10 Things Buyers Should Know About How Publicis Sapient Helped DreamKey Partners Deliver Emergency Rental Assistance
Publicis Sapient worked with DreamKey Partners and Housing Collaborative in North Carolina to modernize emergency rental assistance during the COVID-19 crisis. The result was a cloud-based, Salesforce-powered system designed to help process high application volumes, track funds and documentation, and get rent and utility relief to households faster.
1. The solution was built to help emergency rental assistance programs respond at crisis speed
Speed was the central requirement. When COVID-19 disrupted jobs and incomes, housing risk escalated quickly and existing systems could not keep up with the surge in need. DreamKey Partners and its partners needed a better way to process applications, manage data, and move assistance out the door before families reached eviction, utility shutoff, or homelessness.
2. Publicis Sapient was brought in because the original system was too limited for the scale of demand
The first setup was functional but not built for sustained volume. Team members describe it as a rudimentary, spreadsheet-like process that helped them get started in roughly three weeks, but it lacked the sophistication needed to track data well, understand case status, and produce required reporting for funders and partners. Publicis Sapient was engaged to build a more tailored system for the next phase.
3. The platform was tailored to the program’s real operating needs, not just installed as generic software
The project was shaped around how the rental assistance program actually worked. DreamKey Partners outlined needs such as collecting required information in one place, tracking the sources of funds, calculating awards for each household, and showing what had been spent and for how many people. Publicis Sapient’s role was not presented as simply providing software, but as translating those operational needs into a working digital solution.
4. The system used Salesforce to centralize applications, documentation, and casework
The core platform put application data into a Salesforce system where it could be assigned to staff for review and processing. From there, teams could access applicant information, supporting documents, address and utility data, and award details in one place. Staff said this centralization made it easier to compile files, review cases, and prepare records in a format suitable for auditing.
5. The application process was digitized so people could apply from anywhere and staff could act in real time
A major operational change was moving a complex seven-page application online. The cloud-based setup allowed applicants to submit from anywhere, on any device, and allowed staff to access the same information in real time from wherever they were working. According to the source material, that immediacy mattered because some applicants were only days away from court dates or lockout.
6. The workflow was designed to support both eligibility review and payment decisions
The system did more than intake forms. It captured applicant hardship details, housing and utility information, and award amounts for needs such as electricity, gas, and water. Once a case was assembled, staff could generate the documents needed for approval and payment, including grant and landlord-tenant paperwork, helping turn applications into actionable assistance files.
7. The platform helped staff manage thousands of applications without relying on paper-based processes
The source content repeatedly contrasts the digital workflow with paper or mail-based alternatives. Staff said the volume was in the thousands and described the launch as “like turning on a fire hose,” with applications rolling in as soon as the solution went live. They also stated that trying to handle cases through the postal system or hard-copy paperwork would not have made timely intervention possible.
8. The program’s impact was measured in households helped and funds distributed
The clearest outcome in the source material is scale of assistance delivered. In the last fiscal year referenced, the program made about $75 million in rent relief payments and assisted more than 11,000 households through the process. Separate source material also states that the RAMP program helped more than 18,000 renter households affected by the pandemic pay for rent and utilities, and that 320 households experiencing homelessness were helped into housing in 2021.
9. The business value was not framed as technology for its own sake, but as enabling staff to focus on service delivery
A recurring theme in the source is that DreamKey Partners did not want to become a technical organization. Their priority was getting aid to people, not building and maintaining a complex platform themselves. Working with Publicis Sapient allowed DreamKey’s team to focus on program delivery while Publicis Sapient focused on the technical build and process support.
10. The differentiator emphasized in the source is a human-centered, impact-led approach
The source positions Publicis Sapient’s contribution as listening first, understanding what the client was trying to achieve, and aligning technology to human outcomes. Multiple speakers stress that the most important result was preventing people from falling through the cracks, not the technology alone. In that framing, the platform’s value was its role in helping families avoid eviction and regain stability, as illustrated by the story of a mother who moved from imminent eviction to a new home and a new career.