It isn’t easy being a small fish in a big pond. How does a small mortgage company leverage its ability to be nimble in a competitive market? I believe that SaaS offerings are initiating a revolution with broad implications for business models and competitiveness. It is becoming increasingly clear that with the advent of sophisticated software as a service (SaaS) environments, combined with process as a service, it is possible and even commonplace for a small company to be competitive. I had the opportunity to spend some time at IBM’s LotusSphere with a small mortgage company called Signature Mortgage based in Ohio. By leveraging a combination of IBM’s LotusLive platform combined with Silanis Technology’s electronic signature platform, Signature Mortgage has been able to differentiate itself in an extremely complex market dominated by Fortune 500 companies.

Mortgage brokers like Signature Mortgage are involved primarily in the origination process of the loan, bringing mortgage borrowers together with mortgage lenders who actually fund the money for the loan. Mortgage borrowers engage with mortgage brokers early in the mortgage process when a consumer looking for a mortgage often has a lot of choices. It can be hard at this early stage for a consumer to differentiate between mortgage brokers and if one mortgage broker takes several days or longer to deliver the mortgage application documents for signing, the consumer might switch to another broker. Typically a consumer selects a mortgage broker based on the offered rate, term, and closing costs and then locks down the rate to protect against a rate change. The broker will facilitate a complex series of steps that must take place in order to move from this initial rate lock down to the approval and closing of the mortgage. The consumer must submit financial and personal documentation so the mortgage broker can assess the credit worthiness of the individual and appraise the property.

The process between mortgage origination and closure can take as long as 45–60 days. To make money, the mortgage broker needs to be able to collect all the required information quickly and then be in a position to close the deal with the mortgage lender before rates change. There is a lot at stake for both the mortgage broker and applicant during this time period. For example, missing a deadline for a signature can lead to cancellation of locked-in rates on a mortgage commitment, potentially leading to higher costs for a buyer or lost revenue for a mortgage broker.

Bob Catlin, President of Signature Mortgage explained to me that he was determined to use his company’s small size as an advantage by quickly implementing innovative technology that might take much longer in a large company with legacy policies and infrastructure. By streamlining and speeding up the mortgage origination process, he could differentiate from the larger banks, increase profits and have happier, more satisfied customers.

Signature Mortgage has its customers log in to a portal designed to capture best practices for submitting application documentation, revising documents, receiving status reports and securing electronic signatures when required. All of the steps in the mortgage process are documented within the Silanis Technology portal that is based on IBM’s LotusLive collaboration platform. The Silanis electronic signature solution is delivered as a cloud-based service, making it attractive to a small business with a limited IT staff. By implementing Silanis Technology’s solution, Caitlin has been able to shave days off the loan origination process because there are no more last minute surprises resulting from missing data or documents and delays in arranging in-person meetings.

For Signature Mortgage, the first step in tightening the timeline for the mortgage process was to consistently lock in rates in less than 15 days. Caitlin is now working on decreasing application processing time to 24 hours and shortening the total time between mortgage application and closing down to 10–15 days. Any mortgage borrower who has dealt with requests for last minute faxes for missing documentation or errors that are discovered as the rate-lock deadline approaches will understand that decreasing the time to close from the industry average of 30–45 days is a big deal. However, speed isn’t the entire benefit; managing all information related to the mortgage applications in one centralized portal improves accuracy and accountability. Using the capabilities of LotusLive and Silanis e-signature, Signature Mortgage has been able to include features that make the online mortgage process intuitive and consistent with paper-based manual processes that are familiar to many people. For example, customers click to sign where they see a virtual sticky note similar to the process used at in-person signings. The consistency and repeatability of the process helps the company to maintain compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.

With this predictable foundation, Signatures Mortgage has been able to grow quickly, increase profitability and build a strong presence in the community.