Vice President Communications Underwriting

🚀 About Us

At eLEND, we're committed to helping borrowers achieve homeownership by delivering exceptional lending solutions while maintaining the highest standards of credit quality, compliance, operational excellence, and client service.

Our Communication Underwriting team serves as the bridge between underwriting, operations, sales, and our external partners, ensuring every underwriting decision is communicated accurately, efficiently, and consistently while maintaining exceptional borrower and client experiences.

As we continue to grow, we're looking for an experienced Vice President of Communication Underwriting to provide strategic leadership, elevate underwriting operations, develop future leaders, and help shape the next generation of underwriting excellence at eLEND.

🌟 Why This Role Matters

The Vice President of Communication Underwriting is responsible for leading the Communication Underwriting department while overseeing all underwriting communication with internal business partners, clients, investors, and third-party stakeholders.

This executive leader will establish underwriting communication standards, drive operational consistency, improve quality and efficiency, mentor leaders, and ensure all underwriting activities align with agency, investor, regulatory, and company guidelines.

This role serves as a key member of Mortgage Operations leadership and partners closely with Executive Leadership, Sales, Operations, Capital Markets, Compliance, Quality Control, and Credit Policy to continuously improve the underwriting experience.

🚀 Leadership Opportunity

We're committed to building leaders who create lasting impact.

As Vice President of Communication Underwriting, you'll have the opportunity to:

• Build and develop a best-in-class underwriting communication organization.
• Coach and mentor Underwriting Managers and future leaders.
• Influence company-wide underwriting strategy.
• Partner directly with Executive Leadership and the C-Suite.
• Lead major operational initiatives and process transformation.
• Drive technology adoption and workflow automation.
• Champion continuous improvement across Mortgage Operations.
• Shape future credit policy and underwriting standards.
• Build scalable processes supporting organizational growth.

🛠️ Key Responsibilities

👥 Executive Leadership

• Provide strategic leadership for the Communication Underwriting department.
• Lead, develop, mentor, and inspire Underwriting Managers and Underwriters.
• Foster a culture centered around accountability, collaboration, operational excellence, and exceptional client service.
• Establish performance expectations and create development opportunities for future leaders.
• Serve as the executive escalation point for complex underwriting scenarios and communication challenges.
• Promote a culture of continuous learning, innovation, and professional development.

🏡 Underwriting Communication & Client Service

• Oversee all underwriting communication with internal teams, clients, brokers, correspondents, and business partners.
• Establish and maintain exceptional client service standards across the underwriting organization.
• Ensure underwriting decisions are communicated accurately, professionally, and within established service-level expectations.
• Promote consistency in communication across all underwriting teams.
• Resolve escalated client service concerns while maintaining strong partner relationships.
• Continuously improve the underwriting communication experience.

📑 Credit Policy & Underwriting Excellence

• Establish, communicate, and enforce company underwriting guidelines, AFR overlays, agency requirements, and investor policies.
• Ensure consistent credit decisioning across all underwriting teams.
• Serve as the executive authority for complex loan scenarios and exception requests.
• Participate in credit policy committee meetings and provide strategic recommendations.
• Stay current on evolving agency guidelines, investor changes, and regulatory updates.
• Provide final review and approval guidance for complex, high-value, or escalated loans.

🤝 Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner closely with Sales, Operations, Capital Markets, Compliance, Secondary Marketing, Closing, Processing, Quality Control, and Executive Leadership.
• Drive collaboration that improves workflow efficiency throughout the loan lifecycle.
• Support company initiatives that enhance operational performance and customer satisfaction.
• Build strong relationships with agency representatives, investors, and external partners.
• Collaborate on strategic initiatives that improve communication, quality, and operational execution.

⚖️ Compliance & Risk Management

• Ensure all underwriting communications and decisions comply with agency, investor, and company guidelines.
• Maintain compliance with FHA, VA, USDA, Conventional, CFPB, TRID, RESPA, ECOA, Fair Lending, HMDA, and other applicable regulations.
• Ensure complete documentation supporting underwriting decisions.
• Lead Quality Control remediation efforts and corrective action initiatives.
• Drive consistency in underwriting decisions while mitigating organizational risk.
• Protect the integrity of the underwriting process through sound credit governance.

