In this episode of Accrued a FinTech Confidential series presented by LoanPro, hosts Tedd Huff and Colton Pond speak with Alex Rhodes, the Chief Operating Officer of Best Egg. Alex shares insights into the strategies that have made Best Egg a strong player in the personal finance industry.
Throughout the discussion, Alex emphasizes how the company focuses on customers, improves efficiency, and adapts to changes in the market.
Best Egg has grown significantly since its start in 2014. Alex explains that one of the key factors behind this growth is the company's commitment to understanding and serving its customers. By listening to what borrowers need and being flexible with repayment plans, Best Egg has been able to keep its customers satisfied and loyal.
This focus on customer experience has helped them create services that meet the needs of people from different financial backgrounds.
One of the standout points Alex mentions is how Best Egg adjusted during the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time, many people faced financial challenges, and the company responded by offering flexible repayment options to help borrowers manage their loans. This approach not only helped customers during a difficult time but also strengthened the relationship between the company and its clients.
Alex also touches on how Best Egg uses technology to improve both the efficiency of its operations and the experience of its customers. For example, they have created self-service tools that allow customers to manage their loans online. This means borrowers can adjust their payments or check their account details whenever they need to, without having to contact customer service. By making the loan process easier and more convenient, Best Egg has increased customer satisfaction while also reducing costs.
Looking forward, Alex predicts that data and personalization will play a big role in the future of lending. He believes that companies will need to use customer data to offer more tailored services that meet individual needs. This shift could make the lending process more efficient and more responsive to what customers want. While some may see this as a challenge, Alex views it as an opportunity for Best Egg to continue to grow and succeed.
Best Egg's focus on its employees also contributes to its success. Alex explains that the company works hard to ensure that its staff feels valued and supported. By keeping employee turnover low, Best Egg maintains a workforce that is experienced and dedicated to providing excellent service. This, in turn, benefits the company’s customers, as they receive help from knowledgeable and motivated employees.
Throughout the episode, Alex also discusses how the company uses advanced technology like artificial intelligence (AI) to improve its operations. For example, AI can help streamline certain tasks, allowing employees to focus on more important aspects of their work. This use of technology not only improves efficiency but also enhances the overall experience for both employees and customers.
Alex wraps up the conversation by reflecting on what lies ahead for the lending industry. He believes that personalization, the effective use of data, and a continued focus on customer service will be key factors that separate successful companies from the rest. While there will always be challenges, Best Egg is well-positioned to continue meeting the needs of its customers and growing as a company.
In summary, this episode provides a thorough look at how Best Egg has managed to succeed in a competitive industry. By focusing on customer experience, using technology to improve efficiency, and investing in its employees, the company has built a strong foundation for future success. As the lending industry evolves, Best Egg’s ability to adapt and remain customer-focused will likely keep it at the forefront of personal lending.
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Episode Transcript
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Tedd Huff (00:01):
Welcome to FinTech Confidential, bringing you the
people, tech, and companies thatchange how you pay and get paid.
Today, we are extremely fortunateto have Alex Rhodes, the Chief
Operating Officer at Best Egg.
The business begins to evolve,you really start to understand.
The product that you are offering,who you are serving and, uh,
(00:24):
the difference that you can makein the lives of your customers.
And so, um, what I would say is throughoutthe course of the last 10 years, we are
still, you know, very business minded,but we understand our customer, we listen
to our customers and we pay attention.
I think price is important tocustomers to an extent, but service,
ease and flexibility are thingsthat customers highly value.
(00:45):
We are the most flexible by way ofpayment arrangements in the FinTech space.
Whether it's selecting a personalizedpayment schedule at the time a
customer gets a loan with us orwhen life happens to customers.
They, they happen upon afinancial hardship and so talk
about ruthless prioritization.
We prioritized and focused.
on getting these customers the supportand flexibility that they needed to
(01:09):
get back to to paying on their loans.
Um, and so in record time,it was a matter of weeks.
We were able to, uh, from, fromconcepts through to implementation
and in production build,uh, two repayment programs.
Uh, and you know, if I were to fastforward six to eight months after
(01:31):
That, that period, it was, it was justa little blip in the, in the radar.
Personalization is goingto separate companies.
Customer loyalty is goingto separate companies.
So being able to attract consumersinto your ecosystem is, is step one.
Maintaining that.
That relationship going forward, servingthat customer's needs over a longer
(01:53):
period of time is going to be critical.
As default rates continue to riseand margins compressed at lending,
financial organizations are searchingfor solutions to combine that
operational efficiency with innovation.
Look no further as LoanPro allows lendersto enhance their origination, servicing,
collections, and payments using thefoundation of a modern lending core.
(02:16):
Check out LoanPro.
io to learn more.
Welcome to Accrued, the fintechconfidential series presented by LoanPro.
In this series, we're deconstructing thecomplexities of lending and exploring
compliance, optimization, modernization,and personalization through insightful
(02:39):
conversations with the industry's best.
I'm Ted Huff with my co hostColton Pond, guiding you through
the intricate lending world.
Whether you're deep into lendtech or just intrigued by how the
technology is reshaping lending,you're in the right place.
Now let's dive into another episode.
Of accrued Colton, welcome, Backman.
(03:00):
I am so excited to have Alex on today.
Colton Pond (03:02):
I'm stoked for Alex too.
I, I did mention this.
Ted, you're missing the vest.
I really wish that youwould wear a vest today.
We can do the finance vest thing, but hey,
Tedd Huff (03:10):
I'll, I'll, I'll accept a loan pro vest, man.
, Colton Pond: I'll, I'll send you,
I'll accept one.
Colton Pond (03:14):
Yeah, I'll, I'll get it shipped to your address.
I got you.
Tedd Huff (03:17):
Today we are extremely fortunate to have Alex Rhodes, the Chief
operating Officer at Best Egg, and he's.
Bringing over 20 years of experiencein business strategy and operations
to the table for us to talk about.
And his track record is nothingshort of being impressive.
Before joining Best Egg, Alex honed hisexpertise in various roles, In leadership
(03:40):
across the financial industry, includingpositions at major financial institutions.
You might've heard about beforelike Barclay Card Bank of America.
Those are very unusual companiesyou may not have ever heard of, but
his deep knowledge of credit andcustomer experience and operational
management has been a major cornerstoneof his success at Barclay Card.
(04:04):
Alex led the U S collections and recoveryoperations where he was responsible
for overseeing recovery strategies forconsumer and small business lending.
He later moved on to bank of Americawhere he managed supply chain operations
and vendor control functions and hisability to navigate these complex
operational challenges made him anatural fit for leadership roles.
(04:27):
And it wasn't long.
Before he was recruitedby Best Egg in 2014.
Since then, he's been at the forefrontof Best Egg's transformation from
a fledgling fintech startup to amajor, major player in the industry.
And as the COO, he has overseen thecompany's operational growth, leading
to the management of over 23, 000.
(04:49):
billion dollars in personal loans.
His strategic vision has been a keyto scaling best eggs operations,
which is now servicing over 1.
6 million accounts.
In today's conversation, we'lldive into how Alex's extensive
background and operational expertisehave shaped best egg success.
(05:10):
We'll explore the strategies he's employedto ensure Best Egg remains nimble,
customer focused and ahead of the curve inthis rapidly evolving financial landscape.
