If you’re the CEO or VP of Production of a medium size
mortgage company, defined as 200 – 2500 employees, the recent
rebound in the housing market is prime time for beginning your next growth
spurt. As an Executive Recruiter and trainer it’s been wonderful to watch many
companies chip away market share from the Big Banks. Recruiting loan officers
now will accelerate your momentum.
The industry changes over the past five years were overdue. Prudent, financially solid mortgage operations have been gathering steam and re-shaping the mortgage landscape. Some companies have added in-house recruiters to their roster;
also a smart move. As a rule in-house recruiters tend to be over burdened with
search requests from all factions of the company.
Take your company to the next level by training all branch
managers to recruit. Most mid-size mortgage companies expect team leaders and
managers to recruit but how many actually know how to recruit? As business
picks up, sure you’re going to close more loans because you’ve worked hard to
put all the pieces in place to handle the influx of loans. What’s your strategy
to continue on the same trajectory?
Don’t stop growing. Take this opportunity to side-step inertia
and grow exponentially. A handful of
your competitors are arming their front lines with the same tools the best
headhunters use. Those managers will recruit more efficiently and effectively
with recruiting principles in hand. For a small investment in recruitment training,
your production goals will all be exceeded.
As a recruiter, today if I picked up the phone and left
messages with five branch managers, three would call me back. We’d talk about their
goals and company culture and I’d accept two search assignments. There are not
enough good recruiters in the market to fill the need for loan officers. Put your company's future in the hands of 'recruiters' (branch managers) who are emotionally and financially invested in your success.
Recruiting training will have your branches avoiding common
mistakes and hiring loan officers every quarter or every month. For example,
most managers are oriented to the bottom line (one of the reasons I love them as clients). Their direct style and urge to state the highlights of a company
immediately when ‘pitching’ an offer to a candidate is a strategy that most
often fails. What’s the best way to engage a candidate? You need to know.
What would happen if you proposed marriage on the first
date? A healthy person would turn you down. Good recruiters use sound
principles to attract, engage, build a little rapport, and establish some trust
all within their first phone call. They withhold
their strongest, best company tidbits until the candidate is emotionally
and mentally ready to buy the information that will close the deal.
Recruiting takes practice, but one can be successful during
the first recruiting call IF they know the process and what to say and what to
do in the proper order. While candidates typically react in a handful of
predictable ways, how a recruiter manages the process is crucial to not wasting
precious time thwarting their own efforts.
Find a recruiting mentor for your all your branches (pick me, pick me)
and whip your new-hire strategy into shape within twelve months. Recruiting
looks easy but it can be brutal. What does not
recruiting cost your company? If there were a simple solution (training)
would you be interested in buying it?
Ask yourself: What’s the biggest challenge and frustration
surrounding complacency of branch managers when it comes to recruiting? Is the
answer a lack of recruiting skills? Loan officer recruiting is the path to rapid expansion. This investment will pay dividends for
a lifetime. The best way to meet all your production and market growth goals is
to empower local markets to capitalize on recruiting loan officers they hear
about every day.
***A no-fluff, step-by-step recruiter training program on how
to recruit loan officers will take your mortgage production to the next level within 12
months. Kimberly Schenk has
recruited in the mortgage industry for 20 years. She’s recruited in multiple
industries and has been training recruiters and business people for 10 years.
Schenk cares about your success and over 1100 professionals have benefited from
her programs.
