Head Start Homes expands affordable homeownership with Microsoft 365 Copilot

Australia is one of the most expensive places in the world to own a home, and the housing crisis there means many people can wait 10 years or more for social and affordable housing. Head Start Homes supports people who face economic, educational, and other barriers to homeownership. The nonprofit’s clients are First Nations Peoples, single moms, people with disabilities, migrants, and refugees. The Head Start Homes team works with clients for free and as long as needed to become ready for a mortgage, secure discounted home loan products through banking partners, and buy a home.  

“We’re providing more equal access to homeownership because it breaks cycles of disadvantage and disrupts intergenerational poverty,” explains Stephen Woodlands, Founder and Managing Director of Head Start Homes.

Client and new homeowner Charlene lived this transformation. A mother and proud Dunghutti woman who had experienced homelessness, Charlene worked closely with Head Start Homes to increase her savings by 500% and buy a house of her own. “Before I met Head Start Homes, I never thought in my wildest dreams this day would happen,” she says. “I’m so excited that my children will now have a forever home.”

This innovative nonprofit has been committed to technology-enabled solutions since its founding, so adopting Microsoft 365 Copilot was a natural next step. “When we saw Microsoft had a secure generative AI product, we got it as soon as we could,” Woodlands says. 

Head Start Homes worked with Microsoft partner ONGC Systems in nonprofit-specific roundtables and workshops. This reinforced Head Start Homes’ confidence that the AI assistant was the right generative AI tool for secure operations and maximum benefits. Copilot now helps Head Start Homes multiply their productivity, focus even more on clients, and expand to address the housing crisis. 

Doing more for clients

As a recently established nonprofit, Head Start Homes staff take on multiple roles. “We all wear a lot of hats,” says Jo Formosa, Chief of Empowerment Products, Services, and Projects at Head Start Homes. “Copilot is like having somebody working alongside you. We rely on it to help us deliver what we deliver.” 

The management team reports that Copilot has increased their productivity by 30% or more. They direct Copilot to take minutes and record action items from meetings, create graphics from de-identified data, craft job descriptions, and draft policies that help them serve clients. To generate more support and celebrate client successes, staff instruct Copilot to write first drafts of marketing materials for social media, newsletters, and more. “Copilot helps us get the word out about the good work we’re doing, quicker,” says Natasha Kahn, Chief of Communications, Fundraising and Company Secretary at Head Start Homes. 

Efficiencies gained with Copilot free up more time for getting clients into safe, affordable, and comfortable homes. This creates a ripple effect. When a Head Start Homes client moves into their new home, that can free up social or affordable housing so someone on a limited income can move in.

The nonprofit chose Copilot because, unlike other models, it operates within a closed environment and keeps their confidential information out of the public domain. It easily integrates into the organization’s Microsoft stack and security platform. Head Start Homes always reviews and polishes AI-generated content.

Copilot also helps Head Start Homes improve the client experience. It speeds response time to inquiries, makes it easier to search across platforms to answer questions, and opens up space to forge stronger relationships with clients. Staff also use its coaching function to draft emails faster. Woodlands says, “It’s important for the not-for-profit sector to use technology because it enables you to spend more time with your clients, creating greater impact for communities.”

Growing the homeownership pipeline 

With Australia’s ongoing housing crisis, “we have big waitlists and unlimited demand for our services,” Woodlands explains. Head Start Homes is rapidly expanding to meet this need. It has doubled its team in the last year to help even more clients. Copilot is facilitating this swift growth.

Kahn calls Copilot a “mini HR” that helps find the right fit for open roles and speeds the hiring process. Head Start Homes uses Copilot to draft job descriptions and compare resumes to unfilled positions’ responsibilities. Kahn turned to the AI assistant during her own recent onboarding, asking Copilot questions to draw on organizational knowledge saved in Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, SharePoint, and elsewhere. 

With the benefits and cost savings of Copilot, Head Start Homes can hire high-impact, client-facing positions. The organization just brought on two new financial capability workers, who are essential in helping clients to enhance their financial capability and afford a home. “We wouldn’t have been able to hire them so efficiently without Copilot,” Woodlands says.

The AI assistant facilitates collaboration and accountability for the virtual team, too. While Copilot takes notes, summarizes meetings, and records to-dos, staff concentrate on problem-solving together. They add AI-generated meeting notes to the agenda of follow-up conversations so everyone always knows their deliverables. “Copilot keeps us on the same page in real time,” Formosa says. 

Head Start Homes is making the most of technology to pursue its ambitious vision of an Australia where everyone has a safe and stable home. “With Copilot, I’m not bogged down by the little things that are important but can get in the way of the bigger picture,” Formosa says. “It allows me the freedom to focus on the more strategic work we need to do.”

That crucial work includes generating growth, which includes securing funding to scale up their services and innovate new products. The team uses the time saved through Copilot to write grant applications, and the AI assistant drafts parts of the applications to give development staff a head start. “Without Copilot, we would submit fewer big applications a year, which would greatly reduce the money flowing into our organization,” Woodlands says. 

Finally, Head Start Homes invests even more in supporter relationships with the help of generative AI. Staff use Copilot to help draft reports for funders and industry partners, based on templates of past reports. For example, Copilot draws information from internal documents to help provide reporting as required by their funding agreements. In-depth communication maintains funding and may even increase future support, leading to more people opening the door to their forever homes. 

Woodlands says, “Everything we do is about empowering our clients, so when we save time with Copilot, it means we have more time to help our clients achieve their homeownership dreams.”

Find out more about Head Start Homes on LinkedIn, X, Facebook, and Instagram.