It's human nature to value privacy, but in the business world transparency is better for both consumers and industry
By David Lykken
Special to MPA
It seems like it's human nature to value privacy. We want to keep our own business to ourselves and prevent outsiders from prying in. In business, we sometimes feel as if being forced to disclose certain things is a sort of invasion of privacy. We don't to talk about things until we are ready to, and we want to do it on our terms.
Of course, as consumers, we want full disclosure of everything from businesses. In order to make an informed decision, we have to have all the information available to us. Therefore, we are more than happy for regulators to push business people to become more transparent in their operations.
I would argue, though, that more transparency is not only good for consumers; it's also good for industry. Transparency creates a level playing field. It prevents competitors from cheating in order to get ahead. When the industry is more transparent, we win not by tricking people but rather by providing the greatest amount of value.
The more transparent the mortgage industry is, the better decisions each of us in the industry will be able to make. Transparency will root out the worst of us, and make the best of us shine. In the end, transparency is good for all of us.
David Lykken is 40-year industry veteran who has been an owner operator of three mortgage banking companies and a software company. As co-founder and Managing Partner of Mortgage Banking Solutions, David consults on virtually all aspects of mortgage banking with special emphasis executive leadership development, corporate strategic direction and implementation as well as mergers & acquisitions. A regular contributor on CNBC and Fox Business News, David also hosts a successful weekly radio program called “Lykken On Lending” (www.LykkenOnLending.com) that is heard each Monday at noon (Central Standard Time) by thousands of mortgage professionals. Recently he started producing a 1-minute video called “Today’s Mortgage Minute” that appears on hundreds of television, radio and newspaper websites daily across America.
