The Bridge: Spring 2019 | CPA Edition

C P A I N D U S T R Y K N O W L E D G E F R O M O A K S T R E E T F U N D I N GÂŽ

a first financial bank company

Refresh your network

Spring 2019

Page 4

6 degrees of separation Page 12

Destination: Connection Building better relationships

FEATURES

CPA

Meet your personal and professional goals.

Spring 2019

Publisher Oak Street Funding Editorial Director Meghan Milam Contributing Editor Sharon Robbins

10 6 Making

The power of referral networks

Oak Street Funding 8888 Keystone Crossing, Suite 1700 Indianapolis, Indiana 46240 844-395-8245

12

Good employee relations help to relieve stress and improve morale

14

Destination Connection Crossword

Test your knowledge

Share Your Thoughts If you have any questions, comments or ideas for The Bridge®, let us know. Email us at marketing.box@oakstreetfunding.com or visit us on social media.

Oak Street Funding does not make any representation as to the accuracy or suitability of any of the information contained in any third party advertisements or websites and does not accept any responsibility or liability for the conduct or content of those advertisements and websites and the offerings made by the third parties. Third party advertisements and links to other websites where goods or services are advertised are not endorsements or recommendations by Oak Street Funding of the third party websites, goods or services. Oak Street Funding assumes no responsibility for the content of the ads, promises made, or the quality/reliability of the products, services, or positions offered in any advertisements.

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Graphic Contributor Beth Winchell

The Bridge is a newsletter produced by:

Connections

6 degrees of separation

Art Director/Designer Aidreen S. Hart

Loans and lines of credit subject to approval.

Potential borrowers are responsible for their own due diligence on acquisitions. California residents: Loans made pursuant to a California Department of Business Oversight, Finance Lenders License (#6039829). The materials in this paper are for informational purposes only. They are not offered as and do not constitute an offer for a loan, professional or legal advice or legal opinion and should not be used as a substitute for obtaining professional or legal advice. The use of this newsletter, including sending an email, voice mail or any other communication to Oak Street, does not create a relationship of any kind between you and Oak Street.

© 2019 by Oak Street Funding LLC. All rights reserved. Any duplication without prior written permission is strictly prohibited.

www.oakstreetfunding.com

LETTER FROM THE FOUNDER/CEO

Destination: CONNECTION

In an ever-more technologically advanced society, I have found that we need to make sure that we enforce and enhance what makes us great at our jobs: relationships. Without the relationships we’ve built, all the advancements available to us through technology would be meaningless.

As service professionals, how we conduct business has a lasting impression on our stakeholders, including customers, employees, and competitors.

For this season’s Bridge magazine, “Destination: Connection,” we focus on what each of us can do to improve the connections in our lives. Whether it’s tapping into our expanding personal and professional networks, building rapport with our employees and colleagues, or solidifying our niche among our market competitors, our success is determined by the strength of the bonds that we choose to build and maintain.

Increasing and improving our connections has strengthened and grown our business and can propel your business’s growth. This may require an investment to leverage the opportunity. Oak Street Funding provides accountants with debt capital for acquisitions, successions, transitions,

Free Webinars on Demand Our resources are packed with expert advice and best practices.

Watch now! oakstreetfunding.com/webinars-cpa

and more. So whether you want to acquire, groom your successor, or expand your headcount, the strength of your connections will define your achievements.

Wishing you future success.

Rick Dennen, CPA

Founder, President & CEO

Oak Street Funding® Vision Statement To be the market leader in client experience for commercial financing by delivering unique and diverse product offerings through cutting edge technology and exceptional employee and client service.

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Socially refreshing your network

REFRESH Some people will tell you we’re more connected than we’ve ever been before, thanks to technology such as cellphones and social media. It’s a safe bet that you’re connected to many clients through Facebook®, LinkedIn®, Instagram®, and other platforms.

But is your digital network a real network? By that, we mean do you truly have relationships with your online “friends” and “connections”? There’s a big difference between pressing “like” on a photo of someone’s child and actually knowing the child’s name and age.

