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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 18 June 2024 M O V E R S & S H A K E R S PLANET HOME HIRES NEW CFO National mortgage lender, servicer, and asset manager Planet Home Lending has hired Paul Walker as its new Chief Financial Officer, bringing two decades of mortgage banking finance expertise to the role. "Paul will guide our financial strategy, leading Planet's integrated platform to continuously deliver efficient, innovative solutions and services to consumers, business partners, and clients," said Michael Dubeck, CEO and President of Planet Financial Group, parent of Planet Home Lending. Before joining Planet Financial Group, Walker was CFO at Mortgage Assets Management LLC, and Supreme Lending, leading key fiscal and strategic planning initiatives. He has also held significant positions in public account- ing and SEC reporting including SVP of Enterprise Accounting at Finance of America, SVP of Financial Reporting and Controls at Mr. Cooper (formerly Nation- star), and as an auditor with KPMG. "Planet's commitment to connecting multi-channel origination with servicing and asset management creates a unique environment that drives efficiency and scaled growth," Walker said. "My goal is to strengthen this ecosystem, work- ing to ensure our finance department collaborates closely with all divisions to optimize our service delivery and sustain our competitive edge. I look forward to contributing to Planet's success and working alongside the talented team here to enhance our market position and financial performance." Former Planet Home Lending CFO Teresa McDermott will be transitioning to the role of Deputy CFO until her anticipated retirement within the next two years. "Teresa's leadership has been crucial in building Planet from a $5 billion Ginnie Mae servicer in 2007 to its industry-leading position today with a $106 billion portfolio in servicing and sub-servicing and the number four spot in correspondent lending," Dubeck said. In her new role, McDermott will focus on strategic projects and facilitate the transfer of her knowledge, ensuring the continuity of Planet's strategic vision and operational excellence. Service Providers ROCKET COMPANIES NAMES NEW HEAD OF TECHNOLOGY Detroit-based fintech Rocket Companies, has announced Shawn Malhotra as its first ever group Chief Technology Officer (CTO) where he will oversee the development and implementation of technology across the company's ecosystem, including artificial intelligence (AI) development, data science, product engineering, technology operations and information security– among other areas. "Shawn brings a wealth of expertise and a transformative vision to our tech- nology teams. As we double down on our commitment to technology innovation, Shawn will help us focus on delivering groundbreaking solutions to our clients, partners and team members," said Varun Krishna, CEO of Rocket Companies. "Shawn's primary objective will be to increase the rate of innovation and execution in the organization, amplifying Rocket's AI initiatives. His fresh per- spective and history of leveraging AI to simplify and automate processes makes me confident that, together, we will quickly realize our vision of AI-fueled homeownership." Malhotra held a variety of technology leadership roles at Thomson Reuters, most recently, as Head of Engineering and Product Development for the entire company. Under Malhotra's oversight, Thomson Reuters established a platform to accelerate development of generative AI solutions, while introducing an AI assistant spanning all Thomson Reuters products. Previously, Malhotra served as the CTO of Thomson Reuters' Corpo- rate Technology business unit. When he joined the company in 2017, he was instrumental in founding Thomson Reuters' Toronto Technology Centre, prioritizing AI talent and expanding TR Labs–the company's division dedicated to research around AI and other techno- logical innovation. "I am looking forward to being part of this pivotal time in Rocket Companies' history and am eager to explore how AI can simplify the path to homeowner- ship," said Malhotra. "I truly believe in the transformative potential of AI tech- nology. Few missions are as crucial or deserving of its power as Rocket's goal of making housing more accessible for all." Before his time at Thomson Reuters, Malhotra spent 12 years at Intel–in- cluding his time at Altera before the company was acquired by Intel. He led Intel's Toronto Technology Centre, which housed 200 software engineers, and was the Director of Software Development. Malhotra started his career as a Software Developer for Qualcomm. MCS TAPS TWO TO LEAD NEW GOVERNMENT SERVICES BUSINESS LINE MCS has announced the launch of a new Government Services business line, bringing the company's core strengths of exterior and interior facilities maintenance services to U.S. federal agency properties nation- wide. The new Government Services business line will be led by MCS SVPs John Haederle and Shawn Schumacher, both with extensive backgrounds in federal contracting services. For nearly four decades MCS has been delivering maintenance, property preservation and inspection services to residential and commercial properties. With the launch of its new Government Services business, MCS brings its suite Haederle Schumacher