What makes a company great? According to Joe Pensabene, Chief Operating Officer of Originations, the answer is simple: “the people.”
So how does a mortgage company attract great people when the industry has become more competitive than ever? How do we get experienced underwriters, processors, account executives and other in-demand talent to want to come to Bayview? The answer, again, is simple: “treat people the right way,” says Joe. “We have fun while we work. We challenge each other, but we do it respectfully. We compensate fairly, and we want folks to have a work-life balance” he says.The culture here is excellent.”
Take Joe as an example. He has over 30 years of industry experience and was here when the company started the Originations channel. He left briefly to pursue another opportunity, only to return to the Originations leadership team two years ago. And it is those company values that led him to come back. “David Ertel and Adam Glassner have really set that company culture,” Joe says.
And it’s not lost on Joe that when employees are happy at work, they tell their friends. They refer former colleagues and family members to the company. In fact, referrals are so critical to the hiring process that they come with a hefty reward. “We’re paying pretty healthy employee referral bonuses to folks for those in-demand positions, Joe says”
Of course, COVID-19 has presented its challenges to the company’s hiring initiatives. Word of mouth simply isn’t enough. “It’s harder to reach people because everybody is so spread out,” Joe explains. “You can’t rely on running into someone at happy hour and telling them about the place you work.” That’s why, just within this past year, recruitment marketing has become essential. “We’ve enlisted a lot of help from search firms, but getting out there on LinkedIn and other platforms has never been more important.”
On the flip side, the pandemic has provided many unforeseen positives. When the company was forced to go remote, it flourished. “We’re hitting record levels of productivity,” Joe says, “and it’s allowed us to attract talent we would not have had access to previously. Our workforce is so much more national.”
But perhaps the most important component to a career at Bayview is longevity. “We have a lot to offer an experienced candidate,” says Joe. “Our portfolio continues to grow. We believe the opportunities for this business remain high, regardless of the rate environment we’re in.”
It’s evident that Bayview has the qualities to attract the industry’s top talent: excellent company culture, compensation and capital. But what traits does Joe look for in a new hire? “A self-starter, a people person, and someone who is customer-focused,” he says, “because it’s always about the customer.”
