The Importance And Limits Of Expertise

The Importance And Limits Of Expertise

The Mortgage Counselors

So much discourse in our country seems to pit those who would blindly follow the expertise of anyone with a fancy credential against those who reject the importance of expertise altogether. The past year has shown clearly how important it can be to get that balance right.

CASE IN POINT: COVID-19

The United States’ flawed response to the Coronavirus crisis resulted in part from some politicians’ and pundits’ rejection of scientific knowledge and analysis. By downplaying the seriousness of COVID-19, and by spreading a combination of wishful thinking and outright misinformation, many people who should have known better ignored or rejected the best information we had about a deadly virus spreading around the world. As a result, common sense steps like wearing masks and avoiding large indoor gatherings became politicized.

But the solution was not, as some assert, merely to “listen to the experts,” who do not always agree. In fact, leading experts have repeatedly made errors in the Coronavirus crisis, including concerning how the virus spreads in the air, initial advice against wearing masks, the CDC’s botching of testing, and even now, according to leading analysts, by downplaying the effectiveness of the vaccines.

These are all difficult issues and we do not mean to impugn the scientists and policymakers who worked tirelessly and in good faith to serve the public. But these missteps, including many that went against better analysis that others were publishing at the time, reveal the limitations of deference to expertise, standing alone.

In the case of COVID-19, one might want analysis from epidemiologists, engineers specializing in ventilation systems, experts in fluid dynamics, supply chain experts, hospital administrators, and many others. Some of those experts may disagree with each other, and it is their data and reasoning

rather than merely their credentials that should help policymakers make decisions in light of those disagreements.

MORTGAGE INDUSTRY EXPERTISE

Companies in our industry are used to consulting with subject-matter experts in making their own business decisions, including about risk. Information technology and information security professionals provide crucial expertise that companies need, but unless they are also experienced in all aspects of the mortgage industry, their advice needs to be considered and integrated by the executives who are responsible for achieving the business goals that those functions support.

WHAT ABOUT COMPLIANCE?

Regulatory compliance is another area where subjectmatter expertise is crucial, and where some questions ultimately come down to risk assessment and execution. It is necessary but not sufficient to hire a smart, qualified compliance team and legal advisors. You also need to understand why they are saying what they are saying. They should be able to explain the reasons for their recommendations and whether those recommendations are based upon clear mandatory requirements, guidance interpreting ambiguous requirements, an assessment of the risk of a particular interpretation of requirements, or other factors.

That advice is most valuable when it comes from compliance and legal personnel with deep industry experience, who understand the practical implications of their answers. It does not do to ignore the expert advice you may prefer not to hear; but good expert advice neither overstates nor understates its conclusions and clearly shows how those conclusions inform any practical recommendations.

Mitchel H. Kider

Michael Kievalis

THE MORTGAGE COUNSELORS

Mitchel H. Kider is the chairman and managing partner and Michael Kievalis a partner with Weiner Brodsky Kider PC.