The lazy way to stay in touch

As we become more dependent upon digital channels to keep in touch with the important people in business and our personal lives, we replace deep connections with superficial relationships.

We may say we have 462 friends on Facebook, but how many of them would we choose to confide in or invite for dinner?

When it comes to our business connections, digital networks make it easy for us to be lazy, believing we’re doing a good job of staying in touch. If we’re honest with ourselves, we know a comment on a social media post pales in comparison to an in-person conversation or a phone call. That’s why it’s so important for us to make the effort to socially refresh our networks by taking time to surround ourselves with clients, prospects, and colleagues.

Networking isn’t what you think

Perhaps you think we’re describing what’s come to be called “networking” — those uncomfortable efforts to walk into a roomful of strangers, exchange business cards, and stammer through conversations in the hope that they might lead to a new client relationship. True networking is less about meeting new people, and more about constantly and meaningfully staying in touch with your clients, prospects, and colleagues. 1 The most effective networking grows out of developing genuine relationships with others, regardless of the reason you’re trying to connect with them. It’s far more than an awkward exchange of 4 | w w w.oakstree tf un di ng.com • 8 4 4 - 3 4 3 - 1 4 2 8

business cards. Instead, it involves approaching and treating the other person as a friend and engaging in friendly conversation that will deepen the relationship. 2

Attitude is everything

The key to effective networking is the attitude you bring. If you begin with a real interest in people and what’s going on with their lives, and a genuine curiosity rather than an aggressive, mercenary focus on growing business, you’ll actually accomplish more. 3 By setting out to build a handful of friendships instead of a lengthy contact database, you’ll be able to accumulate quality contacts rather than a large quantity of low-value names and emails. People who network effectively rarely begin the process by talking about business or themselves. In fact, the most effective networkers do very little talking. Instead, they listen.

They ask questions and get the other person to talk about themselves. Most people enjoy doing that. Go into initial contacts with a plan to not talk about business (unless the other person encourages you to do so). If you show a genuine interest, you’ll have plenty of future opportunities to use your sales skills. 4

The psychology of trust

When you want to build lasting connections with other people, whether your goal is friendship, business, or romance, you need to establish a sense of mutual trust. When people feel that others will not attempt to deceive or damage them in any way, they’re more willing to connect at a deeper level. Psychologists identify four critical factors in establishing trust between people: • Sharing a common set of values and a respect for the other person’s differing values.

• Developing integrity through degrees of honesty, consistency, and predictability.

• Having a sense of mutuality, in which each party can rely upon the other.

• Creating a sense of commitment that there’s a purpose for the relationship. 5

In simple terms, when we begin to establish any kind of new relationship, we want to be confident that the other person is kind, ethical, has the ability to make the relationship work, and behaves in ways that are comfortable and predictable. 6

Building trust

As an ethical businessperson, you are no doubt seeking to build relationships — business and social — that embody this kind of trust. While much of that comes back to the personal integrity you and the other party exhibit, there are some strategies you can use to foster that kind of trust, whether you’re meeting someone in person or over the phone: •A sk insightful questions that give the other party an opportunity to share meaningful information. When someone has a genuine interest in us, we’re more likely to trust them.

•C hoose thoughtful questions that demonstrate curiosity and show that you focus on more than surface issues.

•G ive them your full attention. People can tell whether you’re really listening to what they have to say. Maintain eye contact, don’t interrupt, and ask follow-up questions that show you heard what they were saying.

Did you notice that all those strategies involve saying less and listening more? That’s not a coincidence. 7 One of the best ways to build trust is to do the kind of networking that has no obvious benefit for you. That involves introducing people to each other when they might benefit from the connection. For example, if you know someone who mentions she’s planning to sell her home, and you know a realtor you trust, connecting the two of them will help both, and they will see you as a helpful individual who is acting outside of your own self-interest. 8

Reaching across the gaps

One challenge in networking these days is the reality that there are several generational groups in the workforce, and people from these different groups often struggle when it comes

to connecting with the others. By knowing this and taking the lead in creating connections across the generation gaps, you’ll be better able to build a strong social network.

