FUSE Executive Fellow | Streamlining ...
About The Fuse Executive Fellowship
FUSE is a national nonprofit dedicated to increasing the capacity of local governments to work more effectively for communities. We embed private sector executives in city and county agencies to lead projects that improve public services and accelerate systems change. Since 2012, FUSE has led over 400 projects in 58 governments across 26 states, impacting a total population equivalent to 1 in 10 Americans.
When designing each fellowship project, FUSE works closely with government partners and community stakeholders to define a scope of work that will achieve substantive progress toward high-priority local needs. Projects address today's most pressing challenges and opportunities, including affordable housing, economic mobility, climate resilience, public safety, infrastructure, technology, and more.
FUSE conducts a full executive search for each individual project to ensure that the selected candidate has at least 15 years of professional experience, the required competencies for the role, and deep connections to the community being served. Executive Fellows are embedded in government agencies working with senior leaders for at least one year of full-time work. Prospective responsibilities may include thorough data analytics and research, developing enhanced operations and financial models, building change management and strategic planning processes, and/or building broad coalitions to support project implementation efforts. Executive Fellows are data-driven and results-oriented and able to effectively manage complex projects. They build strong relationships with a broad array of stakeholders, foster alignment within and across various layers of government, and build partnerships between governments and communities. Throughout the fellowships, Executive Fellows receive training, coaching, and professional support to help achieve their project goals.
Project Background
Strategic coordination of affordable housing systems is critical to ensure that public investments translate into timely housing access, transparent processes, and stable communities. When cities align application requirements, eligibility criteria, and leasing practices across housing providers, they can reduce administrative complexity, accelerate housing placements, and provide residents with a clearer and more predictable path to securing affordable homes. Consistent processes also help ensure that housing opportunities are accessible to a broad range of residents, including households that have historically faced barriers to housing access due to disparities in credit history, prior housing instability, or uneven access to information about eligibility requirements.
Without coordinated systems and shared standards, variations in leasing practices can create confusion for applicants, slow the placement of residents into available units, and limit the effectiveness of public investments intended to expand housing access. This includes the need for improved coordination and alignment with the San Francisco Housing Authority (SFHA) waitlist protocols and preferences to ensure that City-supported affordable housing processes interface more seamlessly with federally regulated waitlist systems.
San Francisco has made significant progress in modernizing how residents discover and apply for affordable housing opportunities. Over the past decade, the Mayor's Office of Housing and Community Development (MOHCD) has implemented a centralized online platform that allows residents to view available affordable housing and apply through a single application and lottery system. This platform has created a consistent entry point for applicants and increased transparency in how housing opportunities are advertised and awarded.
At the same time, the processes that follow the lottery stage remain distributed across nonprofit housing developers and property managers who lease units in city-supported developments. These organizations often operate under different interpretations of eligibility criteria, documentation requirements, and compliance procedures tied to various funding sources. As a result, lease-up timelines can vary widely, applicants may encounter different requirements across projects, and housing providers must dedicate significant resources to navigating complex and sometimes duplicative processes.
Recent federal guidance encouraging jurisdictions to align eligibility criteria across affordable housing programs further underscores the opportunity for local collaboration and shared standards. Additionally, the coexistence of MOHCD-managed application processes with SFHA-administered waitlists—each with its own preferences, verification processes, and federally governed eligibility rules—creates further complexity for applicants navigating both systems. Better alignment with SFHA procedures represents a key opportunity to simplify applicant experiences and reduce delays in housing placements.
San Francisco will partner with FUSE through an Executive Fellowship to align affordable housing lease-up processes across city-supported developments and strengthen the systems that connect residents to available homes. During the fellowship, the FUSE Executive Fellow will conduct a landscape analysis and listening tour with nonprofit housing developers, property managers, and city partners to map current leasing practices, analyze regulatory requirements, and identify opportunities to standardize resident selection criteria and application processes. The first year of the fellowship will focus on research, stakeholder alignment, and the development of shared protocols and implementation recommendations. The second year (if desired) will support pilot implementation, integration with the city's housing application platform, and the establishment of tools that help housing providers adopt consistent leasing practices. Ultimately, this partnership will help San Francisco accelerate the placement of residents into affordable housing while creating a clearer, more predictable experience for households navigating the city's housing opportunities.
