I had the pleasure of working with Quicken Loans (see the Quicken Loans blog here) in the summer of 2007 and have to say, they get it. Their level of awareness, agility in the marketplace, understanding of relationship marketing, corporate philosophy and culture, and level of innovation is second to only Google. But don’t take it from me – that’s according to FORTUNE’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” In America List. Quicken Loans IS #2.
As far as I know, they are the only financial services company that’s on twitter, has numerous blogs, gives away free credit reports (no SNN or credit card required) via Quizzle, proposes solutions to the financial crisis, wins word of mouth marketing awards (for mortgages, too – not the most exciting thing to talk about), publishes reviews, and isn’t going through massive layoffs.
However, what’s really great about Quicken Loans is their philosophy to business. Instead of having stuffy titles or a corporate mission statement, they live by ISMs. These “ISMs” are published below and are a must read for anyone in business.
Always raising our level of awareness. We expect all team members to notice what’s going on around them. This way, the two eyes of the CEO are joined by the eyes of a few thousand team members – all watching over our company.
The inches we need are everywhere around us. Opportunities for us to make a difference are everywhere, and usually they’re found in the little things. Everything we do matters. Every second of every day counts and you can never get them back. They all add up. If we keep our eyes open we’ll see that the little things – the “inches” we need – are everywhere around us. It’s 1,001 of these little things, or inches, that add up to WHO we are.
Responding with a sense of urgency is the ante to play. On this team, we return all phone calls and e-mails the same day. Not just to clients and partners, but to each other! We kill each other with courtesy…and very quickly.
Every client. Every time. No exceptions. No excuses. Could we be any clearer? This company is built one client at a time and every client deserves to be “wowed” every chance you get.
Obsessed with finding a better way. Our mission is a never-ending quest to find a better way for every process and everything we touch. If it’s good, let’s make it great. If it’s great, let’s take it to an even higher level. Don’t settle for less. In fact, don’t settle at all. “Finding a better way” is not something we do on the side or when we get time. Rather, it’s the primary job for every single person who works here. It’s our passion… our way of living… our obsession.
Ignore the noise. Will you allow noise to keep you from winning? Noise could be from naysayers, something going wrong, sun in your eyes, ball took a bad bounce, dog ate your homework, someone cut you off on the way to work, etc. The noise may fluctuate in volume, but your determination to press on in spite of it (ignore it!) will make all the difference to you and our company.
It’s not about WHO is right, it’s about WHAT is right. It doesn’t matter where ideas come from in our family, what matters is which idea is the right idea. In our flat organization, great input and feedback can come from everywhere. Egos (or lack thereof) are checked at the door. If the Chairman and CEO are wrong and the “new guy” is right, then the new guy’s idea or point of view is followed.
We are the “they.” There is no “they”. “They” does not exist. “We” are all the “they”. One team. United. All in this mission together.
You have to take the roast out of the oven. Wrap it up. Finish the job. Execute! Over-analyzing can kill an idea and possibly make you miss an opportunity.
You’ll see it when you believe it. Do you believe it? Then you can make it happen. It doesn’t work the other way around.
Numbers and money follow; they do not lead. Don’t chase money. Chase the skills that will make you great at what you are doing or what you are building. Become an expert. Become the best. When you are clear about your goal then you can focus heavily on achieving it. And guess what? With enough hard work, what you focus on you usually find. Then, and only then, do the good numbers and/or the good money show up. In other words, focus on the dream. The vision. Pursue it with uncompromising passion and the numbers and money follow you. Chasing the numbers and money first will leave you chasing your tail!
A penny saved is a penny. Choose to make your time valuable. Spend it chasing pennies and you will find pennies. Spend your time on ideas and innovation, and you will find a lot more than pennies.
We eat our own dog food. We just might if we were in the dog food business. Here, we start with good people – who bring in other good people – who refer us to even more good people looking for home loans. We should be our company’s biggest fans!
Simplicity is Genius. We don’t need to be complicated to be great. Communicating without the vagueness and muddiness is the only way: to our clients, to our vendors, to each other. Are we clear?
Innovation is rewarded. Execution is worshipped. A great idea is just the first step. The real magic is bringing that idea to life with great execution.
Do the right thing. The high road is not a short cut. Stick to the highest standard of integrity, without compromise. And remember, character is what you do when no one is looking over your shoulder!
Every second counts. Time, not money, is the most valuable commodity of all. It can never be replaced. What will you choose to do with the 31,536,000 seconds you get each year?
We’ll figure it out. Not everything comes with a set of instructions. So when a challenge stares you in the face that isn’t exactly in life’s handbook, have confidence in yourself and your team that there IS a solution, and you’re gonna be the guys to figure it out. No matter what it is or how long it takes, with innovation, the will to succeed, and our heads held high, together we will overcome.
Do you have an ISM? Tell me about it below.