In particular, Baby Boomers and Gen Xers benefit when they reach out to Millennial and the Gen Z groups. Developing these connections can strengthen their careers and build their business, while giving the satisfaction of helping others who are earlier in their own careers. Plus, it’s likely that younger contacts will return the favor.

A great strategy for networking with younger colleagues or prospects is making a point to introduce them to other people in the room you know. Before you make the introduction, share some information about that person, so they find it easier to continue the conversation. If you know someone who would be a great mentor for the younger person, or who might be able to share knowledge or contacts that would be beneficial, introduce them. They want to build their own networks, and your efforts demonstrate your respect for them. 9 Building your social network by focusing on others is a particularly effective and satisfying strategy. It may involve more work than pressing the “like” button on social media, but in the long run, it will have a profound effect on both your business and your personal relationships.

Footnotes 1 Weiss, Phyllis, “How Boomers Can Best Network With Millennials and Gen X’ers.” Nextavenue.org, July 18, 2016 2 “Steps to Seriously Improve Your Networking Skills,” entrepreneur.com, May 14, 2015 3 Weiss, op. cit.

4 entreprenuer.com, op. cit.

5 Clark, Lexis, “Trust versus Mistrust: The 4 Factors Which Define a Trusting Relationship,” positivepsychologyprogram.com, December 22, 2016 6 Waytz, Adam, “Friend or Foe? A Psychological Perspective on Trust,” video, kellogg.northwestern.edu, undated 7 entreprenuer.com, op. cit.

8 ibid.

9 Weiss, op. cit.

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Making Connections

The Power of Referral Networks Have you ever considered doing an analysis to see if there are any benefits of building partnerships with other CPA practices? A great way to grow your business organically is to build a relationship with a referral partner or create a referral network. Referral networks are made up of like-minded business professionals working together to generate business for each other through referrals and word-of-mouth marketing.

Referrals and word-of-mouth marketing can be very valuable.

Research by the American Marketing Association has found that recommendations from peers are 2.5 times more responsive than any other marketing channel and that referred customers are also more valuable as they generate higher margins and higher retention than other customers, which is beneficial in both the short and the long run. 1 If your product offering focuses on tax accounting, consider finding a partner that offers audit or advisory services.

Consider also including other logical partners beyond accounting. Perhaps there is a registered investment advisor, attorney or insurer that offers personal or commercial lines that can refer business to you and for whom you can respond in kind.

While word-of-mouth marketing and referrals are some of the best ways to produce leads and generate new business, it is important to take measured steps to insure the best outcome when selecting referral partners or creating a referral network.

And, of course, you will need to offer the best possible customer service experience so potential partners will want to work with you — because as you are vetting them, they will be vetting you.

Below are six steps that will guide you in creating successful partnerships or referral networks.

1. Assess your offerings.

What are your strengths? Where are there gaps? Think beyond accounting. Would creating a strategic partnership help provide your customers with a product or service that you currently do not offer?

2. Define your ideal customer.

In order to get the best results from a referral partner, it is important that both of you serve clients that have characteristics that make them attractive referrals for each of your businesses.

Many times these characteristics will be based more on wealth than on any other demographic.

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3. Research connections.

You may already have an idea of who you want to approach to be a referral partner. If not, identify potential partners by talking to your sphere of influence as well as your customers to see if they have recommendations. Gather their opinions and also check online reviews in order to make sure possible partners offer the same first-class service that you provide so you will maintain your reputation for quality.

4. Pop the question.

Once you have identified potential partners, set up oneon-one meetings to share your ideas and to determine if creating strategic partnerships would benefit both of your businesses. Ask how you can best help them. Effective two-way communication will help to build trust and also determine if collaborating is the best plan of action for all parties.

5. Cross train.

In order for referrals or word-of-mouth marketing to be most effective, take time to learn about each other’s businesses. What are your products and/or services? Who is your ideal client?

What makes your products or services unique? Why might your products or services be of interest to the other’s client? In order to promote each other effectively, provide business cards and content that can be used when referrals are made.

