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58 AMDC Insights Members of Five Star's American Mortgage Diversity Council discuss how diversity among mortgage professionals translates to a more-inclusive housing-finance system. "A recent census report pointed out that by the year 2060 racial minority populations will grow 74%. As the world—and in turn our customers—becomes more diverse, organizations need a workforce, and leaders, that represent the customers they serve. If we're going to make decisions with customers in mind, mortgage industry leaders must come from all backgrounds and walks of life. Ultimately, this will be critical to our industry's progress and success. Ocwen has a very deliberate, company-wide commitment to diversity and Inclusion. At Ocwen, two of our core values are centered on people and teamwork. These values highlight the importance of, and our steadfast belief that, diversity and inclusion and valuing all employees equally are vital to our collective success. This is the fabric of our culture, and it is what we stand for as a company." — Lola Oyewole, VP, Human Resources and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer, Ocwen Financial Corporation (AMDC Chair) "At New American Funding, we are very, very, big on mirroring the communities we serve. Once the company makes that commitment, we know what it takes to serve that market, and the bottom line is, having the right staffing because [Latino and Black] borrowers may take more time to underwrite, more time to process. New American Funding is willing to make the investment, knowing that it requires more resources to serve this demographic, where other lenders may not. This work is about margins, it's about volume, but we're just so committed to this market that we're willing to apply additional resources to it. We're very keen on hiring the right people to underwrite these files—that's really the secret sauce." —Frank Fuentes, National VP, New American Funding (AMDC Vice-Chair) "Maya Angelou was often quoted as saying, 'when you know better, you do better.' As a person of color who has been in the mortgage industry for over 18 years, I feel we have quite a bit of work to do before we reach the ultimate goal of fair and equitable housing for all people. In my opinion, the first step toward a more equitable mortgage industry is to train up more minority industry professionals. When you have first-hand experience with racism, it enables you to see the world, and conversely your borrowers, in a very different light. If the mortgage industry at large invests in increasing its minority industry professionals, over time, this will translate into more minority homeowners. Increasing sustained minority homeownership will slowly and steadily decrease this country's expansive racial wealth gap, doing better by all Americans." —Tai Christensen, Director of Government Affairs and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer, CBC Mortgage Agency "With a more diverse workforce, companies benefit from exposure to a wider set of personal experiences and perspectives, making them better equipped to meet the needs of all kinds of customers. At Mr. Cooper Group, we are proud to serve a very diverse customer base, and we hope our customers feel proud to do business with a mortgage company that prioritizes and embraces diversity, equity, and inclusion in our hiring practices. When an organization has a multitude of different thoughts, races, ethnicities, cultures, religions, and genders at the decision- making table, this allows them to strategically approach business decisions with a lens that's more likely to consider a variety of life experiences their customers may face. Government agencies and legislators rely on mortgage companies like Mr. Cooper for our industry expertise when making housing policy decisions, making it critical for servicers to cultivate a workforce that reflects the customers we serve and the world in which we live when advocating for homeowners." —Leonard McLaughlin, Chief Diversity Officer, Mr. Cooper Group Cover Story By: Christina Hughes Babb Learn more about the AMDC at mortgagediversitycouncil.com