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68 concedes that the system might not be as cost-effective as a more automated system, but he believes the benefits outweigh the extra expense, in the form of customer goodwill. "If our customers need to talk to us, why not make it easy for them to do so?" at's a guiding philosophy that ServiceMac also implemented with a strong focus on "first-call resolution." "Don't let a customer off the call, until we solve their problem," Caruso explains. "If our customer service representative doesn't know an answer to some technical question, they are empowered to conference in with another representative that can help resolve the matter. Solve it and move on." Caruso said that this tenet also extends into notions such as providing customers with insights that they might need, even if they don't know how to ask for them. He cites the example of lending parameters related to the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). While it's designed to help financially burdened homeowners avoid foreclosure—already a stressful and trying time even under the best of circumstances— the loan-modification program often finds applicants denied without really understanding why. Speaking of HAMP's "narrow" parameters, Caruso summed up the process as "either you're in or you're out." "e letters are somewhat prescriptive in that they say, 'Sorry, Mr. Jones, you don't qualify for this mortgage because your income is insufficient,'" Caruso explained. "If I was a customer, what did that just tell me? Nothing. All it does is annoy me that I didn't qualify, and I still don't really understand why. So, we run the numbers and show that their income's too low or their expenses are too high … and then we tell the customer. 'Mr. Jones, you don't qualify because your income is $500 lower than expected to qualify. If you'll either raise your income or lower your expenses, you may be able to qualify for that modification.'" ServiceMac's processes also incorporate extensive monitoring, with each manager having a list of metrics they are assigned to review daily, weekly, and monthly. "We have a QA system running over the top of the system, looking at every loan, every day, trying to identify problems," Caruso said. "We have a whole grouping of what we call 'key indicators,' which is in many ways like a report card." e team also runs frequent mock audits. Caruso explained that the company then posts the results of those audits on their website. "Our regulators and clients can pull them up and see how we're doing," Caruso explained. "at transparency, provides confidence regarding how effective we are in terms of remaining compliant." BUILDING A LEGACY When I asked Bob Caruso what motivated him the most, he was blunt: "Fear of failure. I simply don't want to fail." While ServiceMac's ultimate legacy remains to be seen—or, more accurately, to be built—it's clear from speaking to the team he has assembled that Caruso's motivations ultimately result in a drive to take risks and a willingness to challenge both himself and others. Or, as Caruso succinctly puts it, "Getting good people and giving them the authority to get things done is incredibly important." David Wharton is a graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington, where he received his B.A. in English and minored in Journalism. Wharton has over 15 years of experience in journalism and previously worked at omson Reuters, a multinational mass media and information firm, as Associate Content Editor, focusing on producing media content related to tax and accounting principles and government rules and regulations for accounting professionals. Wharton has an extensive and diversified portfolio of freelance material, with published contributions in both online and print media publications. "You don't know what you are capable of until you're put in the middle of it. I've always been enticed by building something new." —Melissa Perdue, CFO, ServiceMac

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