So let's dive into the insightsand decisions that have
positioned Alex and Best Egg asleaders in the fintech industry.
Welcome Alex.
Hopefully that was goodenough for you my friend.
Ted,
Alex Rhodes (05:29):
that was awesome, fantastic, big round of applause
for you just for the intro.
Uh, Couldn't be happier to be here withyou, Ted, uh, and my good friend, Colton.
So, uh, looking forwardto the conversation.
Tedd Huff (05:40):
Colton, you, you had talked about, and you and I have
been talking about this a lot, butthere's a lot of really cool stuff
that Alex and the team over at bestegg are doing, what was it that.
That you saw that they're doing thatmade you go, I've got to get them on
the podcast and share what's going on.
Colton Pond (05:58):
There's several aspects.
So I'm a little biased.
They say, don't have a favorite customer.
Best eggs, a customer of ours.
How about a favorite Alex, Alex is one of
Alex Rhodes (06:08):
my favorite
Colton Pond (06:09):
people to work with.
I remember when I joined.
Uh, LonePro, I worked in Best Eggat a prior organization too, or with
Best Egg at a prior organization.
But Rhett, he was like, you gottameet Best Egg, you gotta meet Alex.
I remember one time we wentthere, we played 2 on 2 basketball
all night, and Alex is like aprofessional basketball player.
So, if anyone ever wants to like, seeAlex at a conference and challenge him
(06:31):
to a basketball game, Alex Johnson.
He plays a good amount of basketball.
I think a one on one, uh, Alex Rhodesand Alex Johnson would be entertaining,
but Alex is great to have you, man.
Alex Rhodes (06:41):
Anytime.
Thank you, Colton.
Tedd Huff (06:43):
So you're, you're talking about an A to A basketball tournament.
That's what I'm hearing.
Colton Pond (06:46):
I'm challenged.
We're to send this Alex Johnsonand tell him that Alex Rhodes
wants to play him in basketball.
Let's do it.
Tedd Huff (06:52):
Well, we're not here to talk about basketball, but we are here to
talk about Alex and what's going on overat best egg Alex, for those who are not
familiar with best egg, can you give us.
A brief synopsis over you joiningthe organization and what the
overall journey for the past10 years has been for best day.
Alex Rhodes (07:13):
So for myself, uh, I, I joined best egg, uh, very
close to launch about 10 yearsago, a little over 10 years ago.
Um, I had cut my teeth in the industryin, uh, in major financial institutions.
Like you said, you know, the bank ofAmerica is the barkers of the world.
Um, And had phenomenal experiencesthere, uh, finished grad school,
(07:34):
um, and was kind of at a bit of acrossroads for myself and my own career.
And, uh, this opportunitypresented itself.
Um, and so I went from abeautiful office building, uh,
on the Wilmington waterfront.
To a not so beautiful, uh, office buildingup on Concord Pike here in Delaware.
And, uh, uh, joined a, a small groupof people with a vision and a dream for
(07:57):
the future of, um, personal lending.
Uh, so super exciting time.
We, we launched the business in, uh,2014, early 2014 and, um, Launched
with our flagship product today,which is our personal loan business.
Uh, we went from.
No loans, uh, obviously at, at, atlaunch to, uh, today, uh, originating
(08:22):
over 30 billion in loans andserving over 2 million customers.
Um, uh, along with that, my numbers were
Tedd Huff (08:29):
a little low, too low.
Yeah, I know.
Alex Rhodes (08:34):
I like numbers that impress you, Ted.
I wanted to impress you with some numbers.
I know 30 billion doesn't sound like alot, but here in little old Delaware,
uh, it is, uh, it's quite the feat.
And so, um, over, over the courseof the last 10 years, we've had
ups and downs in the business.
The, the, uh, economy and our customerbase have had ups and downs, but.
We have persevered and, uh, today, uh,again, have this, this, uh, this flagship
(08:59):
personal loan business that is servinglots of needs for our target customer,
which is a limited savings customer.
Um, and, uh, we have recently introduced,uh, several new products to help
serve even a broader set of customers.
So.
We have a, a auto lending product.
We have a rent product that worksa bit like buy now pay later
(09:20):
for, uh, our customers rent.
Um, and we also have a homesecured product, so lots of good
things happening at best egg.
Colton Pond (09:29):
Love that.
So Alex, one of my favorite thingsof, uh, FinTech folks that are early
on in the company is to extract andunderstand key learnings and takeaways
because when you're there in that, uh,not so nice building with a handful
of people with a vision, right?
Through that journey now, now on atremendous growth trajectory, you
(09:52):
learn a lot, help us understandthe key takeaways, the learnings,
the insights that you have there.
Alex Rhodes (09:58):
You are fighting for survival very early on in any business's life.
Um, and so it is, uh, it's about, uh,building a foundation for a strong
business, um, ensuring that you'regetting to profitability within, you
know, a, uh, an acceptable period of time.
Once you get through that, um, thatperiod, it is, at least from my
(10:21):
perspective, it's about customer focus.
And so the business begins to evolve.
You really start to understand theproduct that you are offering, who you are
serving and, uh, the difference that youcan make in the lives of your customers.
And so, um, what I would say is.
Throughout the course of the last10 years, we, we have evolved as a
business, uh, to be, um, we are still,you know, very business minded, but we
(10:45):
understand our customer, we listen to ourcustomers and we build for our customers.
And so I think those aresome of the key learnings.
Um, That that have kind ofmarked a key transition point
in our business over time.
Tedd Huff (10:57):
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Colton Pond (11:17):
I love the focus on the customer.
So that's one like key magic point, right?
But one of my favorite things aboutbest egg is you'll play your flagship
product, personal lending, highlycompetitive, uh, space right now.
Right.
So what's the differentiators?
Like what really.
Impacts because certain folks try anddifferentiate based on rate and my view
(11:39):
is that's a losing game You got to findother key differentiators why people
come back to best state consistent
Alex Rhodes (11:45):
This is not in my mind a a commoditized business to your point.
This isn't just a widgetbusiness pushing business.
Um, we have a deep focus on customers.
We focus on what we know mattersmost to our customer base.
And so ease and flexibility are two ofthe main things that I would highlight.
Um, it is very easy toobtain a loan with us.
You know, we have a high digitalengagement level with our customers.
(12:08):
We provide a set of capabilities andchannels for them to Not only originate
their loans, but to service their loans.
Once they become a customer from anease standpoint, I can't underscore
enough how important it is tolisten to customers, build a simple
and easily understood process.
Colton Pond (12:28):
You talk about focusing on the customer.
And for my interactions with Best Egg,it comes out in all of your team members.
All your team members do that.
And I know that's a clear differentiator.
One of my favorite aspects about Best Eggis you're in a highly competitive market.
But you, you can't justdifferentiate based on price.
Like people try to, best statedoes a really good job at key.
Other differentiators help us understandthe magic and, and how and why
(12:49):
customers continue to come back to best
Alex Rhodes (12:51):
state.
I think price is important to customersto an extent service ease and flexibility
are things that customers highly value.
And so we've invested, um, a lot overthe years in enhancing our tech stack.
Ensuring that we are providing simpleand slick, uh, tech infrastructure and,
and capabilities for our customers tonot only obtain loans, but then to also
(13:13):
service their loans on the backend.
Um, from a flexibility standpoint, I thinkthis is really some of our secret sauce.
