FARRAH PANETTA

THE CHALLENGE: Scale a new mortgage insurer's servicing operations from startup to enterprise-grade while managing explosive portfolio growth ($218.4B) and intensifying regulatory scrutiny—without proportional budget increases.

WHAT I OWNED: Policy servicing, default reporting, loss mitigation and claims operations. Full accountability for cost-to-serve, compliance risk, and operational performance across the entire insured portfolio. Direct responsibility for keeping the company audit-ready and operationally sound during FHFA/GSE, CFPB, and DOI examinations.

IMPACT:

• Oversaw budgeting processes, aligning financial resources with organizational goals for sustainable growth. Cut cost-to-serve 25% while portfolio doubled. Avoided $3M+ in staffing costs by automating 85% of manual payment workflows.
• Reduced claims turnaround 40% by rebuilding the claims engine from scratch—directly impacting cash flow, servicer relationships, and the company's ability to compete for business
• Maintained 13 years of zero audit findings across FHFA, CFPB, and DOI examinations—zero regulatory actions in a high-scrutiny environment where one misstep can cost licensing
• Reduced exception rates 50% through cross-functional initiatives with IT and Risk—protecting the company from servicer disputes, data integrity failures, and compliance exposure
• Built the executive dashboard and KPI framework that became the company's operating system for real-time portfolio risk decisions, improving operational efficiency 30%
• Doubled team retention in an industry averaging 40% annual turnover through succession planning, coaching, and building a culture where high performers want to stay
• Led cross-functional teams to implement strategic initiatives enhancing operational efficiency.
• Developed and executed risk management strategies, resulting in improved compliance and reduced exposure.
• Mentored senior staff, fostering professional development and strengthening leadership capabilities within the team.

THE CHALLENGE: Establish operational discipline and scalability across all servicing functions (onboarding, payment processing, escrow, accounting, reporting, customer service) while adding default reporting and claims—two functions the company had never managed before.

WHAT I OWNED: End-to-end mortgage servicing operations and expansion into claims management. Accountability for SLA performance, process standardization, and audit readiness across all servicing functions.

IMPACT:

• Achieved 98% SLA compliance across all servicing functions while expanding scope to include default reporting and claims—proving the operation could handle increased complexity without breaking
• Delivered 40% faster claims resolution and 25% reduction in exceptions through process redesign and accountability frameworks—turning claims from a bottleneck into a competitive advantage
• Cut manual processing time 35% through automation and workflow standardization, improving data accuracy and freeing the team to focus on high-value exception handling
• Maintained zero audit findings while integrating new functions and scaling headcount—proof that growth didn't compromise control environment or compliance posture

THE CHALLENGE: Build a mortgage servicing operation from absolute zero for a startup insurer that needed GSE approval and 50-state licensing to launch. No servicing capability = no business. And the clock was ticking.

WHAT I OWNED: Everything. Designed and built the Servicing Operations Department—policies, procedures, forms, staffing models, system requirements, and regulatory approvals. Full accountability for making the company audit-ready and operationally credible in record time.

IMPACT:

• Built the Servicing Operations Department in 4 months—created core policies, forms, operational guides, and scalable staffing models that enabled the company's national launch
• Led development of the enterprise servicing system by partnering with IT to translate operational needs into system capabilities, driving implementation through Agile collaboration
• Secured all critical GSE and state regulatory approvals—enabled national launch and positioned the company for licensing success in all 50 states
• Achieved 100% team retention during the high-pressure startup phase through a culture of accountability, ownership, and continuous improvement
• Laid the operational groundwork that supported the company's expansion from zero to enterprise-scale portfolio onboarding—the foundation that made everything else possible

THE CHALLENGE: Manage customer service and servicing operations during a period of intense regulatory change (post-financial crisis) while handling complex servicing functions like HARP/RTM loan modifications.

IMPACT:

• Led customer service and call center operations, overseeing resource allocation and performance management for complex servicing functions including loan modifications and certificate maintenance
• Cut processing time 35% through workflow redesign and automation initiatives while improving customer satisfaction scores
• Partnered with IT and risk teams to enhance servicing systems, strengthen data integrity, and implement operational improvements that positioned the department for regulatory scrutiny