Like other kinds of financial services organizations, mortgage businesses have been quick to understand the benefits of effective, efficient information technology (IT) solutions. In an information intensive, heavily regulated industry, the need to speed and simplify cumbersome, paper-based processes and procedures is critical. During the 1990s, mortgage businesses increasingly used computers, networking technologies, and industry-specific software such as Calyx Point to handle work that was growing in both volume and complexity. And today, vast amounts of information—from changes in interest rates to loan submissions—are transmitted electronically.
Along with progress, however, has come new IT challenges. How can mortgage firms, especially small ones with limited resources, manage their critically important IT resources with maximum effectiveness? How can they make their IT work for them instead of--as was often the case--against them?
The Client
Based in New York City, a client that specializes in financing residential properties from single-family homes to small apartment houses in both New York and Connecticut. Together, its small staff leverages an internal network to service approximately $100 million in loans a year. To assure that the network remained up and running, the client relied on a local IT freelance technician, a person working alone who specialized in “break-fix” solutions and was often slow in responding to requests for service.
The Problem
In 2003, the client knew that a change had to be made. The urgent issue was an aging, slow-running Windows NT server that had recently developed a habit of crashing. They realized that we needed to start thinking differently about our network. Whenever it went down, things came to pretty much of a standstill. Rather than living in fear of the next problem, we had to find ways to build in reliability and security; ways to plan for higher levels of productivity.”
PairM comes Aboard
Our first task was to perform a comprehensive network assessment, which included an evaluation of all the technology and how it relates in their business process. One obvious finding was the need for a new, more reliable, higher-performance server.
PairM has also helped improve the clients network in a variety of other ways:
Installing a new firewall to strengthen security
Putting in a virtual private network (VPN) so employees can access the system when they’re at home or on the road
Rooting out major viruses that had infected the network
Planning for future enhancements and investments
In addition, PairM delivers a comprehensive support agreement, a suite of regularly scheduled services from virus protection to long-range network planning that assures network security and stability, and addresses potential problems before they become real ones.
Staying Focused on the Core Business
In a recent study, National Small Business United reported that:
46 percent of small business owners surveyed agreed that managing changes and upgrades to their IT systems is a major business challenge
40 percent expressed a desire for support and guidance in anticipating and planning for business technology investments
With IT systems growing in complexity and the need for small businesses such as our client’s to concentrate on what they do best, it’s no wonder that a strategic IT service provider such as PairM is a natural solution.
