Designing High-Trust Comms for Cross-Branch Federal Impact

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Region 9 leadership needed a way to reconnect staff with the human cost of housing discrimination. I was invited to lead a storytelling engagement that would re-anchor their mission in lived experience while aligning with operational goals.

The Challenge

Stakeholder Identification & Relationship Building

I leveraged my existing journalism credibility and lived experience reporting on housing issues to build trust with HUD leadership. The partnership began when Nathanael Hill, Program Compliance Branch Chief, reached out after following my housing and homelessness reporting.

Audience Strategy & Content Development

I researched HUD's current enforcement cases and analyzed their three-branch structure to understand each team's specific challenges. This allowed me to tailor content that would resonate across different functions while maintaining consistent messaging.

Key Insight

Government partnerships work best when storytelling meets structure — delivering emotional resonance while respecting operational realities and policy boundaries.

My Approach

🎯 Key Strategic Decisions

Partnership Framework Development

  • Expanded from FHEO staff to all HUD Region 9 employees (covering Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, and Pacific Territories)

  • Structured the session to include both storytelling and actionable policy insights

Message Architecture

  • Core Message: Human stories behind civil rights enforcement

  • Supporting Themes:

    • Ethical journalism approaches to housing reporting

    • Reducing intake funnel through systems awareness

    • Connecting enforcement work to community impact

  • Proof Points: Real stories from unhoused individuals showing policy gaps

Cross-Functional Collaboration

 I worked directly with multiple HUD departments to ensure content alignment:

  • Program Compliance Branch (policy implementation)

  • Intake Branch (community impact)

  • Enforcement Branch (investigation outcomes)

Implementation & Execution

Timeline Management

The partnership developed over 4 months:

  • January 2024: Initial outreach and relationship building

  • February-March 2024: Strategic planning and content development

  • April 2024: Presentation delivery during Fair Housing Month

Stakeholder Engagement

I coordinated with HUD leadership to:

  • Review recent enforcement cases and compliance issues

  • Understand current challenges in each branch

  • Develop Q&A format that would encourage staff engagement

  • Ensure content complemented follow-up presentation by HUD specialist

📈 Results & Impact

Immediate Outcomes

  • Successfully delivered presentation to HUD staff across 4 states and Pacific territories

  • Generated significant engagement and positive feedback from attendees

  • Established ongoing relationship with HUD Region 9 leadership

Strategic Value

  • For HUD: Provided human-centered perspective that reconnected staff with mission impact

  • For My Organization: Positioned HEATDRAWN Media as thought leader in housing policy

  • For Communities: Created direct channel between community experience and federal enforcement

Stakeholder Feedback Nathanael Hill reported: "I am already hearing from a lot of people how moved and how valuable they found it."

🤝 Partnership Development

Building government partnerships requires understanding bureaucratic processes while maintaining authentic mission alignment. The relationship succeeded because both parties saw genuine value exchange rather than simple service provision.

Audience Strategy

Federal employees respond to content that helps them understand the real-world impact of their work. By focusing on reducing intake complaints through systems awareness, I connected my storytelling to their operational objectives.

Cross-Functional Impact

Effective government engagement requires understanding how different departments interact. My content addressed challenges across Intake, Enforcement, and Program Compliance branches simultaneously.

Key Learnings

Related Government Relations & Stakeholder Engagement

  • Strategic Policy Communications

    Multi-initiative strategy to position a think tank as a UK AI policy leader through scalable community engagement and executive alignment.

    👉 Learn More

  • Speaking Engagements Portfolio

    Keynotes, panel moderation, and expert commentary across government, philanthropy, and policy sectors — emphasizing trust-building and systems thinking.

    👉 Explore

Previous

Strategic Policy Communication
Next

Cause-Driven Content Strategy