TheMReport — News and strategies for the evolving mortgage marketplace.
Issue link: http://digital.themreport.com/i/1481918
M R EP O RT | 43 2022 Women in Housing Leadership Awards Continuing an annual tradition, MReport once again brings you the Women in Housing Leadership Awards, as presented at last month's Five Star Conference and Expo. In the September edition of MReport, we profiled all 25 finalists across five categories. It is now our pleasure to bring you a look at this year's final award recipients. An MReport Issue Featuring Five Star Conference's Award Recipients THE RISING STAR EXECUTIVE AWARD Kate Mossop VP & Portfolio Product Owner, Single-Family Servicing Products and Offerings, Freddie Mac What are your proudest career achievements thus far? Mossop: I am proud of the varying roles and opportunities Freddie Mac has provided me that has expanded my lens in the product development space. I have had the opportunity to expand my business domain knowledge while still leveraging and maturing my product devel- opment skillset. Besides providing me with a broader perspective of the mortgage industry, I have been able to take learnings from my past experiences and apply them to my new roles—this ultimately yields to better business outcomes and enables me to leverage lessons learned across the business. I have encouraged my team to leverage lessons learned whenever possible as they worked to mature their product vision and build out their product roadmaps. Taking on new roles has also given me the confidence to consider new opportunities whenever they present themselves. I have been very fortunate to work for great leaders that have supported me along the way. Are there any women who have served as career men- tors for you, and what did you learn from them? Mossop: The one that sticks out the most is the time my manager identified a career opportunity for me outside of their respective area. This individual saw the potential for me to leverage some of my experiences in a new role and counseled me on how best to position myself for the interview- ing process. I really appreciated that—she was a great leader and manager, and I would have con- tinued to learn a lot by working for her. But she took a step back— acted as a true mentor—and really counseled me on how I could have a bigger impact and further advance my own career trajecto- ry. When I officially took on the new role, that level of mentoring support really motivated me to have a similar mindset as a leader and a mentor—sometimes you really need someone to encour- age you, provide a perspective and challenge you in unexpected ways. That is a key role a mentor can play. What is the most critical piece of advice you would give to women beginning their career in this industry? Mossop: The one thing I would emphasize is to really seize the opportunity to learn and grow in any role you take. What I mean by that is to think broadly about your responsibilities and how you can learn about things beyond your outlined responsibilities that will help you grow in your career. I have taken advantage of those circumstances on many oc- casions. I encourage women just starting in their careers to have a positive mindset and expand your knowledge beyond "what is required." One example is when I was accountable for a portal prod- uct, but I used the opportunity to better understand the details of every product that interacted with this portal. That gave me a much broader view of our product landscape at the time, and that perspective really helped me in future opportunities I pursued at my organization. "I have encouraged my team to leverage lessons learned whenever possible as they worked to mature their product vision and build out their product roadmaps." —Kate Mossop