Best it innovation

Winner

Prospective customers are being kept better informed, thanks to a series of innovations from Miller. The housebuilder has introduced personalised emails and SMS text messages to let prospective buyers know about upcoming sites. Once buyers are signed up, the company again uses web technology and SMS text messaging to let buyers know about the progress of their purchase. The measures were introduced following research into the homebuyer experience that identified buyers’ need for better information and reassurance throughout the process. The judges loved the approach: “It is really, really clever and makes good use of up-to-date technology. ”

Finalists

Gleeson Homes

Gleeson has changed its operational business with the appointment of a dedicated business systems director, a webmaster and an IT services engineer and administrator. There has been a heavy investment in new systems, including Sitestream, the SUN finance package and Eyes & Hands invoice scanning, and upgraded communications links between offices.

Keynote Housing Group

Registered social landlord Keynote is developing sophisticated IT systems for housing asset management. Touchstone, a founding member of the Keynote group, has worked with Coventry University on the initiative. The group is now better informed on such key factors as popularity of properties, quality of properties and yield, and the feedback is influencing its development plans. “It is good to see businesses using research and IT to determine things about their product to see how it should be in the future,” said the judges.

Robertson Homes

Like Gleeson, Robertson Homes has adopted Sitestream software, in this case allying it with the Dema financial package. The company needed the systems because its business was growing, but has found it has benefited in efficiency and customer service too.

Swan Housing Group

Project-specific extranets are helping to keep residents informed of registered social landlord Swan Housing Group’s regeneration activities. As many of Swan’s tenants do not have access to the internet, Swan provides free set-top boxes that allow up to five email accounts, and full internet access via their television set. It was an initiative that won the judges’ praise: “We were very impressed by the introduction of new communications technology within the affordable sector.”

Willmott Dixon

Willmott Dixon’s web-based knowledge bank gives details of all the company’s innovation activities in affordable housebuilding. Called Matrix, the knowledge bank is accessible to the company’s own staff and some information is shared with customers and project teams. Matrix has received 1700 hits a month this year.