Over the last few weeks there’s been chatter in the industry about a lender in the mortgage space deciding to no longer offer trailer fees. The lender in question articulated their rationale for doing so, and it’s not for me to question their decision or pass judgement. Over the last two weeks I’ve been asked the following two questions, on a number of occasions.  Firstly, what do I think about their decision? Secondly, are we contemplating the same?  The answer to the first question is “Interesting, but I don’t really care”.  The answer the second question, “Absolutely not”.

The notion that Merix might consider revisiting its core value proposition, and no longer offer trailer fees to mortgage brokers, would only come to pass if Merix decided to rip the soul out of the company. Trailer fees are a part of the Merix DNA.  Trailer fees are what set Merix apart from its competitors. Merix is the pioneer of trailer fees. We can debate the economic merits of trailer fees versus being paid up front. But one thing that is not up for debate is the commitment Merix has to trailer fees. I’m not one to say “never”, but as I sit here today, in the role that I occupy, trailers are here to stay. (more…)

At MERIX we always try to come up with creative ways to enhance our employee’s professional development.  We believe that our employees can learn from each other. But it’s also important not to fall into the echo chamber trap. External experiences and business models are great way to learn. It’s for that reason we chose to hold the MERIX Sales and Planning Session this year at Disney, in Orlando Florida.

While Disney may seem like an unusual place to take employees for personal development and business planning, I beg to differ. I can’t think of any organization which is more committed to the customer experience than Disney. Their business purpose is to create happiness. That’s not my choice of words but rather Disney’s. As a group we learned about Disney’s business purpose when we attended a full day training course facilitated by Disney, I am always eager to learn from others, and we can all learn from some of Disney’s business practices. Their attention to detail and commitment to “creating happiness” is remarkable. They live it, they breath it, they believe it. Maybe I’ll share some of my learning’s in future blogs.

The second reason I didn’t think it was unusual to come Disney is because I believe learning should be fun. It’s rare for adults to go to Disney without children in tow. Every once in a while it’s fun for adults to be kids again. So go on Space Mountain as many times as you like..eat all the cotton candy or gigantic turkey legs you want…beam when getting your picture taken with Mickey or Snow White.  Reality waits when we get home.

I want to thank Genworth Financial and D+H for sharing and being a part of our event at Disney.  Creating positive employee memories is a unique challenge. Having Mickey and Minnie join us at our welcome reception, followed by two days of learning, and ending with a day at the theme park, well, we just may have overcome the challenge.

 Until next time,

 Cheers.

This is one of my favorite times of the year.  I’m about to take part in what has become a marker of history for MERIX.  Every year since inception we gather as group to reflect on the past twelve months but more importantly focusing on the future.  It’s the one time of year where we gather to share ideas, to council, motivate and enjoy eachother’s company. We’ve taken our gathering across our country, and last year we converged on the city of San Francisco.  This year?  We gather in our nation’s capital.  When I asked the organizers of the event why Ottawa?  The answer was simple, not everyone on the team has been to Ottawa. So Ottawa it is.  

I’ll be with the MERIX team for the remainder of the week, which is code for I’ll get back to regular blog posts next week.  For the next few days I get to spend time with an inspiring group of people from across our country.  

Until next time,

Cheers.

The official first day of spring aside, there’s plenty of signs that spring is here; for example the weather.  The weather is a favorite conversation piece for Canadian’s.  Is it hot enough for you?  Is it cold enough for you?  Of course if you live in Ontario you can’t mention temperatures without referencing wind-chill factor or the humidex, it really feels like, (fill in the appropriate number).  It’s a weather inferiority complex that people of Ontario suffer from.  It always has to be colder or hotter, irrespective of where anyone else lives in Canada.  Oh hell, the entire world.  So I won’t go on about the temp’s but it does really feel like spring.  Plenty of sunshine and some golf courses are opening up.  Speaking of golf, you know spring is here once the Masters Golf tournament comes to an end.  It’s always sign for me that in very short order I will get a chance to work on my ulcer and ask myself why I like to play this stupid game.  Greatest book tittle I ever came across was, “Golf, A Good Walk Spoiled”.   My spring internal radar is a little off given that the Toronto Maple Leafs are about to qualify for the NHL play-offs.  The mind and body needs time to adjust to that shock because play-off hockey for the local team is foreign in these parts.  But the surest sign that spring is here is the level of activity in our industry.

