Mission Housing
Project: Strategic Planning
About Mission Housing:
Since 1971, Mission Housing has advocated for, preserved, and expanded affordable housing in San Francisco’s Mission District. Mission Housing develops and preserves high-quality affordable housing, provides supportive services to low-income residents, and creates sustainable and equitable communities for all San Franciscans.
Why Mission Housing partnered with Lyons-Newman Consulting:
Sam Moss and Marcia Contreras, Mission Housing’s talented leadership duo successfully ushered the organization into a thriving new era. Eager to chart a course for sustained success and growth, they engaged us as a partner to create a strategic plan that would build on Mission Housing’s legacy and recent successes, engage the leadership of their executive team and board, and create a roadmap for the next five years.
The process:
We launched our work by thoughtfully assembling a diverse Strategic Planning Committee (SPC), representing staff from various departments and roles, as well as board representatives with different professional backgrounds and tenure with the organization. We led a meaningful initial workshop with the SPC where each participant shared their personal leadership story, which grounded each committee member in their purpose and passion for Mission Housing and deepened the group’s connections and bond for the work ahead.
The SPC designed a comprehensive research plan and collected insights from the entire board, staff, and community before embarking on an examination and validation of Mission Housing’s mission, vision, and values.
The research plan placed a spotlight on the voices of those with lived experiences, employing interviews and surveys with Mission Housing’s residents, board, staff, thought leaders, and community partners. Focus groups we facilitated with current Mission Housing residents surfaced invaluable insights. This research and listening process enriched the SPC’s understanding of Mission Housing’s current landscape and identified future opportunities.
The SPC and the Mission Housing staff and board then engaged in a series of intensive workshops and audits that reviewed pivotal milestones establishing a robust strategic framework to guide their growth and impact. Through rigorous review and collaboration, Mission Housing aligned on five clear priorities accompanied by corresponding goals and strategies to fulfill them. All five priorities are rooted in Mission Housing’s historical values and attuned to the contemporary realities of its operating environment.
The results:
Mission Housing’s five-year strategic plan sets the stage for its next phase of growth and impact. It provides clarity on its unique identity and commits the organization to priorities and goals that the board and staff are aligned on and driven to implement together. These priorities are to:
Organize and educate Mission Housing’s communityRecruit, develop, and retain talentInfluence local and state affordable housing policy and funding sourcesBolster Mission Housing’s real estate development competency, ownership competency, and financial health
Mission Housing is now poised to navigate the challenges ahead and unlock new opportunities for affordable housing development and preservation in the Mission District and beyond, touching and transforming the lives of thousands of low-income families every day.
What Mission Housing says:
“As stewards of Mission Housing’s legacy and champions of its future, we stand united in our mission to empower communities and shape futures. That is exactly what this five-year strategic plan aims to accomplish. We are thankful to Lyons Newman Consulting for helping our team throughout this important process. Their guidance helped us achieve this important milestone for our organization.” — Sam Moss, Executive Director, and Marcia Contreras, Deputy Executive Director