Reopening the front door to Coordinated Entry
How one of the nation’s largest Continuums of Care is using Fortell to expand access without building a 24-person call center.
“Fortell is one of the few vendors we’ve worked with where the product matches the promise.”
Jordan Hassenflu
Director of System Access and Navigation
Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County
One of the nation’s largest Continuums of Care
The Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County is the lead agency for the TX-700 Continuum of Care—one of the largest CoCs in the United States.
The CoC forms part of The Way Home, the region’s coordinated homelessness response system. Its Coordinated Entry process is the front door through which people experiencing homelessness are assessed, screened and connected with appropriate support.
Making that front door genuinely accessible was becoming increasingly difficult.
Demand had overwhelmed the phone-based intake model
The Coalition initially attempted to expand access by hiring full-time operators to answer incoming calls. The volume quickly became unmanageable.
The organization calculated that it would need approximately 20 operators and four managers simply to handle call demand during normal business hours—a staffing model it did not have the resources to sustain.
Much of that demand involved collecting the same basic information repeatedly. Operators became so overwhelmed by routine intake that little time remained for intentional conversations, problem-solving or helping people navigate the system.
“Our operators felt that they weren’t actually able to help anyone because they were so overwhelmed trying to collect basic information.”
The pressure affected both staff morale and the experience of people seeking help. Eventually, the Coalition had to dissolve its phone intake process entirely.
How do you restore phone access without recreating the same bottleneck?
The Coalition needed a solution capable of handling high volumes of concurrent calls, collecting consistent intake and screening information, expanding access beyond conventional staffing capacity, reducing repetitive administrative work and preserving staff time for complex human conversations.
The goal was not simply to automate phone calls. It was to reopen an accessible pathway into Coordinated Entry without placing an unsustainable burden on staff.
A scalable front door designed around CFTH’s vision
The Coalition partnered with Fortell to create a conversational AI solution for its Coordinated Entry intake and screening process.
Fortell worked alongside the CFTH team to understand the organization’s workflows, translate its vision into a practical solution and prepare the service for an initial pilot.
For the Coalition, the implementation burden remained low.
“We gave them a vision, and they delivered a solution.”
The new model is designed to absorb repetitive information collection while allowing trained staff to concentrate on situations requiring judgment, problem-solving and meaningful human interaction.
The product matched the promise
CFTH approached the partnership cautiously. Like many organizations, its team had previously encountered technology products that promised more than they ultimately delivered.
The experience with Fortell was different.
“I’m continually impressed with Fortell’s professionalism, efficiency, adaptability and technical expertise.”
Before the first pilot had even launched, the Coalition had already expanded its contract with Fortell through the following year—demonstrating confidence in both the technology and the team delivering it.
Capacity no longer has to depend on call-center headcount
The Fortell model gives CFTH a way to restore and expand access without hiring the 20 operators and four managers previously estimated to manage business-hours demand.
The pilot represents the beginning of a broader opportunity: using technology to make homelessness response systems easier to access while protecting the human expertise at their center.
Technology should create more human time
“What excites me most is the potential for technology like Fortell’s to improve accessibility, reduce administrative burden and help staff focus more of their time on meaningful interactions with people seeking help.”
For CFTH, the value of conversational AI is not simply that it can handle calls. It is that it can remove the repetitive work preventing staff from helping people effectively.
By combining scalable access with human oversight, CFTH is building a front door capable of meeting demand without losing the thoughtful, mission-driven support people need.
“They’re mission-driven, thoughtful and genuinely committed to solving human-service challenges alongside the organizations they serve.”
Could your Coordinated Entry system absorb more demand?
See how Fortell can expand access, reduce administrative burden and give staff more time for meaningful work.
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