In March, I had the pleasure of attending one of my favourite conferences – Housing Technology. A notable development over the past three years has been the addition of workshop sessions, and this year, I was delighted to lead one with my colleague Sonia. When session proposals were requested, discussing AI felt timely, especially focusing on how we use it to facilitate project delivery instead of introducing new AI tools. Apparently, my topic resonated with many, as our session was oversubscribed and a queue of people outside hoping someone wouldn’t turn up to allow an extra space.
The great thing about these sessions as they are a time to talk and discuss rather than being just a presentation.
Our discussion centred on two primary questions:
The first question addressed how artificial intelligence can assist teams in delivering projects effectively. Given that resources are often limited, project scope can increase, and requirements may evolve, efficient project delivery becomes increasingly challenging. The feedback and suggestions received encompassed a range of topics, including the use of AI for meeting summaries, action plans, and automating chapter markers in videos; support in drafting user stories and test scripts; creative assistance for images and presentations; compiling project reports and retro summaries.
Question two was focused on how AI could support the role out of training and deployment of projects. Some of our own ideas included our copilot agent to support training, training video and documents creation.
The focus was fully around things that can be done with standard tools available such as Microsoft Copilot. It was great to hear other perspectives and gain some additional ideas to look at using in future.
The effectiveness of AI ultimately depends on the quality of data and the proficiency of its users. It was a valuable opportunity to exchange perspectives, and many participants reported gaining insights they intend to apply within their respective organisations. These contributions will help accelerate the development of essential services – leading to improved housing and support for those in greatest need – a fundamental goal in our service plans.
All ideas and themes are not unique to social housing so let’s get talking – What corporate AI tools support your project delivery? What has made the biggest impact?
If you are interested in reading more about our use of copilot agents, which was highly commended in this year Housing Technology awards, you can find out more in the March edition of the Housing Technology magazine. Housing Technology Magazine Page