📈 Operational Excellence & Performance Management

• Develop and monitor department KPIs, dashboards, and performance metrics.
• Analyze underwriting trends and recommend operational improvements.
• Lead root cause analysis for recurring quality or operational issues.
• Develop preventative solutions that improve efficiency and loan quality.
• Utilize Loan Origination Systems (LOS), Automated Underwriting Systems (AUS), reporting tools, and business intelligence platforms to optimize performance.
• Drive operational excellence while balancing quality, productivity, compliance, and customer experience.

🌱 Organizational Development

As part of your leadership responsibilities, you'll:

• Mentor Underwriting Managers and future executive leaders.
• Develop leadership succession plans.
• Build training programs that improve communication consistency.
• Lead organizational change initiatives.
• Champion employee engagement and retention.
• Drive continuous process improvement initiatives.
• Promote innovation and technology adoption.
• Support strategic planning and long-term organizational growth.

🎯 What You Bring

• 10+ years of progressive Mortgage Underwriting leadership experience.
• Demonstrated success leading large underwriting teams within mortgage or financial services.
• Extensive experience developing underwriting operations, communication strategies, and organizational performance.
• Strong knowledge of FHA, VA, USDA, Conventional, Jumbo, Agency, and Investor underwriting guidelines.
• Exceptional strategic thinking, credit analysis, and executive decision-making skills.
• Proven ability to lead through change while maintaining operational excellence.
• Outstanding leadership, coaching, and team-building abilities.
• Exceptional communication, negotiation, and relationship management skills.
• Strong analytical mindset with experience using KPIs to drive business decisions.
• Ability to manage multiple high-priority initiatives in a fast-paced environment.
• Deep understanding of the complete mortgage lending lifecycle.
• Passion for developing leaders and building high-performing teams.

⭐ Preferred Qualifications

• Direct Endorsement (DE) Certification strongly preferred.
• VA SAR/LAPP Authority preferred.
• Experience working with Agency and Investor guidelines.
• Previous executive or senior underwriting leadership experience.
• Experience leading large remote underwriting organizations.
• Expertise using Encompass Loan Origination System.
• Strong understanding of AUS platforms including DU and LPA.
• Experience implementing operational improvements and process automation.
• Demonstrated success improving quality, productivity, and customer satisfaction.
• Experience presenting executive reporting to C-suite leadership and Board-level stakeholders.

📆 A Day in the Life

Your day may include:

• Leading strategy meetings with Underwriting Managers.
• Reviewing department KPIs and production metrics.
• Collaborating with Executive Leadership on organizational initiatives.
• Providing guidance on complex underwriting scenarios.
• Participating in Credit Policy Committee meetings.
• Partnering with Sales, Operations, Capital Markets, and Compliance leaders.
• Reviewing Quality Control trends and implementing corrective actions.
• Coaching leaders through performance and development conversations.
• Driving process improvement initiatives.
• Supporting technology enhancements within underwriting operations.
• Building strategic relationships with investors and external partners.
• Leading organizational initiatives that improve efficiency, quality, and client experience.

💼 Worksite

Remote – U.S. Based Candidates

This executive leadership role operates within a highly collaborative environment across:

• Executive Leadership
• Mortgage Operations
• Underwriting
• Sales
• Capital Markets
• Processing
• Closing
• Compliance
• Quality Control
• Secondary Marketing
• Investor Relations

The role includes:

• Daily collaboration through Microsoft Teams, email, executive meetings, and virtual leadership sessions.
• Strategic oversight of underwriting communication operations.
• Frequent interaction with senior leaders and external partners.
• Opportunity to influence company-wide operational strategy.
• Leadership of a growing, high-performing underwriting organization.
• Reasonable accommodations are available as needed.

💰 Compensation & Benefits

• Competitive Executive Compensation Package starting at $151,000-$180,000
• Leadership Incentive based on base pay
• Leadership Development & Executive Coaching
• Comprehensive Medical, Dental & Vision Coverage
• 401(k) Program with Company Match of 1%
• Paid Time Off & Company Holidays
• Continuing Education & Professional Certifications
• Executive Leadership Development Programs
• Career Growth within Mortgage Operations Leadership
• Collaborative, innovative, and mission-driven leadership environment

🌈 Equal Opportunity for All

At eLEND, we're committed to building a diverse, inclusive, and innovative workplace where every employee can thrive. We believe exceptional leadership comes from diverse experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds. Employment decisions are based on qualifications, performance, experience, and business needs while providing equal opportunities for all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected characteristic.