6. Create a Network.

Once you have developed relationships with multiple referral partners consider hosting a meeting or gathering to bring them together. Share how you and each referral partner have been working together and see if there is interest in establishing a referral network where each participant refers their clients to each of the other partners as needed.

By taking these steps you can create a referral network with other quality service providers both inside and outside of your industry. Done effectively, these partnerships or alliances can provide your clients with added value all while your business grows organically with little or no cost to you.

1. Referral Marketing 101: How to grow your network of referrers. Susie Wittbrodt. Kinesininc.com

Accountants and CPAs often mistakenly think they must be certified or highly trained in Business Valuations in order to perform or discuss valuations. In addition, many firms do not want to send a client to a competitor in their city or state. We do not have a typical CPA practice, we only prepare valuations and consult on value. So we work as your outsourcing partner, and keep you engaged in the process so your client sees the team effort. Our team will complete the valuation or consulting engagement, handle all the research and sign off on the engagement.

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Phone: 800-800-1776

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:industry news

To go virtual, or not to go virtual?

Become a storyteller to communicate data Reading and understanding data is second nature to accountants, but often not so easy for clients – that’s one of the reasons they have accountants. For clients who are less numbers-fluent, translate the data into a story to help them understand the bigger picture or smaller details. Stories can evoke emotion, and when someone is emotionally moved, dopamine is released in the brain and they are more likely to take action or remember the data. “Dopamine aids memory and With the flexibility that cloud-based software provides, 100% virtual practices are certainly an option. Although not

information processing. You can think of it like a Post-It note that reads ‘Remember this,’” says neuroscience researcher John Medina.

their own successes and challenges

Overcome technology business operations challenges

from which anyone considering remote

Preliminary data from the 6th Annual Accounting Firm

employees or culture can benefit. Some

Operations and Technology Survey indicates that the

considerations or lessons include:

top three technology challenges practices face –

• Change the mode of communication

security (21.9%), workflow and efficiency (21.9%), and

yet the norm, some companies have built successful virtual models, with

if anything is unclear • Embrace technology, including on-

getting your clients onboard working with the firm in a more digital way (16.8%) – all revolved around internal

camera meetings, messaging apps,

business processes. The use of technology in

and business tracking platforms

accounting practices should look vastly different today

• Virtual offices provide the opportunity

than it did in the 20th century. If practices haven’t

to hire the best talent, from anywhere,

updated their technology in a while, it can be daunting

rather than being limited to a geo-

to make significant changes all at once. Start small, with

demographic area

workflow management, automated document

• Go out of your way to be creative in order to build culture • Be intentional about technology 8 | w w w.oakstree tf un di ng.com • 8 4 4 - 3 4 3 - 1 4 2 8

gathering, or customer portals, then gradually incorporate technology into both your current day-today efforts and your strategic planning for the future.

You’re busy, but make time for your employees The pace of an accounting firm can ebb and flow, especially during tax season, but there is still opportunity to engage with employees, support them during this busy time, and be an excellent leader within the company. Managing processes is one way to help, like investing in time-saving software. “Everyone is keyed into each other’s work, and using the software, so we can continuously measure our workflow,” says Kevin Gienger, managing partner of Boldt Carlisle + Smith. Managers can also help employees control their hours, offer perks, offer flexible schedules, and have some fun.

Address clients’ retirement woes

by the AICPA, financial planners identify

Independent Contractor status may be over-leveraged

their clients’ top retirement fears as:

With the rapidly growing “gig” economy boosted by Uber® and

• Running out of money (30%)

similar business models, employee statuses listed as “Independent

• Not being able to maintain their

Contractors” (IC) are under review. Employers who hire ICs can

According to a recent study conducted

current lifestyle (28%)

eliminate expenses including some taxes, overtime, benefits, vacation,

• Health care costs (18%)

and insurance, among others. However, some employees believe they

Help clients get ahead of these

have been unfairly misclassified by being upheld to employee

concerns by adjusting inflation of

expectations, without those added benefits. To determine status, the

medical costs, building a detailed

long-used 20-factor test, can be grouped into 3 main categories:

budget, analyzing spending habits, and

• Behavioral control: Does the company control how the job is done?

seeking out supplemental long-term

• Financial control: Who controls the economics of the worker’s job?

care insurance.

