximum efficiency.

From there, the scope expanded to include:

  • Initial project setup and UX/UI design.
  • To-do list modules for manual and automated tasks.
  • Operational dashboard with tenancy and property views, advanced filters, and user management.
  • System integration for appointment reminders, surveys, and data upload.
  • System stabilization, bug fixing, and incremental improvements.
04

Solution we delivered

To support scalable engagement across a large customer base, we introduced a new module, improved usability, and integrated it seamlessly with existing tools.

Key features include:

End-to-End UX/UI Development

We delivered a refreshed, user-centered interface with intuitive navigation. Using React for the front end, we applied information hierarchy, modular design, and consistent visual patterns to improve clarity across dashboards.

Key workflows were streamlined through guided steps, progressive disclosure, and contextual cues, reducing users’ cognitive load. These updates reduce onboarding time for new landlords and improve day-to-day usability for existing teams.

Operational Dashboard with Advanced Filters

We built a central hub that consolidates all data into a single view. Advanced filters (e.g., arrears status, lifecycle stage, compliance requirements) enable quick insights and prioritization.

The dashboard also integrates to-do lists where both manual and automated tasks appear in one place, enabling efficient caseload management without switching between systems.

Task Management

We implemented a two-layered to-do list system:

  • Manual tasks – for follow-ups or inspections created by users.
  • Automated tasks – generated based on defined triggers, such as survey results or arrears thresholds.

This structure reduces the risk of missed actions and enables teams to adapt their workflows according to their specific needs.

Seamless Integrations

All tenant interaction data from campaigns is centralized in AWS for reliability and scalability. Engagement histories, call records, and survey outcomes are accessible in real time.

05

Client’s Results

The delivered solution has already shown measurable impact:

  • Reduced operational workload by automating repetitive engagement tasks, allowing the organization to allocate resources more efficiently.
  • Accelerated platform operations, allowing the business to manage higher volumes of customer interactions without expanding internal resources.
  • Enhanced customer engagement through proactive lifecycle-based communication.
  • Stronger compliance support by ensuring reminders and follow-ups are systematized.

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