Resolve to Evolve: Actionable Insights to Thrive in 2025


To start the new year, we asked STRATMOR advisors: “What is the one thing you would tell your clients to focus on as we start 2025?” A clear takeaway emerged: adaptation is essential. Companies that resist change risk falling behind, while those that evolve with the market will maintain their competitive edge.

As we step into 2025, now is an ideal time to set resolutions that will guide your business toward continued growth and innovation. Whether it’s improving operational efficiencies, embracing new technology, or refining your customer experience, this year presents a unique opportunity to take practical steps that will pay dividends in the long run.

In this article, STRATMOR advisors offer practical recommendations to help you:

Read on so you can hit the ground running and make 2025 your best year yet.

Test Your Consumer and Employee Experience End-to-End

Mortgage lenders may be unaware of inefficiencies in their processes until they conduct a thorough end-to-end test of consumer and employee experiences in the production environment, according to Brett McCracken, Senior Advisor at STRATMOR. He highlights the need to evaluate whether disparate systems — from CRM and telephony to Loan Origination Systems (LOS) and Point of Sale (POS) tools — are functioning cohesively.

Borrower inquiries sometimes get lost in the CRM, and inconsistencies between departments can lead to frustrating delays. Testing each step of the process can uncover bottlenecks that, when resolved, streamline operations and improve the customer experience. “Each time we conduct this exercise with lenders and their technology partners, it’s an eye-opener — revealing how borrower inquiries are truly handled and highlighting the inconsistencies and inefficiencies in the process,” says Brett. “It takes a lot of preparation and coordination to do this right, but the final report is worth it.”

At STRATMOR, we believe that secret shopping is the best way for lenders to remove the disconnect between perception and reality and pave the way for meaningful improvements in customer experience. Secret shopping can help lenders:

Conduct End-to-End Experience Testing

Test the entire consumer and employee journeys from initial contact to loan closing in your live production environment.

Evaluate System Integration

Verify seamless functionality across multiple platforms (CRM, marketing tools, text/telephony systems, POS, LOS, etc.) and thoroughly assess how they work together. Test for friction points and misalignments across systems and check for gaps in functionality, especially after updates, acquisitions, or staff turnover.

Test Service and Workflow

Examine critical service triggers, including credit report pulls, VOE/VOI/VOA, and the associated resource costs. Also take a good look at how prequalification and preapproval letters are generated, again with the associated resource costs, as well as the speed at which the documents are produced.

Identify Customer Experience Gaps

Look for issues such as borrower inquiries falling into a “black hole” with no response or significant inconsistencies in communication. Running multiple secret shops highlights both patterns and one-offs that can be improved.

Act on Findings

Use the findings to make improvements, streamline processes, and remove inefficiencies. Transform the testing findings into concrete improvements for customer service and technology integrations.

Actionable Insight: Transform testing from a diagnostic exercise to a strategic improvement methodology. By regularly reviewing your systems and workflows, you can identify inefficiencies, enhance the customer and employee experiences, and ensure a smoother loan origination process. STRATMOR has created a best-in-class approach to secret shopping that allows a lender to see the business through the eyes of the borrower. Click here to learn more.

Capitalize on Data and Market Intelligence

Nicole Yung, STRATMOR GroupSenior Partner Nicole Yung emphasizes the need for lenders to become data-driven in a stabilizing and seasonal mortgage market, especially as there is less potential for a major refinance boom. With new players, emerging technology and changing market forces, it’s more important than ever that you understand how your business operates and stay on top of key performance metrics.

In previous years, the refinance boom helped cover up inefficiencies, but in 2025 and beyond, those days are likely over. Now, lenders need to focus on the basics: understanding their numbers, tracking productivity and output, and comparing expenses and revenue with industry peers. Key performance areas to monitor include:

To gain a competitive edge, it’s not only important to track your own performance, but to understand how other lenders are navigating the market. One valuable resource for this is the MBA Quarterly Performance Report, which provides a quarterly update on market trends and key benchmarks. For a more in-depth look, Nicole recommends the MBA and STRATMOR Peer Group Roundtable (PGR) program. Now in its 27th year, PGR offers a forum for lenders to analyze and discuss their mortgage banking results with peers, helping to gain insights into operational trends and challenges.