• Relationship control: How do the parties perceive each other?

https://www.accountingtoday.com/news/accounting-firms-go-virtual https://www.accountingtoday.com/opinion/why-accountants-need-to-be-data-storytellers?feed=00000158-20c0-d6a2-adfb-70e9516c0000 https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/firm-management/article/12441287/process-improvement-and-working-with-clients-digitally https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/newsletters/2019/mar/be-great-boss-busy-season.html https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/news/2019/feb/top-retirement-fears-201920387.html https://www.cpajournal.com/2019/02/11/employee-versus-independent-contractor/

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CONNECT WITH YOURSELF Meet your personal and professional goals

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Do you enjoy your work? Are you genuinely happy when you walk into the office? Is your life turning out to be what you envisioned? Does each day and each client interaction help you grow into the person you want to be?

Questions like these might seem odd in a business publication, but they’re very important to our success at work and our overall satisfaction. After all, life is made up of a constant stream of decisions, experiences, successes, and failures, and we move forward largely based upon the lessons we learn from all of them.

You can have a strong set of skills, remarkable intelligence, the gift of easily connecting with others, and abundant financial resources – but if you want to be a truly effective leader and professional, one of the most important characteristics you need is self-awareness. After all, nobody has a greater influence on what you do and accomplish than you.

Taking the time to reflect on your life, your work, your values, and your goals can be difficult and sobering, which is why so many people just plug away on autopilot without giving those things a second thought. Stopping periodically to better understand yourself will help you achieve continual growth.1 Self-reflection can be an important tool, no matter where you are in your career. Taking time out to review your past, analyzing how your experiences brought you to this place, considering where you stand now, and thinking about your goals will help you focus your energy in the most effective way and minimize the chance that you’ll respond to coming challenges in ways that get in the way of growth and success.2 In simple terms, self-reflection helps you clarify where you are and where you want to go. When you know these things, you can develop short- and longterm goals that will give you a path to where you want to be, rather than simply leaving it up to chance.3 Goals are important and beneficial. A report called “New Directions in GoalSetting Theory” noted that the progress we make toward our goals is a major predictor of our feelings of well-being and success in our work.4 Having clearly defined goals accomplishes two things: it motivates you to move toward your goals and it gives you a way to measure your progress.5

Strengths

Self-reflection can be an important tool, no matter where you are in your career.

Self-reflection provides an excellent way to start developing your goals. It lets you take a break from your busy schedule and the time you spend serving the needs of others, so you can focus instead on yourself. When you self-reflect, you concentrate on your past actions, your successes, mistakes you’ve made, and your beliefs and character. Reflecting involves taking time to examine each of these thoughtfully. Rather than simply remembering what happened, you can explore why it happened and how your actions played into it. Given a chance to go through the same situations again, what would you do differently? What should you have noticed that escaped your attention? You can question yourself in a constructive way that will help you sharpen your skills and become more effective. 6 Make sure you block out enough time for your self-reflection, so you’re not distracted by work that has to get done or checking the time to make sure you’re not late to a meeting. Also choose a location where you’re comfortable and won’t be disturbed. And turn your phone off, too.7 We created the worksheet at right to help you start the process. Review it before you begin reflecting to ensure that the questions address what matters most to you. And be sure to write your responses down, because that will create a document you can review later and use as a measurement for your success in achieving your goals.

1 Cebollero, Chris, “It’s the Season for Self-Reflection,” forbes.com, December 14, 2018.

2 “How important is goal setting and reflection for your career?,” npowerjobs.com, March 24, 2016 3 Commission on Dietetic Registration, “Professional Self-Reflection Portfolio Guide,” undated.

4 “New Directions in Goal-Setting Theory”, Edwin A. Locke, Gary P. Latham, October 1, 2006 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2006.00449.x 5 npowerjobs.com, op. cit.

6 Cebollero, op. cit.

7 ibid.

My top two personal strengths are: 1.

2.

My top two professional strengths are: 1.

