There was no clinking of champagne glasses this year, to toast Guild Mortgage's 60th anniversary. Rather, like so many events planned during the pandemic, the company celebrated over a zoom call.
"We had an all-hands call with every employee in the company, and we taped it so people would be able to share it later," said
"We did many events like that where we would reach out and not only did we present things, they were able ask questions and get feedback for anything they were worried about or wanted us to implement," McGarry added.
Maintaining employee engagement has been a big focus for some of the lenders who landed on the Best Mortgage Companies to Work For list this year. Employing some creativity was key to reaching newly remote workers who had been accustomed to in-person mingling at company meetings and celebrations.
As pandemic-related changes were roiling the business in April, the management team at InterLinc Mortgage Services realized that just sending out emails would not necessarily keep everyone at the company informed.
"And so we were doing a livestream every day for about six to eight weeks, updating our employees as to what our COVID protocols were because they were changing rapidly,” said Gene Thompson, who was
The company’s leadership would use the meetings to discuss “what was going on the market, what was going on with our investors, how the company was shifting and pivoting at the time because we're a firm believer in if you don't give people the truth, they make it up on their own," he added.
But with refinancings booming and the correspondent aggregators reentering the market after the early spring disruption, InterLinc reduced the frequency down to once a week, and then to once a month.
"It is something that we continue to do once a month, where we have the ability to in a live setting address every single one of our employees," Thompson said. "And it's just a great way for us to stay connected, better than email."
Normally, InterLinc has its annual employee meeting in January or February. Without the ability to do a live event, it prerecorded the meeting, and its branches held watch parties.
Goody bags were sent to the employees, and the awards forwarded to the branch managers for presentation. "So we're doing everything we can to continue what our traditional stances are with the environment that we have," Thompson said.
"Our marketing department is constantly putting little promotional things together, just to keep people engaged, whether it be a contest giveaway or a photo contest of your office from home, just little things to spur engagement," he continued. "Little things go a long way, especially when you're in the environment that we are in and everybody is working tireless overtime on a daily basis to keep up with the volume."
At Guild, 2020 was a landmark year, not just because of the 60th anniversary, but also due to
For its management, the first priority is the health and safety of the employees, but Guild still wants to celebrate their success, McGarry said.
"It's a fine line and a balancing act. They've worked really hard and they've been incredible during a very challenging time," she said. "And I just wish I could be with everyone when they are celebrating."
So Guild will keep recognizing its employees in various ways in 2021. "It might be something like a thank you note or recognition in our company newsletter or on social media," McGarry said. "We also give out company t-shirts, mugs, or cookies, small things like that. It's all about building and maintaining connections with our people."
