“All the kings’ horses and all the kings’ men,” could not put a fatally flawed set of industries back together again. John Thain, CEO of Merrill Lynch, framed the non-whimsical discussion on 11/11/08 in the Financial Times, “This is not like 1987 or 1998 or 2001. The contraction going on is bigger than that. We will in fact look back to the 1929 period to see the kind of slowdown we’re seeing now.” And he’s not the only one. In general, as the old school pundits tout their diminishing merits and credentials as the flotilla around them continues to sink, do we really think this is just a “normal” cycle that can be righted with time and adjusted business models?
I can already see the hate mail filling my mailbox this week. However, before I dig my grave even deeper, let’s give credit to the streamlined mortgage programs that are forthcoming from the GSE’s, JP Morgan, Bank of America, and CitiGroup. These institutions, and others, are not just acting as good “corporate citizens,” they recognize the severity of the real challenges facing American consumers and investors. Thank you for your leadership.
There are many shades of grey that have yet to be realized, let alone booked against a balance sheet (e.g., writing down principle amounts). We must continue to fight for and achieve a proper balance between American homeowners and the domestic and global good required as part of evolving globalization realignment. Moreover, very few are tackling the innovation that needs to be embraced with the modification of private MBS’s regarding their reverse supply chain demands (and yes, we never thought we’d have to worry about reverse supply chains).
Now back to digging my resting place.
I could go on, but I think the hole is deep enough this week. No, I’m not trying to make light of the seriousness of our customers or the institutions that support them. Trust me; I haven’t smiled about these events for over two years. My tongue-in-check fun is truly at my own expense. So what is the point?
I asked a question on a social networking site this week about innovation in mortgage. None of the answers were very pretty regarding what the industry is doing, and where the future opportunities reside. Some were downright hostile. I personally asked several outsourcing providers about their future prospects and business. Their answers were universally angry (and an industry that I think will be severely and permanently devalued) “our customers just don’t [expletive] get it!” I asked VC and private equity investors if they were backing or funding new solution sets for the mortgage industry. They thought I was delusional.
So as we think about innovation and we talk among ourselves at recycled conferences with the same media personnel courted by PR teams, are we indeed getting the whole story, a new chapter? Are we merely being once again short-term focused just using a “new” set of superficial questions? Are we, as leaders and an industry, fundamentally willing to hear out “divisive” ideals how will they be recorded and acted upon? Who will stand up and say, “I want to hear about something new and really different!”
I’ll make sure I turn on my e-mail filters this week and install that remote car starter.