The 2025 PGR Spring Cycle has kicked off and now is the time for lenders to get involved, gather data, and use these insights to inform decision-making and ensure they’re positioned for success in the evolving market. Contact Nicole Yung for more information about the program.

Actionable Insight: Move beyond “business as usual” by tracking your metrics, understanding industry trends, and leveraging comparative data to drive strategic decisions.

Be Cautious with Technology Overhauls: Do a Deep Analysis First

STRATMOR Principal Kris van Beever cautions lenders against making hasty decisions to switch technologies. While adopting a new platform might seem like a quick fix to existing pain points, it often introduces more risk and disruption than anticipated.

Instead, Kris recommends a more thoughtful approach: conducting a comprehensive technology analysis that includes a root cause assessment. This process can often uncover the fact that the current platform can be optimized to address challenges, without the need for a costly and risky system overhaul.

In fact, many operational inefficiencies stem from people, processes, or workflows rather than the technology itself. By taking the time to thoroughly review these components, lenders can find more efficient, cost-effective solutions that avoid the significant disruption of a complete system replacement.

STRATMOR regularly helps clients evaluate their technology systems for inefficiencies and recommends the following to get started:

Conduct a Root Cause Analysis

Before considering switching platforms, assess the underlying causes of issues. Identifying the root cause can help you decide if optimization of your current systems is a more cost-effective and less disruptive option.

Engage Stakeholders Across Departments

Involve key team members — including IT, operations and end-users — in the assessment process. This collaborative approach will ensure you understand the full scope of challenges and gather insights from those who interact with the system daily.

Map  Your Current Workflows

Review and map out your existing processes, from lead generation and origination to post-closing. Look for inefficiencies, bottlenecks, or redundancies that could be streamlined, even with your current platform.

Explore System Integrations and Enhancements

Consider whether integrating additional tools or upgrading features within your current system could address the issues without a full platform switch. Many systems allow for modular updates or add-ons that can optimize workflows without major disruptions.

Evaluate Your Vendor Partnerships

Reach out to your technology vendors to explore how they can help optimize your existing systems. A good vendor may offer support or consulting services to improve your workflows and increase system efficiency without a full overhaul.

Assess People and Training

In some cases, the technology is not the issue, but rather how it’s being used. Make sure your staff is fully trained in leveraging the technology’s capabilities. Regular training and clear communication can often improve performance without the need for switching platforms.

Solicit Help from an Outside Firm

Consultants provide an objective, expert assessment of inefficiencies and gaps that may be overlooked internally. With specialized knowledge, advanced tools, and industry experience, consultants can identify logjams, streamline processes, and recommend optimal technology solutions.

Actionable Insight: By taking these steps, lenders can maximize the value of their existing technologies, avoid unnecessary disruptions, and achieve better operational efficiency without the significant costs and risks associated with a full system replacement.

Contact us if you’d like to learn more about conducting a systems review for your operation.

Bridging the CX Perception Gap

Mike Seminari, STRATMOR GroupCustomer Experience Director Mike Seminari warns lenders about the phenomenon known as the “CX Perception Gap,” a critical disconnect when companies believe they are delivering a superior customer experience, but customers feel differently. Studies have shown that while 80% of companies believe they are customer-obsessed, only 8% of customers agree.