I would venture to say that weare the most flexible by way
of payment arrangements, um,in, in, in the FinTech space.
Whether it's selecting a personalizedpayment schedule at the time a customer
(13:33):
gets a loan with us, or when lifehappens to customers, they, they happen
upon a financial hardship or they,um, they otherwise need some, some
assistance with their monthly payments.
We have a broad suite of flexiblerepayment options that we're able to
offer customers to help them stay afloat.
Tedd Huff (13:50):
So Alex, as you talk about the technology, the flexibility, the service,
all these different pieces independently,they don't really do a whole lot.
It's when you bring them all togetherthat you really get that force multiplier.
Can you share with us anexample of how and when.
(14:11):
You bring all of those pieces together,
Alex Rhodes (14:13):
Ted.
I couldn't agree more thatcohesion of these different
capabilities matters a lot.
Uh, I'll talk about payment programs.
As an example, we, uh, have hadpayment programs since very early in
our history, but had not developeda full suite of options to really.
Meet different customers needs.
Um, over the course of time, we havedeveloped these capabilities where,
(14:38):
uh, we are able to meet a customerwhere they are, help them over, uh,
a financial hardship, regardlessof how long that hardship last.
It can be, you know, as little as a monthto as long as full term of the loan.
We were able to craft a repaymentprogram for that customer,
uh, to keep them on track.
(14:58):
So self service is really important to us,uh, specifically from a payment program
standpoint, because customers don't alwayswant to talk to someone over the phone
within the comfort of their own homeand the channel of their choice, they're
able to understand the options that areavailable to them and enroll in a payment
program that best fits their needs.
So, for example, a customer has anunexpected expense that comes up.
(15:20):
They can log into ourcustomer servicing website.
Understand the different flavors offlexible options available to them.
Enroll, modify their payment duedate and their payment amount.
Um, and seamlessly go back to paying infull once that payment program expires.
And so, uh, we found that thatproviding customers with that
level of choice and channelflexibility makes all the difference.
Tedd Huff (15:42):
So when you, when you talk about giving them the ability to meet
them where they're at and the channelthat they like to use, what have
you done that helps them understand?
But that's even available.
Alex Rhodes (15:56):
We are, um, big on constant customer engagement.
And so we don't wait untilwe see that a customer's
experiencing financial difficulty.
We, we routinely out pulse informationto our customers, whether it's through
our monthly newsletter or even moretargeted approaches to reach customers
that we think may be falling upon afinancial hardship to let them know
(16:17):
that there are options available.
Here are the multitude of channels whereyou can consume information and gain
knowledge about what we have to offer.
And again, we've seen lots of successwith customers going and self solving.
Look at the end of the day, somecustomers do want to reach out to us
directly and we'll, uh, happily havevoice, uh, conversations with folks.
But, um, we have found that,that customers gravitate towards
(16:39):
these, uh, digital solutions.
It's
Colton Pond (16:41):
actually directly an experience directly
relative related to best day.
I would say, I don't think I'veever shared this with you, but,
uh, Uh, but about six monthsago, we were trying to recruit a
sales member to come on our team.
And, uh, I remember we told him,yeah, he's like, who do you work with?
We're like, we work with Best Egg andIntuit and Chime and folks like that.
And he's like, Best Egg?
(17:01):
Interesting.
I had a really cool experiencewith Best Egg two years ago when
I was in a really hard time.
Got a personal loan.
I lost my job and I called in.
I said, Hey, I lost my job.
I don't know if I can make my nextpayment and like, Oh, no worry.
We can enroll you in this hardship programon this way in this payment program.
It's like, Oh, yeah, that'd be great.
And then there was kindof like an awkward pause.
(17:22):
And she's like, can I helpyou with anything else?
He's like, Oh yeah, could you do that?
I'll wait on hold.
And she was like, Oh, it's done.
And he was so blown away.
And when we told him, yeah, best,they use loan pros platform.
He was so blown away the best day.
He was like, you know what?
I need to work with this company.
So the work that you all are doing, theimpact that you're having with people
when they have a hard time, it's allabout like how to drive, you talk about
(17:44):
flexibility, how to drive flexibilityand meet the borrower and customer.
Where they're actually at.
Uh, when you tug on that string a littlebit more, you mentioned at the beginning,
best egg has done a really good jobfrom my perspective, launching new
products and new personalized productsand expanding and say, Hey, our flagship
product, and what are the other productsthat look at, how do you stay nimble?
How do you launch new products?
(18:06):
What's the secret and whatare y'all doing well there?
Alex Rhodes (18:08):
I would say that we have a culture of innovation.
We have a culture of customer insights,understanding customer needs and
then building for those customers.
And so from a nimble standpoint, ouroperating model is highly nimble.
I can speak for operations itself.
We have the ability based on howwe are structured to flex up and
(18:28):
flex down by way of FTE needs.
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Alex Rhodes (19:33):
say.
Platform standpoint, you have tohave a tech stack that enables you to
build new products that enables youto provide personalized functionality
that enables you to put powerfulinformation in the hands of your
frontline colleagues, uh, that thatallows them to better service customers.
And so, um, You know, it's, it's, uh,no surprise that we have the loan pro
(19:57):
platform that has been a differentiatorfor us and being able to launch new
products and service those products in away that allows us to impart the customer
experience that, that we know today.
Tedd Huff (20:08):
A lot of these things that you're talking about are like.
If you look at the traditional lendingspace, this is extremely innovative.
It's not something that everybodyis doing, you know, as you're
launching these products.
I mean, you listed off, I thinkthree or four, maybe five earlier.
I was trying to keep track, butyou were listing them off so fast.
(20:31):
You know, how, how do you ensure thatthe organization stays agile enough to
be responsive to the customers as youcontinue to grow into these new markets?
Alex Rhodes (20:42):
Two things I would, I would reference here, Ted.
One is we, we spend.
I won't say a lot of time, but we arevery focused on organizational alignment
and ensuring that our, our peopleknow where we are going in the future.
Um, we do that by, by, by setting, youknow, short and medium term goals and,
uh, the, the, uh, expectations or theresults that nest under those goals.
(21:08):
And so everyone understandswhere we are going.
I think that's critical in, uh, in, in,in, in being a nimble company, we are
highly focused, uh, on, on prioritization.
So we call it ruthless prioritization.
There is no lack of goodideas in this business.
Um, and it's difficult to say noto good ideas from time to time.
(21:28):
But we stay nimble because we stayhyper focused on what we know is
going to deliver the most value andwhat's most important to do today.
And so I think, you know, by aligning anorganization around common goals, common
outcomes and Uh, ruthlessly prioritizingon what's most important today.
We were able to move this ship a lotfaster than, you know, other businesses.
Colton Pond (21:51):
Alex, there's two aspects there.
And what I love about that is evenas you've grown tremendously from an
FTE perspective, from a loan volumeperspective, you've still maintained
limbo and while launching new products,which is a pretty cool feat in and of
itself, but there's two aspects here.
And a lot of companies think thatthey compete against each other.
(22:12):
But you and your operations rolehave found a way to like, both of
them go together and it's how do youfocus on the customer and provide a
best in class customer experience?
But how do you also driveoperational efficiency?
And sometimes companies will focus onoperational efficiency and it hurts
the customer or focus on the customerand hurts operational efficiency.
Um, how are y'all measuringoperational efficiency?
What that looks like?
