By Kelly Cosentino, Esq.

Gross Polowy LLC

USFN Member (NJ, NY, PA)

USFN hosted a webinar in December which explored how leaders react to the ever-changing default mortgage servicing landscape. This USFNgage session, titled Leading Servicing & Legal Teams Through Change: Building Resilient Leadership that Inspires and Perseveres, highlighted how industry leaders are navigating the complexities of the current environment, building leadership pipelines, shaping inclusive and agile team cultures, and preparing their organizations for what lies ahead in 2026.

The discussion was moderated by Christianna Kersey of Cohn, Goldberg & Deutsch, LLC and featured a panel of distinguished industry leaders.

The webinar began with an overview and opening remarks from Kersey. Attendees were then divided into four breakout rooms with each group concentrated on a different topic.

Following 30 minutes of group discussion in the breakout rooms, participants reconvened for a panel-led summary of key insights and takeaways from the respective sessions.

Attracting Talent and Promoting Pathways

Andrew Brenner of BWW Law Group led a discussion on how companies can attract strong talent as well as promote pathways to leadership. This conversation focused on the challenge of bringing in employees that have the skills and experience to do the work but also possess the traits and attributes needed to thrive in their role. Emphasis was also given to identifying high performers and ensuring they are given plenty of challenges but are not overwhelmed to the point of burnout or driven to look elsewhere for another job.

This session also addressed the importance of providing a leadership path for those strong performers. Often, the ability to do the day-to-day work does not translate into a leadership position and can even present a roadblock to advancing career growth. Most contributors in this session agreed that it can take a long time to advance a new group of leaders. It was noted that prioritizing development early in an employee’s career can provide the most advantageous growth path for both the employee and the company.

Evaluating Talent & Providing Effective Feedback

Alicia Byrd of AMIP Management tackled the challenges presented by remote or hybrid environments where alternative methods of communication may be less effective than in-person feedback.  During her session, Byrd’s group discussed the significance of providing meaningful feedback on a consistent basis and ensuring performance evaluations were done based on effective, measurable metrics of success across all teams.

Communicating, Influencing & Change Leadership

Victoria Vickrey of JP Morgan Chase oversaw a discussion on identifying and building future leaders. This included working to ensure that those leaders reflect and respect their team’s needs, vision, and responsibilities. They also referenced the ever-changing dynamic of effective team engagement, with emphasis on strong leadership and inclusive communication. This session highlighted the value of good leadership in establishing effective workplaces.

Mentoring, Coaching & Building Leadership Depth

Finally, Carrie Anne Deal of McCabe, summarized her group’s discussion on mentoring, coaching, and leadership development noting common themes that emerged across the group.

Many experienced a shift away from older, more formal training models in favor of approaches that feel more practical and integrated into daily work. Some examples are shadowing, hands-on coaching, and intentional conversations when someone steps into a new leadership role. Participants shared that using tools like the DISC personality assessment or similar models are only impactful if the organization commits to using the results long term. Otherwise, people tend to forget the insights shortly after the session.

Several suggestions were given on the topic of fostering inclusive leadership. These included using intentional mentor/mentee pairings, considering differences in personality and background, along with respecting communication preferences.

The overall message was clear. Mentoring and leadership development only succeed when they are done intentionally, supported by leadership, built into the workday, and paired with meaningful goals.

The collective insights from the breakout sessions underscored how important it is for everyone to invest in the next generation of leaders in our companies and provided meaningful tools and strategies to achieve this goal.

USFN will be kicking off its 2026 USFNgage series soon exploring topics such as Women in Servicing, Managing Risk, Technology, and Hot Topics of the Industry. Stay tuned for more information on these sessions coming soon, or visit https://www.usfnevents.org/usfngage.html for more information as it becomes available.

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USFNews - February 4