Project Approach
Beginning in Fall 2026, the FUSE Executive Fellow will work with the San Francisco Mayor's Office of Housing and Community Development (MOHCD) to advance a more consistent and efficient system for leasing affordable housing across city-supported developments. Through this fellowship, the fellow will help San Francisco translate its centralized housing application platform into a more coordinated leasing system that reduces administrative complexity, accelerates housing placements, and creates a clearer and more predictable process for residents seeking affordable housing. The fellow's work will focus on strengthening cross-organizational alignment, clarifying regulatory requirements, and building practical tools and systems that support standardized leasing practices among nonprofit housing providers. As part of this work, the fellow will specifically examine how MOHCD leasing processes intersect with SFHA waitlist protocols and preferences, and will develop strategies to improve coordination across these systems.
The fellow will begin with a 90-day period of in-depth discovery and assessment. During this phase, the fellow will conduct a comprehensive listening tour with key stakeholders, including MOHCD leadership and staff, nonprofit housing developers, property managers, leasing consultants, the City's Digital Services team responsible for the DAHLIA housing platform, and other partners involved in affordable housing leasing and compliance. This process will surface insights into current lease-up practices, regulatory interpretations, operational challenges, and opportunities for process alignment across housing providers.
The fellow will conduct a landscape analysis reviewing relevant federal, state, and local regulations, including tax credit program requirements, HUD guidance, and local housing policies that shape eligibility criteria and compliance procedures. This discovery phase will also include focused engagement with the San Francisco Housing Authority to understand its waitlist management processes, preference structures (such as veteran status, displacement, and RAD-related priorities), documentation requirements, and verification procedures. The fellow will assess where misalignment between MOHCD and SFHA processes may contribute to applicant confusion or delays. The fellow will also assess how different housing providers currently manage documentation review, eligibility verification, and waitlist processes, while researching best practices from other jurisdictions that have successfully standardized affordable housing leasing protocols or integrated digital housing access systems.
Drawing on insights from the discovery phase, the fellow will develop refined project goals, priorities, and anticipated deliverables and present them for review and approval by MOHCD leadership. This step will ensure that the fellowship's direction reflects local conditions, aligns with departmental priorities, and establishes a clear and shared foundation for implementation.
The fellow will then focus on advancing strategies that translate analysis into coordinated action. This will include facilitating collaboration among nonprofit housing developers and leasing partners to identify opportunities for standardizing resident selection criteria, documentation requirements, and leasing workflows that remain compliant with applicable funding programs and fair housing protections. The fellow will synthesize regulatory guidance to clarify which eligibility rules are required across funding sources and where greater consistency can be achieved. In partnership with the City's Digital Services team, the fellow will also assess opportunities to integrate aligned leasing protocols into the DAHLIA housing platform, including improvements to applicant communication, waitlist management, and process automation. Throughout the year, the fellow will support structured engagement with housing providers and city partners.
Pay
The selected candidate will be hired as a FUSE Executive Fellow and will receive an annual salary of $95,000 from FUSE. The fellow will also have the opportunity to enroll in the Coro San Francisco Executive Fellows Experience, which provides additional networking, training, and leadership development designed to strengthen project impact. Fellows who choose to participate in the Coro experience will receive a separate annual stipend of $70,000 from Coro. Participation in the Coro experience is optional. If participating, the combined annual compensation would total $165,000 before taxes.
Schedule
This is a two-year fellowship with the following dates: October 26, 2026 – October 20, 2028. Year One is focused on discovery, strategy development, and initial implementation; Year Two is focused on scaling solutions and embedding sustainable leasing practices within City operations.