“Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.”
-Warren Bennis

City First Mortgage is a company that has been characterized as having great leadership, culture, and opportunities since 1992. While many believe that leadership emanates from the top of an organization and influences the organization as it filters down, we believe that leadership exists in all areas of our company through individual dedication and collective effort. Leadership is evident in the various means by which our co-workers manage, motivate, and inspire those around them to serve our customers each day. Leadership is also evident in the various charitable activities we organize and participate in throughout the year to benefit those who are less fortunate.

Similarly, while the culture of an organization can be articulated by a Mission Statement or influenced by speaking of it often, our culture is embodied in the values we share and, in the behavior we exhibit toward our customers and each other. Our priorities are to always put our customers first, our co-workers second, and the company third. We believe this is the recipe for success. For this reason, recruitment is a critical activity. We seek not only the best talent, but, more importantly, the right talent.

Leadership and culture create opportunities. The Bible says in Mark 10:43 that “whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant.” We encourage that attitude, and we are each willing to go above and beyond the call of duty daily to serve the needs of our customers and our co-workers in a cooperative working environment. We are each willing to hold whatever position is assigned, perform whatever task is delegated, and contribute in whatever manner is necessary to make the greatest contribution. By operating within our strengths and covering one another’s weaknesses, opportunities are frequently identified, and qualified individuals are regularly evaluated for promotions within a department or transfers from one department to another.

We believe City First Mortgage is a special place to work because of our overriding concern for the individual, whether that individual is a customer or a co-worker. We want our company to be a safe place to work – a sanctuary where everyone can enjoy coming to work and can have an opportunity to work hard, be encouraged, and pursue his or her personal, professional, and economic goals.

CONNECT CODE

Yes before no.

The Definition

It’s critically important that we live the culture of Yes. This does not mean that every single idea, question, suggestion or recommendation will ultimately be met with a big thumbs up. But it does mean that we respond to all curiosity with the mindset of Yes first.  This is how the City First Connect program was born.

Our bias is to the Yes side of life. This is in stark contrast to the all too common approach of NO being the automatic reaction to any expression of an inquiring mind.

Just because saying NO is easier.

The status quo is not our favorite state. We live in the land of growth, possibilities, ideas, innovation, positive impact and results. And the only path to that place is through openness to the unknown… So Yes before no. And no only if we have done the work and exhausted all the potential of Yes first.

So there you have it folks. We are on a journey together to achieve numerous examples of greatness this year and beyond. I have no doubt that the things we can achieve are only limited by the size of the dreams we choose for ourselves and all the people around us. It will not be easy. It will require thought, dedication and time… fueled by creativity and innovation.

And we need to start off with a “Yes before No” mindset.

Just imagine what can be and make it so…

It’s not about WHO is right, it’s about WHAT is right.

There is no place at our company for typical corporate arrogance. Being a leader doesn’t give you the right to perks; it gives you the right to motivate others. Therefore, no matter how long you have been a part of our family, or what your job title might be, the best idea matters most – NOT whose idea it is. It is never about WHO is right. It is always about WHAT is right.

We are the “they.”

There is no “they” here. “They” does not exist here. We are the “they.” One team. United.

Simplicity is genius.

Remember: You are you and we are we. So when you communicate, remember that you’re communicating to someone else. They are not you. You are you. They do not know what you know, because they are them and you are you. So make no assumptions that they already know what you know in your head. Don’t start at chapter five; start at chapter one. As simple as that sounds, it’s something we often overlook. Many times, simple is not just simple, but also better.

Every second counts.

Time, not money, is the most valuable commodity of all. Never trade significant amounts of time for small sums

of money. Time can never be replaced. How will you invest the 31,536,000 seconds you are gifted each year?

You have to take the roast out of the oven.

Wrap it up. Finish the job. Execute! Over-analyzing can kill an idea and possibly make you miss an opportunity.

Do the right thing.

The high road is not a short cut. Stick to the highest standard of integrity, without compromise. Character is what you do when no one is looking over your shoulder!  Doing the wrong thing is never worth it.  Remember, three things will eventually always come out: the sun, the moon and the truth.

A penny saved is a penny.

Choose to value your time.  Invest it chasing pennies, and you’ll find pennies. Invest it in ideas, improving your skills, innovation, developing your talent, design, marketing and technology, and your return will be more than just pennies. Pennies are something you save. Dollars are something you create. The choice is yours.

Obsessed with finding a better way.

Our mission is a never-ending quest to find a better way for every process and everything we touch. If it’s good, let’s make it great. If it’s great, let’s take it to an even higher level. Don’t settle for less. In fact, don’t settle at all. “Finding a better way” is not something we do on the side or when we get time. Rather, it’s a key responsibility for every one of our team members. It’s our passion, our way of living and our obsession.

Numbers and money follow, they do not lead.

Don’t chase money.  Chase the skills that will make you great at what you are doing or what you are building. Become an expert.  Become the best.  Then, and only then, do the better numbers or the good money follow you. Pursue your vision with uncompromising passion and numbers and money will follow you.  Chasing numbers and money first will leave you chasing your tail.

Ignore the noise.

Will you allow noise to keep you from winning? Noise could be from naysayers, something going wrong, sun in your eyes, ball took a bad bounce, dog ate your homework, someone cut you off on the way to work, etc. A lot of things that seem serious at first glance turn out to be noise. The noise may fluctuate in volume, but your determination to press on in spite of it (ignore it!) will make all the difference to you and your branch.

Innovation is rewarded. Execution is worshipped.

A great idea is just the first step. The real magic is bringing that idea to life with great execution.

We’ll figure it out.

Not everything comes with a set of instructions. The innovators of the world are often exploring uncharted territory. They find their way without a map. When blazing a new trail, there’s an adventure at every turn … and getting there is more than half the fun! All it takes is some common sense, confidence and unwavering will to succeed. We believe there is always a solution and/or always another way, even when it seems at first there isn’t. Have faith. We’ll figure it out!

Every Client. Every Time. No Exceptions. No Excuses.

Clients don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Could it be any clearer? A great company is built one client at a time. If you wow every client every chance you get, then they win and so do you. It’s as simple as that.

We eat our own dog food.

Here, we start with good people – who bring in other good people – who refer us to even more good people looking

for home loans. We should be our company’s biggest fans!

You’ll see it when you believe it.

Do you believe it? Then you can make it happen. It doesn’t work the other way around. Affect the outcome. It changes your actions.

Responding with a sense of urgency is the ante to play.

Urgency is your inner compulsion and drive to get things done in a timely – yet thoughtful – manner. On this team, we return all phone calls and emails the same day. Not just to clients and partners, but to each other! Urgency motivates us to ensure we communicate news fast – good and bad. We take care of it – NOW!

The inches we need are everywhere around us.

Opportunities for us to make a difference are everywhere, and usually they’re found in the little things. Everything we do matters. If we keep our eyes open, we’ll see that the little things – the inches we need – are everywhere around us. It’s the 1,001 of these little things, or inches, that add up to be the Diff.

Always raising our level of awareness.

As Yogi Berra said, “You can see a lot just by looking.”  Keep your head up. Look. Be curious. Stay awake. Notice what is actually around you. Really notice. Everything starts with awareness. It’s a choice. The power of all of our future growth, innovations and success is in the thousands of eyeballs looking and seeing what’s around us.