(22:33):
And then, uh, what are someexamples of some things you've done?
That have helped drive increasedoperational efficiency in the business.
Alex Rhodes (22:39):
So we measure operational efficiency in a variety of different ways.
Um, you know, from a business standpoint.
We focus on our cost to serve our cost tooriginate from a customer standpoint, we
look at the level of effort that customershave to expend to get a job done, right?
So are we removingfriction out of processes?
(22:59):
Are we able to streamline servicing andmake it easy and simple for customers?
And so that's that's what we focus on.
I've never thought that.
You know, customer experience andoperational efficiency are at odds.
And I, I think I understand why youcan say that or why some may say that.
But for me, they work so closely together.
(23:21):
Um, if you do what is good for yourcustomer, which is generally going
to make things fast, simple, easy.
Easily understood you were goingto drive operational efficiency.
If you can increase self servicerates, um, provide a channel preference
like we talked about earlier.
Those are things that are goingto give you operating leverage.
So you don't have to havevoice conversations with the
(23:43):
whole of your customer base.
It's going to give youleverage as you grow, right?
Um, and so our, our servicingwebsite is scalable.
Our other servicing channels are alsoscalable, and that's, that's what's been
important for us to be able to yeah.
Become more and more efficient overtime while providing very rich, uh,
deeper experience for customers.
Tedd Huff (24:03):
You know, my, my career has mostly been product and operations.
So I'm hearing you go throughand talk about all of this.
And it just reminds meof the number one thing.
Anytime that I took over a productor a group, I would always, first
thing I'd always do is I'd gostraight to the support team.
Or to the support queue or to thesupport emails and look at what people
(24:26):
were asking for, for me to get anunderstanding of, of what wasn't working.
I would love for you to share somespecific examples of how you've
driven your operational efficiencywhile enhancing the borrower
experience without sacrificing.
Any of the benefits you provide.
Alex Rhodes (24:48):
Yeah.
So Ted, you mentioned, uh, you know, goingto the source as a bedrock to get ideas.
Could not agree more.
If you want lots and lots of greatideas on how you can improve in
operations, just get to a side byside with any of our agents, right?
They will tell you what is wrong with,you know, whether it's a telephony
system, they will tell you where youcan make enhancements for customers
(25:11):
and what customers are saying.
I don't think.
Customer experience suffers whenyou drive operational efficiency.
In fact, I think it's enhanced aswe drive operational efficiency.
Um, examples of things that we have doneattempting to drive parody in servicing
channels across each of our channels.
And so what you can do from a voiceperspective, you can do on the servicing
(25:32):
website, what you can, uh, uh, Do in chat.
You can do via SMS.
And so, um, driving parodyand servicing channels has has
been a game changer for us.
Um, it's listening to customers.
It's making data led decisions, right?
So if you have 10, 000 customersdropping out of the IVR for this call
(25:53):
type, How can you get ahead of that?
How can you be proactive as opposed tojust reactive and answering their calls?
Um, and so I think listening tocustomers being data led and, uh, again,
enhancing self service capabilitieshas made the difference for us.
Colton Pond (26:08):
I want to jump into one other specific aspect.
And because I've spoken with the Vestigteam at length, I know that this is a.
Big aspect of how you've really wowedyour customers and showed up for your
customers in meaningful way of we'vechatted at length about how your
customers were your first priority whenthe COVID pandemic hit and what you
did for your customers and what thatmeant and the impact that that had.
(26:31):
I would love if you would give us arecap of how Best Egg really showed
their true colors during that time.
We're able to really.
Focus on the customerand what they needed.
Alex Rhodes (26:41):
I'll talk about that first, you know, six to eight months.
Um, Was one of the defining periodsI think for our business, uh for me
personally and professionally Oneof one of the proudest periods of
time that i've had in my career.
Um, We were able to flip a 100percent in house call center to
working from home inside of two weeks.
(27:02):
Our technology teams were, um,we were able to be there for
our customers in a way that I'dnever experienced prior to that.
And so just for a little bit ofcontext, we generally speaking have
somewhere around four to 5 percent ofour portfolio on a payment program or
a loan extension at any given time.
(27:24):
As we entered, I think it was theMarch or April period, uh, during
COVID in 2020, that spiked about 15%.
So 15 percent of our portfolio, we're now,uh, not paying, you know, they weren't
going past two, but they were not paying.
And we quickly had to come up witha way to transition customers from
not making payments back into making.
(27:46):
Full, uh, contractual payments,not an easy thing to do.
It was, it was a scary time forcustomers and as a business, it
was a very uncertain time for us.
Uh, and so talk aboutruthless prioritization.
We prioritized and focused on gettingthese customers the support and
flexibility that they needed to getback to, to paying on their loans.
(28:08):
Um, and so in record time,it was a matter of weeks.
We were able to, uh, from, from.
Concepts through to, uh,implementation and in production
build, uh, to repayment programs.
And, you know, if I were to fast forwardSix to eight months after that, that
(28:28):
period, it was, it was just a littleblip in the, in the radar, right?
Customers use those, those extensions.
They, they, they got on theseflexible repayment programs that we
were able to build in record time.
And they went back to paying, uh,as agreed in, in, in record time.
And so it was very affirming to mehow customer centric this business is.
(28:50):
When we were able to, you know, first ofall, gain the buy in and then get the tech
resource and then, uh, focus and executeon getting those, those programs in
place, it was, uh, it was an amazing time.
Tedd Huff (29:01):
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It definitely makes menot surprised at all.
That best egg achieved a top 10 spot in J.
(29:42):
D.
Power's ranking for personal lenders.
Not just once, but over the pasttwo years, what contributed most
to that success and how you'regoing to carry that forward?
In the changing environment that isrelatively uncertain at this time.
Alex Rhodes (29:59):
I can only tell you.
So there's some secret sauce behindthese, these, these rankings.
I am really proud of, uh, of, ofthat accomplishment and being able
to, to be named alongside, you know,some of the, the biggest financial
institutions that have been inbusiness for hundreds of years.
In some cases, um, we, we heardfrom customers through that,
(30:20):
that, uh, JD power, uh, surveythat they appreciate us for.
The ease of doing business withus and for the, the, the value add
that our customer servicing agentsprovide when they service loans.
And so that's something that again, youknow, pulls at my heartstrings a bit.
I firmly believe that, that, that peoplemake the dream work and we are a, a
(30:45):
customer centric business, but we arealso a people centric business internally
and, um, you know, getting that feedbackis, uh, Again, it's heartwarming to me.
How we carry that going forward into thefuture is we continue to invest in people.
We continue to invest in technologyand again, empowering our frontline
colleagues, putting, uh, relevantreal time information, uh, at their
(31:09):
fingertips to be able to best servecustomers, um, and continue our, uh,
high focus on, uh, simplicity, Ease andflexibility in all things servicing.
Colton Pond (31:20):
I will second that and I love that you brought up your
frontline staff and your people.
One, talking about how your team,who is building in loan pro and
the origination system and othersystems you have, shadow them.
But two, how they are just asimportant as your customers because
they are the face of your company.
Um, I don't, I won't share the numbercause I don't know if I can share the
(31:42):
number, but of all the customers we have.
Best egg that I've chatted with.
And I typically ask this question,best egg has one of the lowest employee
turnover rates from your frontline staff.
And like that makes a huge impact.
And that's an area that transparentlya lot of people don't focus on.