According to Mike, there are five basic reasons a CX perception gap occurs:

  1. Respondents Skew Positive: Contrary to popular belief, satisfied borrowers are much more likely to respond to surveys than dissatisfied ones, skewing results positive.
  2. Leadership Bias: Leadership often has a biased view of their efforts and company vision, assuming that the resources and strategies they’ve implemented automatically translate into a great experience. Adding to this, confirmation bias leads them to focus on metrics that support their belief in a high-quality experience.
  3. Over-reliance on Reviews: Good reviews are a given, as most borrowers really like their loan officers (average LO score is around 9.5/10), but those “likes” don’t necessarily translate to advocacy and loyalty. Lenders are quick to hang their hats on these reviews as evidence of their great customer experience, but the majority of borrowers, even if they’re willing to write a positive statement for their LO, have no intention of actually referring friends and family due to an overall lackluster experience.
  4. Lack of Qualitative Measurement: Many lenders prioritize quantitative metrics like Net Promoter Score (NPS) or Overall Satisfaction without diving deeper into qualitative insights. They are often not aware of pain points in the customer journey, especially if these issues are systemic or cross-departmental. STRATMOR data from its MortgageCX program shows that nearly 50% of borrowers cite one or more of these qualitative miscues.
  5. Overconfidence in Technology: Investments in customer-facing technologies like chatbots or self-service tools are often perceived as enhancing CX, but customers may find them impersonal or frustrating. STRATMOR’s secret shopping programs have found this to be especially true early in the loan process.

If you read this list and thought, “not MY company,” then maybe you’re doing things right, or maybe you just haven’t been looking in the right places for how you could elevate your customer experience. How do you know the difference? Here are a few questions that might help:

Actionable Insight: Systematically audit your customer experience by gathering deep, qualitative feedback across all touchpoints, challenging internal assumptions, and prioritizing holistic experience improvement over isolated technological fixes.

STRATMOR’s MortgageCX program can help you dial-in your CX strategy for 2025 and maximize your revenue potential. Contact Mike for more information.

Leverage Emerging AI and Machine Learning Technologies

Dennis Trent, STRATMOR GroupPrincipal Dennis Trent highlights the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to revolutionize mortgage processes in terms of improving operational efficiency, cost reduction, and scalability. AI and ML have the capability to streamline processes across the entire mortgage lifecycle, from application processing to underwriting and servicing, according to Dennis.

To successfully integrate AI and ML into their operations, mortgage lenders should consider the following:

  1. Understand Potential Applications. Identify specific AI and ML opportunities in mortgage operations, such as streamlining application processing, improving underwriting risk assessment, predicting customer behavior, and automating servicing. Study successful implementation cases from other lenders and in other industries to understand potential efficiency gains.
  2. Develop a Strategic Plan. Determine the primary objectives for implementing AI and ML, such as reducing processing times, minimizing human errors, reducing ‘stare and compare’ activities, enhancing underwriting accuracy, or improving customer satisfaction. Prioritize high-impact processes where AI and ML can make the most difference. Common areas include loan origination, quality control, fraud detection, document verification, and customer service automation.
  3. Prepare Your Workforce. Train staff to effectively collaborate with AI and ML tools by:
    • Teaching how to interpret AI-generated insights to apply them in decision-making.
    • Promoting a technology-enabling mindset.
    • Facilitating seamless tool adoption.
  4. Maintain Regulatory Compliance. As AI and ML systems become more involved in underwriting and decision-making, it’s crucial to ensure that algorithms are transparent, and decisions can be explained. This is vital for compliance with industry regulations and to maintain trust with customers. Make sure AI systems adhere to data protection laws (e.g., GDPR, CCPA) to protect customer privacy while utilizing data for machine learning.

Actionable Insight: Systematically evaluate high-impact processes for AI integration, prioritizing areas like loan origination, quality control, and customer service automation while maintaining a strategic, compliance-focused approach to technological adoption. Measure key performance indicators before and after implementation to quantify efficiency gains and build a compelling business case for broader AI integration.

If you’re considering AI and ML for your operation, we’d be happy to offer our expertise to help find the best fit for your unique needs. Contact us today to learn more.

Focus on Sales Execution and Consistency

Principal Tom Finnegan emphasizes the importance of refining sales disciplines and optimizing loan officer outreach strategies, especially in a challenging market. Past customer outreach represents a significant untapped opportunity for many lenders. By developing robust programs to stay connected with previous clients, lenders can boost both referrals and customer retention. Additionally, enhancing product offerings, such as down payment assistance programs, can attract a broader customer base and increase conversion rates.

