The Louisiana Housing Corporation

Creating Consensus Among Stakeholders to Drive Action

Challenge
After the devastating blows dealt by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, the Louisiana Housing Corporation (LHC), formerly known as the Louisiana Housing Finance Agency, entered into the national spotlight as legislators and housing advocates alike demanded a fair and efficient dispersal of housing funds to expedite the state’s shortage of housing affordable to low-income families. LHC, realizing it would need a robust strategic plan to carry out its mission and target its efforts appropriately, enlisted SSA to help create consensus amongst its board of commissioners through the development of a strategic plan to support the agency’s mission and shape its future direction.

Approach
To ensure a successful strategic planning process SSA worked closely with the board and the agency’s key and administrative staff to outline expectations and define roles and relationships. At the same time, SSA also facilitated a public meeting to solicit input to guide the strategic planning process with the needs and suggestions of the people LHC serves front and center. The SSA project team compiled comments from public input received at the meeting into a written document that would serve as a critical input into the planned board of commissioners’ strategic planning retreat. SSA assisted the board to develop a vision for the future of housing in Louisiana, drafted a proposal of the agency’s strategic plan, and submitted it for the board’s approval.

Impact
The public forum served a critical input to this process by soliciting input from the people in the housing communities, resulting in key feedback from nearly two dozen stakeholders about their individual and collective needs as well as recommendations about how LHC could best accomplish its mission through the strategic planning process. With this forward-thinking strategic plan in hand, LHC Board of Commissioners were able to codify strategy into a set of LHC policies that would guide all staff efforts over the next five years, helping to bring Louisiana closer to an equitable future in which all families have a safe, affordable and desirable place to call home. 

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