City leaders recently rolled out a mobile application called DROPS, which stands for Direct Resource Outreach and Placement Service. It’s aimed at tracking and supporting people who are unsheltered, to deliver assistance exactly when and where it is most needed.
Developed through a partnership between the city of Reno, ServiceNow, and NewRocket, the mobile app equips outreach workers with a comprehensive suite of tools for data collection and analysis. One central DROPS feature lets workers input demographic data to deliver personalized services and accurately assess their impact, while also providing a digital snapshot of previous interactions with those same individuals — a consolidated case file.
The DROPS case management feature serves as a connector for workers and third-party services to provide a faster path to resources; it offers a catalog of common actions and integrations to facilitate delivering the right services just in time; and it lets users create shared task lists. ServiceNow’s AI capabilities also help categorize data insights to uncover trends, measure the program’s overall impact, and identify where additional support and funding may be needed.
“DROPS is a game-changer for our city,” Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve said in a statement. “By empowering our outreach team with this innovative technology, we can make more informed decisions directly with the community we’re serving and ensure resources are provided when needed most.”
The partnership will create “a comprehensive ecosystem” linking vital resources and services to those in need, Dan Santangelo, ServiceNow field chief information officer and senior principal strategist, said in a statement.
This week, NewRocket debuted an introductory video highlighting the app’s features and its ability to eliminate disconnections in service delivery.
The companies and the city will continue to collaborate on future iterations of the app, including offering integrations with more third-party services — and a version of the mobile app specifically for use by people who are homeless.