They're like customer, customer, customerfocus on the people that interact with
(32:04):
the customer to make sure they candeliver in a consistent, meaningful way.
Tedd Huff (32:09):
Yeah.
How are frontline colleagues?
Secret sauce item there, Colton.
Colton Pond (32:13):
I didn't share how they did it.
They're doing cool stuff.
Alex Rhodes (32:17):
Our frontline colleagues are the best.
Um, I won't share the attritionrate, but I will tell you if you're
familiar with, uh, call centerattrition rates, we are probably one
sixth of the average call center.
So, yeah.
Incredible.
So I'm
Tedd Huff (32:31):
going to ask you, Alex, to reach under the desk,
out of the closet, whatever it is.
And heck, even if you want to,we'll hop in the DeLorean and head
into the future about five years.
I want you to go there.
I want you to look at what's goingon, come back and share with us.
What you see happening inlending and specifically personal
(32:58):
lending in the next five years.
Alex Rhodes (33:02):
So Ted, I thought this question might come up and I consulted
my crystal ball, uh, and it was justa cloud, a bunch of fog in there.
Um, but, uh, What did you set on fire?
But I will tell you, I, Iknow that customers will have.
More optionality thanthey have today, right?
(33:23):
They will have options.
If you think about the options thatthe customers have today, it is a
simple click of a, of a, of a coupleof buttons on their computer and they
can understand they get, you know,dozens and dozens of loan offers.
And so I think, uh, options and choice.
Will will will be plentiful.
Personalization is goingto separate companies.
I think, uh, customer loyaltyis going to separate companies.
(33:47):
So being able to attract consumers intoyour ecosystem, um, is is step one.
Maintaining that that relationshipgoing forward, serving that
customer's needs over a longer periodof time is going to be critical.
Um, data is going to be important.
Use of data is going to be important.
(34:07):
You know, the amount of data, uh,specifically from an alternative data
standpoint is just growing exponentially.
And so, um, that is, is, is, is critical.
Uh, is going to influencethe future of lending.
Um, I think from an operationalstandpoint, uh, customers already
expect to be able to, again, servein their, um, through the channels
(34:32):
that they prefer when they prefer.
Um, I think hopefully best day can,can, uh, change the industry a bit
from a flexibility standpoint so thatcustomers aren't surprised when they have
flexibility within financial services, butalso But that it becomes more of the norm
and, uh, and, and, and customers are shownthat their business is valued because
(34:54):
businesses are willing to be flexibleand again, meet them where they are
Colton Pond (34:58):
as more optionality comes, the personalization
becomes really important.
I want to hit you with two rapid firequestions because we didn't touch on it
and we touched on every single episodeand like we need to AI overrated here.
He goes, goes a I Alexoverrated or underrated.
Alex Rhodes (35:16):
Uh, too new to rate.
So I'll go outside the box.
Yeah,
Tedd Huff (35:21):
I like that.
But critical.
Alex Rhodes (35:23):
I will tell you, I think it's critical.
There are many applications that thatare discussed in industry forums around,
uh, customer facing applications.
And I think all of that is very important.
I can tell you what I am probablymost excited about are the agent
facing, um, use cases for AI.
How do we make it.
Things more efficient.
How do we allow our employees to focuson the things that are more important?
(35:47):
Um, and how do we, how do we enhancethe agent experience with the same level
of tenacity and focus that we, thatwe go after customer experience with?
Colton Pond (35:57):
We've learned about the incredible success of best day without
sharing all the secrets, so don't.
You don't need to share the secrets, buthelp us understand what's next for best
day lending, verticals technology, likethe direction that best egg is headed.
Alex Rhodes (36:09):
We were a monoline business, a personal loan business for a number
of years, you know, eight years ofour history within the last two years,
we've launched several new products.
And so I don't think the near termor midterm future, uh, Lots of new
product implementations, but I thinkit looks like making enhancements on
(36:30):
the flagship product because althoughwe've come a long way and we have
a very good value proposition forcustomers, we can always get better.
And so we were focused there, um, andwe were also focusing on scaling these
new businesses, nothing, uh, nothing towrite home about by way of, you know, New
and interesting, um, products out there.
But, uh, but scaling thebusinesses that we've launched
(36:52):
recently is really important.
Tedd Huff (36:53):
So we, we, we're talking about all these different personalized
loan products and making these changesand all these different things.
And, you know, in past episodes with,with other folks that, that are in the
lending space, we've talked about thepotential role that blockchain and smart
contracts can play in these spaces.
(37:15):
I would love to get.
Your perspective on that technologyand playing a part in what
you guys do over at best eggs
Alex Rhodes (37:23):
Admittedly, I I am not the the expert on blockchain technology.
Uh, what I can tell you is that umI, from an unsecured personal loan
standpoint, you know, it's, it's unclearto me how that technology plays a
big role when you get to the securedside and you start dealing with UCC
(37:43):
filings for our home secured product.
Um, if you've ever worked in theauto lending industry, then, uh, you
know, more power to you, it is oneof the most archaic, uh, processes
that, that one can imagine, Iwould love to see a blockchain for.
I would love to see a blockchainfor mortgages or deeds.
(38:06):
And so, um, you know.
My hope is that that technology isadvanced in the future because I can
tell you, it is a friction full processto originate, you know, secured loans
where you have to go through governmentalagencies today to, uh, perfect liens.
Tedd Huff (38:23):
So as you're talking about all these great new technologies and all
these different pieces about making surethat you can leverage like the blockchain
and smart contracts to really tightenup some of the things that are a little
loose, How do you see the regulatoryenvironment supporting things going
forward in the personal lending space?
Alex Rhodes (38:44):
Yeah, I think, I think the regulatory environment in my experience,
uh, has been one of really good intent,uh, highly interested in supports, uh,
new technologies that, uh, You can clearlyarticulate how it supports customers
and how it is good for customers.
And so the specifics of how theregulatory environment will change,
(39:04):
I'm uncertain of, but I do knowthat good intended technologies that
are responsibly deployed, generallygarner favor from regulators.
Tedd Huff (39:15):
That's something that I noticed through our conversation today, that
everything is based on a purpose, on data.
And on an expected outcome.
And that is something that I look forwardto seeing more in FinTech in general.
Uh, I think we're, we'reheaded towards that a lot.
(39:36):
So I really appreciate yousharing all of that with us today.
Absolutely.
Happy to.
Colton Pond (39:40):
Yeah.
And Alex, the, the keynote for me isthere's a lot of ways to differentiate.
Right.
And there's a lot of things andit's not one, uh, one of my, uh,
the old co founder of MX that CTOis one of my really good friends.
He said.
There's no silver bullet,just a truckload of lead ones.
And it's the same, likethere's not one differentiator.
(40:02):
There's a bunch of ways, butwe're really highlighted is.
Y'all's focus on the agent experience.
Y'all's focus on the customerexperience post origination.
The pre origination side is importantto be able to get them in the door.
But one thing Best Egg is bestin class of, what does that
experience look like after?
So after I pay off my personal loan,I come back and I come back to Best
Egg next time I need something.
(40:22):
And, um, how to change lending.
Rhett and I talk about this often.
How to change lending from atransaction to a relationship and
y'all have been best in class there.
So thank you for joining us today.
Alex, it was an absolute pleasure.
Alex Rhodes (40:38):
True pleasure.
