Turtle Mountain Housing Authority gains self-sufficiency, speed, and transparency

Situation
The Turtle Mountain Housing Authority (TMHA) currently manages 759 rental units and 380 homeowner units, operating under a $6.4 million government block grant for maintenance and overhead from NAHASDA (the Native American Housing and Self-Determination Act of 1996). The 100 housing authority employees--30 of who use the accounting system--work in four locations: Belcourt, St. John, Dunseith, and Shell Valley, N.D.

In December 2005, when Toni Parisien became finance director, TMHA was considering software companies who could help them upgrade their system. TMHA was paying monthly consulting fees to fee accountants. Parisien's staff had access to check registers and banking information but nothing was integrated, and the staff hadn't been trained on the software. "We received monthly reports two months late, so it was hard to make decisions," she says.

Parisien, who teaches accounting and software at the university level, wanted a program that would make TMHA self-sufficient and create cost savings for housing. The TMHA board of directors supported the upgrade.

Solution
Five firms were considered--several from out of state--and DFC Consultant was chosen for a number of reasons. DFC had a reputation for accessibility and quick responsiveness. They had 18 years of experience with Indian housing accounting and government accounting, and had written a tenant accounting package specifically for Indian housing authorities. With DFC, TMHA got everything--experience, top-notch accounting software, a tenant accounting package, a work order, inventory and bar-coding system, and numerous other functions--all tied together into one system. And even though--in preparation for the project--TMHA staff attended classes at the local community college to brush up on their computer skills, Parisien still appreciated the user-friendliness of Microsoft Dynamics GP ®.

"With another vendor, we might have worried about integration and training in all the software, and I believe the cost would have been higher," she says.

 Implementation began in June 2006 and TMHA hired an IT director in July. The new software was loaded on the server in July and August, and employees have been using and receiving regular training on the system since then.

"I'm very comfortable with how it's going," says Parisien. "We still have issues, but no one completes a huge change like this without issues. Training at TMHA will remain a constant. The DFC staff helps us nip problems in the bud. And DFC really understands key concepts such as program and non-program income and the government requirements and regulations we have to follow."

Benefits
Organizational self-sufficiency
"We needed to own our system," says Parisien. The trend is toward self-sufficiency in Tribally Designated Housing Authorities, and THMA supports that trend.

Employee accountability
"With the new system, our employees have easy access to the data. They're learning to 'own' their work and be responsible for what they input. That will make our product so much better," Parisien says.

More transparent, accessible data
A requirement of the $6.4-million NAHASDA block grant is that Indian housing authorities be able to accurately account for expenditures so they can extend the useful life of each unit. DFC's software helps TMHA do that with its 1,139 rental and homeowner units. "Now I can check expenditures by labor, by materials, by work order--even by each individual worker," says Parisien.

Increased speed and efficiency
Automated features such as work orders, inventory, and bar-coding eliminate many delays and help prevent human error. Parisien says, "Employees have access to the modules they need and can view the information on the screen instead of using the phone and fax. We're faster and more efficient now. You're only as good as your data, and the timing of the data input is critical."

Cost savings
"In the beginning, major system upgrades like ours are costly because you have the purchase and then the training," Parisien says. "We're implementing right now, and we'll see cost savings when more of the learning curve is behind us. The savings in a year or two will be great, and over time they'll get even better.” Already, TMHA has eliminated fee accountant costs and is working on being self-sufficient. "The whole staff has stepped up to the plate to make this happen," Parisien says. In the future, she plans to add software to automate monthly payments from the 759 rental units, which will enhance cash flow by guaranteeing receipt of rent payments on schedule.

Exceptional Service and Trust-Our Foundation
At DFC Consultants we have perfected the practice of providing exceptional technical support by software experts who are personally familiar with your business applications.  Our clients rest easy knowing that someone who is an expert and understands their business is just a phone call away.  Call DFC Consultants 800-277-5561 to learn how you can benefit from our expertise.

At every stage of our working relationship, you’ll know you can trust us to continue to provide solutions tailored to your exacting requirements.  You’ll never again worry about outdated applications and software conflicts.  We’ll provide programming for custom applications to meet your unique needs, software add-ons, seamless upgrades, and robust enhancements, all to keep you operating smoothly.