Legacy finance platforms, data migration, integration and AI were under scrutiny at Housing Digital’s latest microconference
Housing associations are under growing pressure to get finance, housing management and other core systems working together, as Housing Digital‘s latest microconference heard.
Legacy platforms, data silos and the hidden cost of standing still ran through the online event, whch featured industry experts discussing the topic with an engaged audience of housing professionals. Suppliers and a housing provider discussed how modernising finance fits into the wider housing technology landscape.
One question kept returning: how can an organisation move off an ageing system without losing its financial history or adding risk?
Joining up your Core Housing Systems, sponsored by Xledger UK, covered lessons from finance system implementations, considerations when moving away from large incumbent providers, and ways of integrating core systems and improving the flow of data.
The aim was to look at how better-connected systems can reduce manual processes and data silos, and give teams more timely information for decision-making.
The speakers were David Tillen, senior business development manager for UK housing and not-for-profit at Xledger; Ian Evans, head of consulting at Infuse Data Solutions; Alan Swift, head of integration at Infoshare Plus (formerly Manifest); and Sean Lawless, director of customer experience and transformation at North Star Housing.
Watch David Tillen’s presentation
Tillen opened by setting out the challenges housing associations face with legacy systems. These include data silos, high costs and difficulty adapting to changing regulations.
He argued that a best-of-breed approach is now viable because of cloud-native APIs. Organisations, he said, should choose the right system for each job and make sure those systems can integrate, rather than relying solely on all-in-one products.
In the Q&A, he said that running a cloud finance system alongside a legacy one is possible but requires significant extra effort, and is rarely done because of the duplicated work. He stressed that finance teams must be heavily involved in implementation rather than leaving it to IT, with dedicated time set aside even during busy periods such as year-end and audits. Security, open APIs and deciding which systems to tackle first were also discussed.
Watch Ian Evans’ presentation
Evans focused on the risks of migrating financial systems. He described a two-stream approach that separates migration data preparation from historic archive and reporting, using a move from Open Accounts to Xledger as an example.
Data is extracted from the legacy system, mapped to templates and transformed for the new platform. Historic data is stored in Power BI or Fabric, where it can still be queried. This reduces dependency on the legacy system and the complexity of audits, he explained.
Asked about retention, Evans said customers can either keep the underlying legacy data or remove it and retain it only in the Power BI dataset. He also urged organisations to design a future-proof chart of accounts to support business reporting. Tillen noted that many still work with outdated, compliance-based account structures.
Watch Alan Swift’s presentation
Swift set out to demystify integration. He said it delivers efficiency by automating processes and moving data directly between systems, and that organisations should focus on business needs rather than technical detail.
He recommended an integration layer over point-to-point interfaces for greater flexibility. Organisations, he said, should aim to build and maintain these capabilities in-house, supported by integration specialists.
Swift identified supplier restrictions on API access as a barrier, and advised checking that contracts allow the integrations an organisation needs. On audit trails for regulators, he recommended comprehensive data logging. He also pointed to AI tools that can flag duplicate repairs, and to AI’s potential in automating resident communications and routing repairs.
Watch Sean Lawless’s presentation
Lawless drew on North Star Housing’s implementation of Microsoft Dynamics, following a move from Capital Open Housing that he described as positive. The organisation takes a Microsoft-first approach where appropriate, while keeping the flexibility to choose other tools where they fit better.
His advice was to consider data and reporting requirements from the start, ensure open APIs, and distinguish true software-as-a-service from managed services. He also urged organisations to choose a partner rather than simply a supplier.
North Star assessed cultural fit through instinct, references and practical working relationships rather than tangible metrics, he said.
On change management, he said projects should be organisation-wide rather than owned by one team, with strong leadership buy-in and training balanced before and after go-live. He cited a compliance module launch as an example.
In the wider discussion regarding AI, speakers stressed the need for human oversight, particularly where residents may be vulnerable.
Swift said AI should create CRM cases and route them to appropriate staff. Lawless said North Star ensures vulnerable customers do not interact with AI agents and are directed to colleagues instead. Swift recommended Microsoft Azure OpenAI processing in UK data centres to address data security concerns.
The panel also considered how AI affects workload. Routine tasks can be automated, they said, but this creates new challenges for staff handling the more complex cases that remain. Data quality was identified as a prerequisite.
Taking note
Across the four keynotes, the message was consistent: technology is rarely the main obstacle to joining up core systems.
Success, the speakers suggested, depends on involving finance teams as well as IT, and resourcing them properly through busy periods such as year-end and audits. Separating current data migration from historic archiving can cut both risk and audit complexity, while settling the chart of accounts and reporting requirements early avoids problems later.
Open APIs and contracts that permit integration were seen as essential, as was treating change as an organisation-wide project with leadership backing. On AI, the panel was clear that human oversight must remain in place, particularly for vulnerable residents, and that the quality of the underlying data comes first.
For housing associations weighing up their next system move, the lesson was to plan the connections before choosing the components.
Find out more about Housing Digital’s programme of microconferences
Image credit: thanmano/shutterstock
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