My end, Ted Colton.
Thank you both.
Great to see you both.
Tedd Huff (40:42):
Well, folks, that does it for another episode of accrued.
If you've made it this far, go ahead.
Like the episode, share theepisode, leave us a comment.
We love him having the feedbackswe talked about earlier today.
And as always.
As we wrap up today's episode,I've got one last thing for you.
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information at your own risk.
Cryptocurrencies are highly volatilefinancial assets, so research and
make your own financial decisions.
Welcome to FinTech Confidential, bringing you the
people, tech, and companies thatchange how you pay and get paid.
Today, we are extremely fortunateto have Alex Rhodes, the Chief
Operating Officer at Best Egg.
The business begins to evolve,you really start to understand.
The product that you are offering,who you are serving and, uh,
(00:24):
the difference that you can makein the lives of your customers.
And so, um, what I would say is throughoutthe course of the last 10 years, we are
still, you know, very business minded,but we understand our customer, we listen
to our customers and we pay attention.
I think price is important tocustomers to an extent, but service,
ease and flexibility are thingsthat customers highly value.
(00:45):
We are the most flexible by way ofpayment arrangements in the FinTech space.
Whether it's selecting a personalizedpayment schedule at the time a
customer gets a loan with us orwhen life happens to customers.
They, they happen upon afinancial hardship and so talk
about ruthless prioritization.
We prioritized and focused.
on getting these customers the supportand flexibility that they needed to
(01:09):
get back to to paying on their loans.
Um, and so in record time,it was a matter of weeks.
We were able to, uh, from, fromconcepts through to implementation
and in production build,uh, two repayment programs.
Uh, and you know, if I were to fastforward six to eight months after
(01:31):
That, that period, it was, it was justa little blip in the, in the radar.
Personalization is goingto separate companies.
Customer loyalty is goingto separate companies.
So being able to attract consumersinto your ecosystem is, is step one.
Maintaining that.
That relationship going forward, servingthat customer's needs over a longer
(01:53):
period of time is going to be critical.
As default rates continue to riseand margins compressed at lending,
financial organizations are searchingfor solutions to combine that
operational efficiency with innovation.
Look no further as LoanPro allows lendersto enhance their origination, servicing,
collections, and payments using thefoundation of a modern lending core.
(02:16):
Check out LoanPro.
io to learn more.
Welcome to Accrued, the fintechconfidential series presented by LoanPro.
In this series, we're deconstructing thecomplexities of lending and exploring
compliance, optimization, modernization,and personalization through insightful
(02:39):
conversations with the industry's best.
I'm Ted Huff with my co hostColton Pond, guiding you through
the intricate lending world.
Whether you're deep into lendtech or just intrigued by how the
technology is reshaping lending,you're in the right place.
Now let's dive into another episode.
Of accrued Colton, welcome, Backman.
(03:00):
I am so excited to have Alex on today.
Colton Pond (03:02):
I'm stoked for Alex too.
I, I did mention this.
Ted, you're missing the vest.
I really wish that youwould wear a vest today.
We can do the finance vest thing, but hey,
Tedd Huff (03:10):
I'll, I'll, I'll accept a loan pro vest, man.
, Colton Pond: I'll, I'll send you,
I'll accept one.
Colton Pond (03:14):
Yeah, I'll, I'll get it shipped to your address.
I got you.
Tedd Huff (03:17):
Today we are extremely fortunate to have Alex Rhodes, the Chief
operating Officer at Best Egg, and he's.
Bringing over 20 years of experiencein business strategy and operations
to the table for us to talk about.
And his track record is nothingshort of being impressive.
Before joining Best Egg, Alex honed hisexpertise in various roles, In leadership
(03:40):
across the financial industry, includingpositions at major financial institutions.
You might've heard about beforelike Barclay Card Bank of America.
Those are very unusual companiesyou may not have ever heard of, but
his deep knowledge of credit andcustomer experience and operational
management has been a major cornerstoneof his success at Barclay Card.
(04:04):
Alex led the U S collections and recoveryoperations where he was responsible
for overseeing recovery strategies forconsumer and small business lending.
He later moved on to bank of Americawhere he managed supply chain operations
and vendor control functions and hisability to navigate these complex
operational challenges made him anatural fit for leadership roles.
(04:27):
And it wasn't long.
Before he was recruitedby Best Egg in 2014.
Since then, he's been at the forefrontof Best Egg's transformation from
a fledgling fintech startup to amajor, major player in the industry.
And as the COO, he has overseen thecompany's operational growth, leading
to the management of over 23, 000.
(04:49):
billion dollars in personal loans.
His strategic vision has been a keyto scaling best eggs operations,
which is now servicing over 1.
6 million accounts.
In today's conversation, we'lldive into how Alex's extensive
background and operational expertisehave shaped best egg success.
(05:10):
We'll explore the strategies he's employedto ensure Best Egg remains nimble,
customer focused and ahead of the curve inthis rapidly evolving financial landscape.
So let's dive into the insightsand decisions that have
positioned Alex and Best Egg asleaders in the fintech industry.
Welcome Alex.
Hopefully that was goodenough for you my friend.
Ted,
Alex Rhodes (05:29):
that was awesome, fantastic, big round of applause
for you just for the intro.
Uh, Couldn't be happier to be here withyou, Ted, uh, and my good friend, Colton.
So, uh, looking forwardto the conversation.
Tedd Huff (05:40):
Colton, you, you had talked about, and you and I have
been talking about this a lot, butthere's a lot of really cool stuff
that Alex and the team over at bestegg are doing, what was it that.
That you saw that they're doing thatmade you go, I've got to get them on
the podcast and share what's going on.
Colton Pond (05:58):
There's several aspects.
So I'm a little biased.
They say, don't have a favorite customer.
Best eggs, a customer of ours.
How about a favorite Alex, Alex is one of
Alex Rhodes (06:08):
my favorite
Colton Pond (06:09):
people to work with.
I remember when I joined.
Uh, LonePro, I worked in Best Eggat a prior organization too, or with
Best Egg at a prior organization.
But Rhett, he was like, you gottameet Best Egg, you gotta meet Alex.
I remember one time we wentthere, we played 2 on 2 basketball
all night, and Alex is like aprofessional basketball player.
So, if anyone ever wants to like, seeAlex at a conference and challenge him
(06:31):
to a basketball game, Alex Johnson.
He plays a good amount of basketball.
I think a one on one, uh, Alex Rhodesand Alex Johnson would be entertaining,
but Alex is great to have you, man.
Alex Rhodes (06:41):
Anytime.
Thank you, Colton.
Tedd Huff (06:43):
So you're, you're talking about an A to A basketball tournament.
That's what I'm hearing.
Colton Pond (06:46):
I'm challenged.
We're to send this Alex Johnsonand tell him that Alex Rhodes
wants to play him in basketball.
Let's do it.
Tedd Huff (06:52):
Well, we're not here to talk about basketball, but we are here to
talk about Alex and what's going on overat best egg Alex, for those who are not
familiar with best egg, can you give us.
A brief synopsis over you joiningthe organization and what the
overall journey for the past10 years has been for best day.
Alex Rhodes (07:13):
So for myself, uh, I, I joined best egg, uh, very
close to launch about 10 yearsago, a little over 10 years ago.
Um, I had cut my teeth in the industryin, uh, in major financial institutions.