To capitalize on these opportunities, mortgage lenders should take the following action steps:

Strengthen Past Customer Outreach Programs

Leverage your existing customer base by creating a structured outreach program. Regularly communicate with past clients through email, phone calls, or personalized messages to stay top-of-mind and encourage referrals. Consider implementing automated follow-up systems to ensure no client falls through the cracks.

Provide Ongoing Sales Training for Loan Officers

Focus on developing key sales disciplines for LOs. Offer regular training sessions on effective communication, relationship-building, and closing strategies. Emphasize the importance of maintaining a positive and consistent outreach approach, particularly in challenging market conditions.

Refine and Expand Product Offerings

Evaluate your current suite of mortgage products and consider adding programs like down payment assistance (DPA) to attract more first-time homebuyers or underserved markets. Providing a wider range of options can differentiate your offerings from competitors and increase your appeal to a broader customer base.

Implement Targeted Marketing Campaigns

Develop marketing campaigns that highlight your expanded product offerings and outreach programs. Utilize data analytics to identify past customers or prospects who may benefit from these programs and tailor messaging accordingly.

Track and Analyze Referral Sources

Regularly track the success of your referral programs and identify which channels or strategies are most effective. Use this data to fine-tune your efforts and focus resources on the highest-performing areas. Encourage loan officers to actively ask for referrals during every customer interaction.

Maintain a Positive and Customer-Centric Approach

Train your team to stay positive, even in a fluctuating market. A positive attitude, combined with a proactive sales approach, will help build trust and maintain relationships with both customers and referral partners.

Actionable Insight: To succeed in a competitive mortgage market, lenders must focus on consistent execution. Strengthen customer outreach, train loan officers, expand product offerings, and leverage targeted marketing to drive engagement, referrals, and long-term growth.

After all, Tom notes, “The need for mortgages is not going away!”

“Simplementation:” Moving Forward with Consistency

Sue Woodard, STRATMOR Group, Sr. AdvisorSenior Advisor Sue Woodard introduces a game-changing concept: “simplementation,” or the art of making consistent, small progress toward the goals and outcomes you’re looking to achieve this year, as well as the habits you’d like to develop.

“Seems simple, but I’ve seen time and time again how practicing this would have helped to achieve better outcomes. And it applies to every area of our life and business where we’d like to see change and results,” Sue notes.

In Sue’s own words, here’s how to master simplementation:

That’s “simplementation.” And remember, we at STRATMOR Group are here to help you, as a lender or a solution provider to the industry. We may not be able to do much with your waistline, but we’re all in to help you work on your tech stack, gain efficiencies, refine your messaging, launch your new venture, and understand the data that drives your business. Onward and upward, here we go!

Actionable Insight: Achieve goals by prioritizing steady, incremental progress over intense, sporadic efforts. Strategically manage your time by protecting critical project blocks and personal priorities. Build an accountability network that supports and tracks your objectives, transforming aspirations into tangible results.

Conclusion: Navigating 2025 with Strategic Vision

As 2025 begins, businesses have a unique opportunity to align their strategies with the evolving market. The key themes highlighted by STRATMOR advisors — optimizing operations, enhancing customer satisfaction, and embracing market adaptation—serve as a roadmap for success.

As STRATMOR enters its 40th year, we remain dedicated to guiding our clients through complex challenges, helping them streamline their businesses, improve the borrower experience, and accelerate profitability and growth.

Our enduring mission is to provide strategic insights that empower lenders to navigate an evolving industry. We noted at the start of this article that adaptation to change is essential. More than that, it’s a competitive advantage.

And here at STRATMOR, we look forward to continuing our work with the industry as it continues to evolve, providing insights and guidance to help businesses achieve their goals. Here’s to your success!

How Can We Help?

STRATMOR works with bank-owned, independent and credit union mortgage lenders, and their industry vendors, on strategies to solve complex challenges, streamline operations, improve profitability and accelerate growth. To discuss your mortgage business needs, please Contact Us.

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