3 field-tested, no-fail steps to boost profitability

John Sarris
John Sarris
Head of Sales
Estimated reading time : 3 Minutes

Share this post

The status quo isn’t working for mortgage companies.

Over the last year, we’ve talked with hundreds of clients, thousands of consumers, and too many fintechs to count. And what we learned is that, below the surface, there are turbulent forces that will either reshape today’s leaders or create opportunities for new, more nimble players to emerge in their place.

The good news is we see light at the end of the downturn. ‘But the decisions mortgage providers make now will determine their future.’

There is zero doubt that the pandemic has changed mortgage forever. Interest rates exploded. Demand plummeted. Costs have gone through the roof. Competition is everywhere. ‘And everything needs to happen faster than ever before.

‘Shedding capacity continues to be the first lever mortgage companies pull to reduce costs. But these are tough and painful choices for business leaders.’ Tony Robbins says, “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten.”

We nod our heads in agreement. But still, we keep on keeping on. Doing what we do.

And now we’ve stayed in our comfort zone so long that things have gotten uncomfortable. The resulting inertia is deadly.

Something’s got to change.

Forward-thinking mortgage executives understand that they need to be more agile to face today’s mortgage environment head on.

The fifty-million-dollar question is: How can I drive growth and profitability in a market like this? The answer lies in a proven, no-fail 3-step approach:

Step 1: Syndicate

More than 70% of time consumed in processes across mortgage origination and servicing is not directly related to creating value. These activities are human intensive, sure. But busy work doesn’t differentiate a business, nor is it a competitive advantage.

Reducing headcount frees up cash in the short term, but there are implications in the long run. Once lost, expert talent is difficult to replace when you need to scale up, and dramatic headcount reduction often leads to errors, rework, bottlenecks, low morale, and employee burnout. Our approach frees up the capital you need without disrupting the desired customer experience.

We create an identical twin of your current assembly line, optimizing all activities to the right skill, the right location, and the right cost structure. This shift enables your organization to travel light. It gives you the agility to flex the size and skills of expert teams at speed, as business needs dictate. Importantly, it frees up your essential and most valuable talent to focus on the work that matters most to your organization: Strengthening customer experience, managing risk, and growing business profitability.

Step 2: Simplify

Once you have the right balance in place, it’s time for a Chip and Joanna Gains-esque end-to-end process remodel. Take a long, hard look at what’s working and what’s not. Examine each process and ask yourself “Does this spark joy? Does it match what our customers need? Does it make work easier, quicker, or better for our internal and external teams?”

Ditch any baggy, saggy systems that are holding you back. Refresh techniques that have potential but are looking tired. And design new, smarter processes that will help you reconfigure for distinction.

Shape up your workforce to be future fit too. Nurture exceptional and extraordinary individuals, ensuring that they have the skills and incentives they need to bring their A-game. Train teams to build and tone the muscle that will strengthen performance. Coach a winning mentality that attracts the best new talent to your organization.

With the right partner on your side, guiding you through this stage, you should be seeing the benefits within the first 12-months of your journey.

Step 3: Synthesize

Your leaner, more nimble organization is now in a great place to use innovative technologies to help drive transformation and give you greater resilience to market fluctuations.

Ever mindful of your need to reduce costs while improving experience, we offer on-demand automation. This pay-as-you-go solution reduces CAPEX expenditure, and wastage, by enabling you to dial up automation when and where you need it most. Automation creates the conditions that artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) need to thrive.

We’ll work with you to select, embed, evaluate, and evolve the most appropriate AI and ML initiatives for your mortgage loan origination and/or mortgage servicing needs. Initiatives that help you polish customer service and power productivity. Initiatives that pay for themselves and propel your profitability.

A new approach for mortgage origination and servicing operations

Our 3 profit-boosting steps are rooted in ‘zero-based thinking’— an approach that pivots around imagining what you would do differently if you could start again, from a clean sheet. It’s a great way to identify what’s core and what’s not in your business and debate spending. And it encourages us to make cost reduction and investment decisions based on business value.

We’ve adapted zero-based thinking to meet the distinct needs of our mortgage loan origination and servicing customers. We call our 3-step approach ‘Zero Operations’ because it’s about more than just thinking, it’s about action too. It provides ambitious mortgage companies with attractive, cost-effective, and sustainable solutions for a more profitable future.

If ‘industry standard’ isn’t good enough for you, get in touch with us Together we can ensure that your organization reaps the rewards and sets new standards for our industry.

John Sarris

Head of Sales

This form will put you in touch with our business development team. For all other functions, please click here.
Ready to get in touch and grow your business?
Tell us a little more so we can connect you with the right person
Last step! Let us know which solutions you're most interested in
How can we help?

Download Now

Simply fill out this form to download