Like you said, you know, the bank ofAmerica is the barkers of the world.
Um, And had phenomenal experiencesthere, uh, finished grad school,
(07:34):
um, and was kind of at a bit of acrossroads for myself and my own career.
And, uh, this opportunitypresented itself.
Um, and so I went from abeautiful office building, uh,
on the Wilmington waterfront.
To a not so beautiful, uh, office buildingup on Concord Pike here in Delaware.
And, uh, uh, joined a, a small groupof people with a vision and a dream for
(07:57):
the future of, um, personal lending.
Uh, so super exciting time.
We, we launched the business in, uh,2014, early 2014 and, um, Launched
with our flagship product today,which is our personal loan business.
Uh, we went from.
No loans, uh, obviously at, at, atlaunch to, uh, today, uh, originating
(08:22):
over 30 billion in loans andserving over 2 million customers.
Um, uh, along with that, my numbers were
Tedd Huff (08:29):
a little low, too low.
Yeah, I know.
Alex Rhodes (08:34):
I like numbers that impress you, Ted.
I wanted to impress you with some numbers.
I know 30 billion doesn't sound like alot, but here in little old Delaware,
uh, it is, uh, it's quite the feat.
And so, um, over, over the courseof the last 10 years, we've had
ups and downs in the business.
The, the, uh, economy and our customerbase have had ups and downs, but.
We have persevered and, uh, today, uh,again, have this, this, uh, this flagship
(08:59):
personal loan business that is servinglots of needs for our target customer,
which is a limited savings customer.
Um, and, uh, we have recently introduced,uh, several new products to help
serve even a broader set of customers.
So.
We have a, a auto lending product.
We have a rent product that worksa bit like buy now pay later
(09:20):
for, uh, our customers rent.
Um, and we also have a homesecured product, so lots of good
things happening at best egg.
Colton Pond (09:29):
Love that.
So Alex, one of my favorite thingsof, uh, FinTech folks that are early
on in the company is to extract andunderstand key learnings and takeaways
because when you're there in that, uh,not so nice building with a handful
of people with a vision, right?
Through that journey now, now on atremendous growth trajectory, you
(09:52):
learn a lot, help us understandthe key takeaways, the learnings,
the insights that you have there.
Alex Rhodes (09:58):
You are fighting for survival very early on in any business's life.
Um, and so it is, uh, it's about, uh,building a foundation for a strong
business, um, ensuring that you'regetting to profitability within, you
know, a, uh, an acceptable period of time.
Once you get through that, um, thatperiod, it is, at least from my
(10:21):
perspective, it's about customer focus.
And so the business begins to evolve.
You really start to understand theproduct that you are offering, who you are
serving and, uh, the difference that youcan make in the lives of your customers.
And so, um, what I would say is.
Throughout the course of the last10 years, we, we have evolved as a
business, uh, to be, um, we are still,you know, very business minded, but we
(10:45):
understand our customer, we listen to ourcustomers and we build for our customers.
And so I think those aresome of the key learnings.
Um, That that have kind ofmarked a key transition point
in our business over time.
Tedd Huff (10:57):
Now let's quickly shine a spotlight on a game
changer in the financial world.
Clearingworks.
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Are you intrigued?
Visit clearingworks.
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Colton Pond (11:17):
I love the focus on the customer.
So that's one like key magic point, right?
But one of my favorite things aboutbest egg is you'll play your flagship
product, personal lending, highlycompetitive, uh, space right now.
Right.
So what's the differentiators?
Like what really.
Impacts because certain folks try anddifferentiate based on rate and my view
(11:39):
is that's a losing game You got to findother key differentiators why people
come back to best state consistent
Alex Rhodes (11:45):
This is not in my mind a a commoditized business to your point.
This isn't just a widgetbusiness pushing business.
Um, we have a deep focus on customers.
We focus on what we know mattersmost to our customer base.
And so ease and flexibility are two ofthe main things that I would highlight.
Um, it is very easy toobtain a loan with us.
You know, we have a high digitalengagement level with our customers.
(12:08):
We provide a set of capabilities andchannels for them to Not only originate
their loans, but to service their loans.
Once they become a customer from anease standpoint, I can't underscore
enough how important it is tolisten to customers, build a simple
and easily understood process.
Colton Pond (12:28):
You talk about focusing on the customer.
And for my interactions with Best Egg,it comes out in all of your team members.
All your team members do that.
And I know that's a clear differentiator.
One of my favorite aspects about Best Eggis you're in a highly competitive market.
But you, you can't justdifferentiate based on price.
Like people try to, best statedoes a really good job at key.
Other differentiators help us understandthe magic and, and how and why
(12:49):
customers continue to come back to best
Alex Rhodes (12:51):
state.
I think price is important to customersto an extent service ease and flexibility
are things that customers highly value.
And so we've invested, um, a lot overthe years in enhancing our tech stack.
Ensuring that we are providing simpleand slick, uh, tech infrastructure and,
and capabilities for our customers tonot only obtain loans, but then to also
(13:13):
service their loans on the backend.
Um, from a flexibility standpoint, I thinkthis is really some of our secret sauce.
I would venture to say that weare the most flexible by way
of payment arrangements, um,in, in, in the FinTech space.
Whether it's selecting a personalizedpayment schedule at the time a customer
(13:33):
gets a loan with us, or when lifehappens to customers, they, they happen
upon a financial hardship or they,um, they otherwise need some, some
assistance with their monthly payments.
We have a broad suite of flexiblerepayment options that we're able to
offer customers to help them stay afloat.
Tedd Huff (13:50):
So Alex, as you talk about the technology, the flexibility, the service,
all these different pieces independently,they don't really do a whole lot.
It's when you bring them all togetherthat you really get that force multiplier.
Can you share with us anexample of how and when.
(14:11):
You bring all of those pieces together,
Alex Rhodes (14:13):
Ted.
I couldn't agree more thatcohesion of these different
capabilities matters a lot.
Uh, I'll talk about payment programs.
As an example, we, uh, have hadpayment programs since very early in
our history, but had not developeda full suite of options to really.
Meet different customers needs.
Um, over the course of time, we havedeveloped these capabilities where,
(14:38):
uh, we are able to meet a customerwhere they are, help them over, uh,
a financial hardship, regardlessof how long that hardship last.
It can be, you know, as little as a monthto as long as full term of the loan.
We were able to craft a repaymentprogram for that customer,
uh, to keep them on track.
(14:58):
So self service is really important to us,uh, specifically from a payment program
standpoint, because customers don't alwayswant to talk to someone over the phone
within the comfort of their own homeand the channel of their choice, they're
able to understand the options that areavailable to them and enroll in a payment
program that best fits their needs.
So, for example, a customer has anunexpected expense that comes up.
(15:20):
They can log into ourcustomer servicing website.
Understand the different flavors offlexible options available to them.
Enroll, modify their payment duedate and their payment amount.
Um, and seamlessly go back to paying infull once that payment program expires.
And so, uh, we found that thatproviding customers with that
level of choice and channelflexibility makes all the difference.
Tedd Huff (15:42):
So when you, when you talk about giving them the ability to meet
them where they're at and the channelthat they like to use, what have
you done that helps them understand?
But that's even available.
Alex Rhodes (15:56):
We are, um, big on constant customer engagement.
And so we don't wait untilwe see that a customer's
experiencing financial difficulty.
