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Rise of the Rentals

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50 | Th e M Rep o RT o r i g i nat i o n s e r v i c i n g a na ly t i c s s e c o n da r y M a r k e t ANALYTICS the latest as industry Morphs, so do employment needs With banks making cuts to their mortgage units, which roles are needed now? a lthough employment is being reduced, the need for certain types of talent is more criti- cal than ever, according to Rick Glass, founder of R.T. Glass & Associates, one of the mort- gage banking industry's leaders in executive search since 1993. However, he says the demand for certain types of skills has changed during the past several years and continues to change in order to adapt to new regula- tions and fluctuating markets. In a radio interview for Mortgage Markets Today, Glass explained that there have been three trends predominant since the crash in 2007. "There was not much happening in 2007 through the end of 2008," Glass said. "There was a cautious attitude, a hesitation because investment into the mortgage banking infrastruc- ture was mild at best." Beginning in the first quarter of 2009 to the end of 2011, Glass says the hiring trend was like a tidal wave. "The demand for servicing talent was off the map, and we were extremely busy searching for chief servicing officers and senior leadership in top-level impact roles." However, he says that demand started to diminish in 2012 and 2013. "We saw a shift in 2013," Glass explained. "There was a need for leadership to guide companies in the new environment, and we be- gan to search for experts on risk and compliance as well as some of the more traditional key roles in operation and production." So, what has happened to the people who were hired for default servicing at the senior level from 2009 to 2011? Glass said for the most part, the people brought into those leadership roles at that time are still in place. "Those compa- nies have been growing, and some are adding origination channels, some are carving up servicing, and others are adding component servicing," he added. The trend for 2014 is a larger demand for change management. "As the entire industry is chang- ing, there seems to be a need for transformational change in leadership with a broad execution focus," Glass said. "Recently, I've noticed the need for key executives to upgrade and revitalize company performance, implement transpar- ent best practices, and optimize or even rewire existing platforms." He believes the Six Sigma methodology type of approach is something the industry needs more of. In support of this, Glass says, there is currently demand for driven subject-matter experts with an engineering/manufacturing type of mindset, capable of steering and optimizing performance. They must also have a passion for measuring, monitoring, and integrating controls. Glass states that leaders for the mortgage industry of tomorrow may come from other disciplines. He believes that someone who has been in the industry for 30 years may not have the skillsets needed to retrofit or re-engineer existing operations if that person has been out of touch with the Six Sigma process improvement model. "There have been a few people from the manufacturing side who have done very well in the mort- gage industry," Glass said, "but there is not a pipeline for that. My job is to find them, but there is also a void of new talent coming into the industry." He notes that people are retiring, and others are leaving the industry while younger people are not rushing out of grad school into the mortgage industry. "There has been a void since the subprime crash, and the mortgage industry has been given a bad name over the past several years," he said. To attract and train new talent, Glass feels that companies are go- ing to have to make a significant investment in organizational devel- opment. He notes that companies like Quicken Loans have mastered that practice and set themselves apart. "They are career pathing and offer incredible internal learning opportunities to younger people," he said. "I think there are a lot of firms waking up to that practice and realizing if they don't choose that path, they are going to suffer." In addition to searching for specific skills, Glass says that can- didates' personality traits are also involved in his searches. "We're, looking for a high-performance driven athlete, a person who has a passion for the discipline and goes the extra mile," he explained. "Owning the discipline, being able to engage and keep the team accountable, and running at a high performance level, is a standard," he explained. "In addition, we look for someone who is aligned with the client's culture, core values, and philosophies." Predictions for 2014: "I think there is change in the wind, and I think there are going to be some opportunities in this business," Glass said. "Once we can get a little creative, there's going to be some real excitement. I think there is a light at the end of the tunnel." The Five Star Institute and iServe Companies have partnered to create Mortgage Markets Today, an in-depth, formal talk radio resource featuring expert guests, quality subject matter, and timely insights. The show delves into a vast array of topics ranging from the secondary market and federal compliance standards to real es- tate and mortgage lending. Investors, lenders, service provid- ers, and all those interested in and affected by the mortgage and housing markets can tune in on the Web or download audio podcasts of program broadcasts from iTunes. editor's note: The Five Star Institute is the parent company of MReport and theMReport.com.

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