2.

My clients would describe me using words like: My colleagues would describe me using words like: Weakness My two biggest personal weaknesses are: 1.

2.

My two biggest professional weaknesses are: 1.

2.

The one weakness I wish to improve this year is: I will do these two things to improve: 1.

2.

Joys My biggest joy in my personal life is: My biggest joy in my professional life is: In my work, I primarily enjoy: I wish I had more time to: Accomplishments My proudest accomplishment of the past 10 years is: My proudest accomplishment in the last year is: I believe my proudest accomplishment in the coming year will be: The Future I expect to retire by: My retirement dream is to: My Goals for Next Year My two professional goals are: 1.

2.

My two personal goals are: 1.

2.

degreesn separatio

Good employee

relationships can relieve stress, keep employees coming back every day, and improve engagement throughout the company.

12 | w ww.o akstree tf un di ng.com

During their professional career, most people tend to spend a third of their life (or more) at work. Because humans are by nature social creatures, it makes sense to establish relationships with your colleagues to enhance your life. 82% of full-time employees consider about a third of their total colleagues as friends.

Employees who have friends are more likely to be engaged and productive. One study determined that those employees who have a “best friend” at work are seven times as likely to be engaged in their jobs, are better at engaging customers, produce higher quality work, have higher well-being, and are less likely to get injured on the job. However, those without a “best friend” have just a 1 in 12 chance of being engaged.

The benefits of relationships in the workplace aren’t just limited to having friends. Idle chit-chat may also be valuable to productivity, as even small increases in social cohesiveness lead to large gains in production.

Good employee relationships can relieve stress, keep employees coming back every day, and improve engagement throughout the company. So what can you do to strengthen the bonds with your peers and encourage your employees to interact with their coworkers? Consider the following as suggestions to dissolve the distance between associates and encourage a more successful and healthy workplace.

1. Know everyone’s name. It begins with welcoming new employees through introductions. Although starting a new job can be daunting and remembering everyone’s name intimidating, it spawns acknowledging the value that each employee brings to the overall success of the organization. Continued opportunity to learn more about colleagues will encourage interpersonal growth.

2. Facilitate opportunities through food and activities. Although water-cooler talk can result in further streamlined collaborations, intentional gatherings afford the opportunity for even larger gains in relationships.

Where there is food- be it a potluck, a sponsored lunch, or a snack bar- people

will flock. Relationships can be built further at activities outside of work, where employees can feel free to bring their full selves to the table. Numerous and varied options will really provide the opportunity to join, including volunteer time, walking or gym clubs, or happy hour events.

3. Remember virtual employees.

With increased technology comes the opportunity for work to be accomplished outside of the office. Virtual or remote employees can easily feel disconnected from their team, since they aren’t there for the parties, events, or interpersonal events.

Do what you can to keep them engaged, including cross-departmental projects, video-conferencing opportunities, and by bringing them to the corporate office on a regular or annual basis.

4. Stay positive and celebrate.

Work can be stressful, but that doesn’t mean we need to linger on the negative effects. Rather, a positive and realistic outlook on opportunities, performance, and teamwork leads to further support within the company. Find the time to celebrate the great things happening, like anniversaries, achievements, babies, and birthdays. Recognizing and sharing joy in these successes and milestones will build connections and boost morale.

5. Practice good conflict resolution. Sometimes even the best intentions can’t prevent conflict in a work environment. Left unresolved, conflicts can simmer, escalate, build resentment, or turn into a serious issue.

Distributing a respectful and constructive conflict resolution policy enables everyone at the company to proactively feel empowered to handle conflict and less likely to avoid issues when they arise, avoiding lingering tension that can be detrimental to relationships.

6. Share knowledge. If employees have different skillsets, travel to conferences, are constantly learning new things, or have personal hobbies that may be interesting or useful to colleagues, set time aside for knowledge sharing. Not only does this provide an opportunity for colleagues to get to know each other, but it will enable employees to become more well-rounded in their professional lives as well.

Olivet Nazarene University, “Research on Friends at Work,” online.olivet.edu/news/research-friends-work, undated.