Try as big brother might, it’s hard to keep a good industry down.  Sure, there’s been an impact because of the regulatory changes but you can tell by the recent vibrancy in the industry that we will all find a way to make things work.  The “we” I’m referring to is the collective “we”.  The activity levels, as well as the results, have picked up at MERIX.  No magic reason why.  It’s as simple as saying, “enough with the focusing on what we can’t control, and only focusing on what we can”.  It’s amazing what happens when everyone starts to buy into that.  Crutches and excuses are discarded, and the focus and conversations are squarely directed at solutions and innovation.  That’s contagious, and everyone can feed off of that.  Kudos to our communications department who came up with the MERIX 30 days of innovation.  It’s a fun way to connect with our customers, the mortgage brokers, for 30 days in a row in the hopes that we can bring some ideas that may assist our customers.  On Monday we launched our first video, and based on the feedback we’ve received already…I think we’re on the right track.  In the event that you missed it, here’s the video.  And here’s to a great spring market, and here’s bringing our attention to  what we can control.

Until next time,

Cheers.

Growth is something we should all focus on.  For MERIX, we’re focused on growth in terms of numbers and market share but also professional and personal growth, creative and strategic growth – for MERIX growth is our Kool-aid.  When looking for inspiration and what growth means for MERIX, I didn’t have to look far.

We’ve had the opportunity to get to know (and I use that term very lightly) the professional alpine skier – Larisa Yurkiw.  Her goal of competing at the Olympic games was shattered due to a severe knee injury which severely set her back (watch her inspiring video below).  She pushed through and is now working harder than possible to achieve her dream of being a medal contender in Sochi 2014.  She’s got guts and she has the heart of a champion. All she wants is another shot at the Olympics, and a chance to represent Canada.  Larisa embodies the type of resilience and spirit that is akin to MERIX.  We may be a small fish swimming amongst the whales and we realize have hurdles to jump and hills to climb – but we’re not afraid of hard work, taking risks and finding solutions – MERIX isn’t going anywhere.

Through our winter campaign we’ve stood behind her and tracked her progress.  We would like to thank our MERIX originators who have generously supported this cause, with your help we have raised $5000!

Larisa has generously agreed to share a few of her own thoughts on the topic…

I’m writing this from Squaw Valley, California.  It’s an absolute dream here.  Often the perception of the glamorous lives of athletes is inaccurate.. but not here.  Today we ski raced in the morning and played beach volleyball this afternoon.  I have a heart full of gratitude for the opportunity to spend a week with great teammates and the chance to use up a handful of nerves for the races.

As I think of ways to explain my personal growth, having heard this is a current theme for MERIX Financial, my mind wanders to what I didn’t do.  That’s the truth.  I’m my worst critic.  I know this unrelenting pursuit of ‘more’ has driven me hard to achieve my goals.  But I am slowly learning to be a better friend to myself.

This past season has begun to teach me about soaring in a whole new light.  I’m growing because I’m friends with the challenges that have been my teachers.  They’ve hurt me and often shifted my focus in a negative way… but, for the most part, they are positively affecting my life.  It has taken a long time to recognize why words like perseverance and courage had to be redefined for me… I thought I knew enough about them, but growth is so powerful.  For me, growth is movement.  Everything from moving through a frustrating weekend of racing to moving through a turn on my skis at 130km/h, opportunities present themselves everywhere.

On paper, I would think some of my staff have seen little to no growth in me since my injury and 2-year break from sport.  On paper.  But I know that it was my injury, precisely, that guided me to learn lessons, meet certain people and look a little further within, that has made me so much more powerful.  With a few more lessons on patience, I’m going to find out real soon how far I’ve come and how far I can go with this journey.

MERIX, thank you for joining me on this adventure.  I feel confident that each of you can relate on many levels.  Let’s see how far we can go!

 - Larisa

http://www.larisayurkiw.com

https://twitter.com/larisaYurkiw