Everyone outside the mortgage market assumes it’s dull and boring and maybe even a little staid.

As we all know on the inside, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

I’ve experienced life near the bleeding edge of change in our industry over the past seven years and I know there’s more to be done. A lot more.

But it requires you.

Efficiency gains

The changes have been predominantly about efficiency gains. We’ve been building new systems that enable people to do things in a quick fashion that they couldn’t do just two or three years ago. Getting legacy systems to speak to each other is no small feat.

If you have a vision and can see it as a race decided by a hundred little adjustments, you’ll make the change happen and take everyone with you on the journey

The next improvements will come from greater interoperability: systems working more closely with each other; perhaps even mortgages being proactively sold to customers because we know they are coming to the end of their term.

If we compared ourselves to the music industry, we might currently be at the MP3 stage — high-quality performance, but not yet streaming.

Some of the roles that are going to be required did not exist three years ago. Definitely not five years ago. Some of the ones we plan on hiring for next year only just exist, as of this week.

The changes have been predominantly about efficiency gains

That’s exciting for those of us who have seen a couple of major change cycles. But it’s even more exciting for those who are just starting out or are about to enter the second horizon of a mortgage industry career. It means, if you are an expert at data, interpreting data or dealing with customer service elements, or if you can get systems talking to each other, your work is only just beginning.

Think about the thing you waste your time on the most and ask yourself: how could this be improved?

As is mine. I’ve been reinvigorated by recent internal discussions on the future of Twenty7Tec and its role in modernising and improving how consumers get mortgages. That enthusiasm is infectious.

As someone who wants to change our industry, I advise you to find a niche that you’d love to know more about, and play in at a Premier League level. That’s hard to replicate and will set you apart.

Follow a vision

You will come up against resistance: the status quo. And people will tell you that change is too hard. Fair enough. Change needs managing. But, if you have a vision of where you’re heading and can see it as a race decided by a hundred little adjustments, twists and turns, then you’ll make the change happen and take everyone with you on the journey.

Some of the roles that are going to be required did not exist three years ago

Think about the thing you waste your time on the most and ask yourself: how could this be improved? Chances are, someone else is either busy trying to fix it or is willing to do so if you ask them. Once you’ve overcome that challenge, watch what happens next.