Rath, T. (2006). Vital friends: The people you can’t afford to live without. New York: Gallup Press.

Economist.com. (2008, August 20). Technology Monitor. Every move you make. Retrieved September 22, 2009, from www.economist.com/ science/tm/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11957553

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Brian Henson, Oak Street Funding Brian Henson is the Director of Underwriting, Strategic Markets at Oak Street Funding.

If you have questions about underwriting to support your business goals, we encourage you to connect with Brian. Here he shares his thoughts on working with an underwriter through the loan application process. first transaction so you can be wellpositioned to execute upon the other four transactions you’re planning. It’s very beneficial for the underwriter to really know the business’s goals over the next 12 months, five years, etc. When we are looking at a potential transaction, we make some suggestions, like “Here are some things we didn’t know about your business, but here is an idea on financing for how we can best support your plan, or have you ever considered this potential structure?”

What is it like working with you? First and foremost, it’s probably pretty zany, but at the end of the day, I’m trying to really develop a deep relationship with you, and at the same time, realize that the ultimate goal is success for everyone. We should try to enjoy ourselves while we do business.

So if we can have a lot of fun while we partner and do business, it makes life easier for everyone.

I like underwriting because I get to work with all types of different people, but without all the sales goals. [laughs.]

How is underwriting different at Oak Street Funding?

At Oak Street Funding, there is a realization that underwriting is a very vital role to the overall performance of the company, and because of that, underwriters are given some additional responsibilities. Everyone on the Oak Street team- including sales, processing, and legal- realize how important underwriting is to getting things accomplished, bringing on new relationships, and creating a great dynamic from the front of the house to the back of the house. If you think of your sales rep as your advocate and the leader in the first half of the lending process, I believe your underwriter should be the leader and your advocate for the second half of the process.

With other types of lenders, underwriting can be an adversarial process, with an attitude like “I have to get this through underwriting” or “I have to explain this to my underwriter.”

Here, we’ve started your request with our team-based approach, and although there may be some questions along the way, material issues should have been uncovered by underwriting during the initial review; we should already be familiar with you.

What advice do you have for working with an underwriter?

An underwriter is not looking for reasons to not do a transaction. When we ask questions or for personal specific details, we’re not trying to attack you or poke holes, but rather trying to accurately determine the complete risk of your deal.

It’s a goal of our team to ensure we’re underwriting and structuring your deal to not only fit within our structure but to benefit the overall strategy of your business. For example, we’re making sure we’re not overleveraging you on the

Just always keep in mind we’re asking all these questions not because we’re underwriting to a “No” or looking for reasons to kill a deal, we’re trying to get the best structure for you that we can approve.

How would you define a “good connection” with your borrowers?

It really comes down to trustworthiness and our specific experience working with many CPAs. As analysts, we are hopeful that you see we speak your language and understand the functionality of your business and industry as a whole. If that trust factor is established initially, it helps for the underwriting, ongoing relationship for future transactions, and predictive analysis of financial performance.

Are you ready to connect with Brian?

You can reach him at brian.henson@ oakstreetfunding.com or 317-428-3843.

ACROSS 1. _________ Boomers 4. remote employee 7. small talk 11. cut in

ACROSS: 1. baby 4. virtual 7. chitchat 11. interrupt 16. self reflection 17. customer 18. gen 20. superficial 21. long term 22. refresh 23. autopilot 24. trust DOWN: 2. attitude 3. network 5. accomplishment 6. retire 8. referral 9. best friend 10. mutuality 12. database 13. potluck 14. linkedin 15. word of mouth 19. comment 21. lazy

16. analysis of your past 17. _________service 18. _ ________Xers

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21. ant. Short-term 22. reinvigorate

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23. plug away without thought

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24. rely on the truthfulness of

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DOWN

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2. state of mind 3. web of contacts

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5. achievement 6. stop; withdraw from

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8. advised connection 9. closest confidante

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10. rely on each other

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12. collection of data 13. pitch-in meal

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14. professional social networking site 15. verbal marketing strategy 19. make an observation 21. slothful

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