EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT

Employee development helps turn weaknesses into strengths and empowers personnel to perform way beyond expectations. With some employees entering the field with little knowledge and others needing to broaden their knowledge a bit here and there, the mortgage industry does a good job of providing formal and informal means to employee betterment. With it a person is more likely to succeed in a role, and if they’re successful in their company they’re more likely to be happy.

According to our survey, most winners conduct performance reviews only once per year. Others might do a review at the first 90 days and then at the end of the year. Some are done much more consistently. “We have yearly performance reviews,” says one employee. “However, every person has a booked one-on-one session with their direct manager to review progress, work, happiness, and mental well-being at the company.”

All small- and mid-size businesses have training during onboarding; most of the large businesses do too. Some provide one week plus a mentorship; others deliver traditional sales training. Some go the extra mile. “They receive a box of items – a welcome kit – with everything they need to get started along with company branded sportswear (for fun) and other specialty items,” says one employee.

Nearly all our winners provided ongoing training, which ranges from master classes and formal training programs to c suite mentorships and online offerings. One aims to help employees from falling behind. “We have leaders in place to mentor new loan officers or officers who may be struggling to produce each month,” says one employee. “We also have university classes for loan officers to learn about many different topics that they may be struggling with or not familiar with.”

Mid-size and larger companies have more to offer regarding ongoing education. Some had worked to establish cultures of personal growth; others have rolled out financial assistance programs. “We have a tuition reimbursement of up to $5,000 per year and an online platform that offers thousands of courses on a variety of topics from professional, personal, and development and more,” says one employee.

Meanwhile, most of the winners said they update their technology more than once a year. “We are continually improving our technology, adding new platforms and enhancing those that are currently in use,” says one employee.

What’s more, all winners offer marketing support, including inhouse departments and outside agencies and social media help. “We leverage social media to perform marketing activities,” says one employee. “We contract out our social media (website, FaceBook, Linkedin, Instagram, and YouTube) efforts to ensure the content is current, relevant and worthy – we want to add value & attract additional followers.”