LoBue: Real Resources: Mortgage Processing

SUCCESS STORY: MORTGAGE PROCESSING

CLIENT:	Mid-Size Bank in Southeastern US
DIVISION:	Mortgage Banking, Credit
CONTACT:	President
MAJOR FUNCTIONS:	Mortgage Processing

SITUATION
The bank had just gone through a reorganization at the upper level less than one year prior to the commencement of the project. The new president wanted to maximize efficiencies and review processes. The client was being monitored by the office of the Thrift Supervisor. LoBue Associates was hired to review and justify expenses and current operating procedures.

LOBUE RECOMMENDATIONS

Redesign mortgage origination processes
Restructure the processing area
Obtain Fannie Mae approval for the reallocation of duties
Reorganize the appraisal process and establish dispatch capability
Right-size the staffing requirements of the banking centers
Provide management analysis techniques to measure productivity
Restructure and collapse redundant functions throughout the organization
Centralize customer service capabilities
Introduce peak-time and part-time staffing mixes

REAL RESULTS
Due to process improvements, the customer service department was able to spend more time servicing customers. The introduction of peak and part-time staffing mixes enabled the branch system to provide more tellers to service customers, which resulted in lower staffing costs and a reduction in customer wait time.

Reorganization allowed the customer service area to continue to reduce the number of service representatives needed at the banking center, which enabled the bank to save an additional $1 million annually.

The client now has the ability to continue to improve the bank's operating procedures and to reap the benefits of expense reduction. The bank has more measurable criteria to aid management in discovering potential bottlenecks and improving customer service through the empowerment of bank personnel and the elimination of redundancies.