We, we routinely out pulse informationto our customers, whether it's through
our monthly newsletter or even moretargeted approaches to reach customers
that we think may be falling upon afinancial hardship to let them know
(16:17):
that there are options available.
Here are the multitude of channels whereyou can consume information and gain
knowledge about what we have to offer.
And again, we've seen lots of successwith customers going and self solving.
Look at the end of the day, somecustomers do want to reach out to us
directly and we'll, uh, happily havevoice, uh, conversations with folks.
But, um, we have found that,that customers gravitate towards
(16:39):
these, uh, digital solutions.
It's
Colton Pond (16:41):
actually directly an experience directly
relative related to best day.
I would say, I don't think I'veever shared this with you, but,
uh, Uh, but about six monthsago, we were trying to recruit a
sales member to come on our team.
And, uh, I remember we told him,yeah, he's like, who do you work with?
We're like, we work with Best Egg andIntuit and Chime and folks like that.
And he's like, Best Egg?
(17:01):
Interesting.
I had a really cool experiencewith Best Egg two years ago when
I was in a really hard time.
Got a personal loan.
I lost my job and I called in.
I said, Hey, I lost my job.
I don't know if I can make my nextpayment and like, Oh, no worry.
We can enroll you in this hardship programon this way in this payment program.
It's like, Oh, yeah, that'd be great.
And then there was kindof like an awkward pause.
(17:22):
And she's like, can I helpyou with anything else?
He's like, Oh yeah, could you do that?
I'll wait on hold.
And she was like, Oh, it's done.
And he was so blown away.
And when we told him, yeah, best,they use loan pros platform.
He was so blown away the best day.
He was like, you know what?
I need to work with this company.
So the work that you all are doing, theimpact that you're having with people
when they have a hard time, it's allabout like how to drive, you talk about
(17:44):
flexibility, how to drive flexibilityand meet the borrower and customer.
Where they're actually at.
Uh, when you tug on that string a littlebit more, you mentioned at the beginning,
best egg has done a really good jobfrom my perspective, launching new
products and new personalized productsand expanding and say, Hey, our flagship
product, and what are the other productsthat look at, how do you stay nimble?
How do you launch new products?
(18:06):
What's the secret and whatare y'all doing well there?
Alex Rhodes (18:08):
I would say that we have a culture of innovation.
We have a culture of customer insights,understanding customer needs and
then building for those customers.
And so from a nimble standpoint, ouroperating model is highly nimble.
I can speak for operations itself.
We have the ability based on howwe are structured to flex up and
(18:28):
flex down by way of FTE needs.
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Alex Rhodes (19:33):
say.
Platform standpoint, you have tohave a tech stack that enables you to
build new products that enables youto provide personalized functionality
that enables you to put powerfulinformation in the hands of your
frontline colleagues, uh, that thatallows them to better service customers.
And so, um, You know, it's, it's, uh,no surprise that we have the loan pro
(19:57):
platform that has been a differentiatorfor us and being able to launch new
products and service those products in away that allows us to impart the customer
experience that, that we know today.
Tedd Huff (20:08):
A lot of these things that you're talking about are like.
If you look at the traditional lendingspace, this is extremely innovative.
It's not something that everybodyis doing, you know, as you're
launching these products.
I mean, you listed off, I thinkthree or four, maybe five earlier.
I was trying to keep track, butyou were listing them off so fast.
(20:31):
You know, how, how do you ensure thatthe organization stays agile enough to
be responsive to the customers as youcontinue to grow into these new markets?
Alex Rhodes (20:42):
Two things I would, I would reference here, Ted.
One is we, we spend.
I won't say a lot of time, but we arevery focused on organizational alignment
and ensuring that our, our peopleknow where we are going in the future.
Um, we do that by, by, by setting, youknow, short and medium term goals and,
uh, the, the, uh, expectations or theresults that nest under those goals.
(21:08):
And so everyone understandswhere we are going.
I think that's critical in, uh, in, in,in, in being a nimble company, we are
highly focused, uh, on, on prioritization.
So we call it ruthless prioritization.
There is no lack of goodideas in this business.
Um, and it's difficult to say noto good ideas from time to time.
(21:28):
But we stay nimble because we stayhyper focused on what we know is
going to deliver the most value andwhat's most important to do today.
And so I think, you know, by aligning anorganization around common goals, common
outcomes and Uh, ruthlessly prioritizingon what's most important today.
We were able to move this ship a lotfaster than, you know, other businesses.
Colton Pond (21:51):
Alex, there's two aspects there.
And what I love about that is evenas you've grown tremendously from an
FTE perspective, from a loan volumeperspective, you've still maintained
limbo and while launching new products,which is a pretty cool feat in and of
itself, but there's two aspects here.
And a lot of companies think thatthey compete against each other.
(22:12):
But you and your operations rolehave found a way to like, both of
them go together and it's how do youfocus on the customer and provide a
best in class customer experience?
But how do you also driveoperational efficiency?
And sometimes companies will focus onoperational efficiency and it hurts
the customer or focus on the customerand hurts operational efficiency.
Um, how are y'all measuringoperational efficiency?
What that looks like?
(22:33):
And then, uh, what are someexamples of some things you've done?
That have helped drive increasedoperational efficiency in the business.
Alex Rhodes (22:39):
So we measure operational efficiency in a variety of different ways.
Um, you know, from a business standpoint.
We focus on our cost to serve our cost tooriginate from a customer standpoint, we
look at the level of effort that customershave to expend to get a job done, right?
So are we removingfriction out of processes?
(22:59):
Are we able to streamline servicing andmake it easy and simple for customers?
And so that's that's what we focus on.
I've never thought that.
You know, customer experience andoperational efficiency are at odds.
And I, I think I understand why youcan say that or why some may say that.
But for me, they work so closely together.
(23:21):
Um, if you do what is good for yourcustomer, which is generally going
to make things fast, simple, easy.
Easily understood you were goingto drive operational efficiency.
If you can increase self servicerates, um, provide a channel preference
like we talked about earlier.
Those are things that are goingto give you operating leverage.
So you don't have to havevoice conversations with the
(23:43):
whole of your customer base.
It's going to give youleverage as you grow, right?
Um, and so our, our servicingwebsite is scalable.
Our other servicing channels are alsoscalable, and that's, that's what's been
important for us to be able to yeah.
Become more and more efficient overtime while providing very rich, uh,
deeper experience for customers.
Tedd Huff (24:03):
You know, my, my career has mostly been product and operations.
So I'm hearing you go throughand talk about all of this.
And it just reminds meof the number one thing.
Anytime that I took over a productor a group, I would always, first
thing I'd always do is I'd gostraight to the support team.
Or to the support queue or to thesupport emails and look at what people
(24:26):
were asking for, for me to get anunderstanding of, of what wasn't working.
I would love for you to share somespecific examples of how you've
driven your operational efficiencywhile enhancing the borrower
experience without sacrificing.
Any of the benefits you provide.
Alex Rhodes (24:48):
Yeah.
So Ted, you mentioned, uh, you know, goingto the source as a bedrock to get ideas.
Could not agree more.
If you want lots and lots of greatideas on how you can improve in
operations, just get to a side byside with any of our agents, right?
They will tell you what is wrong with,you know, whether it's a telephony
system, they will tell you where youcan make enhancements for customers
(25:11):
and what customers are saying.
I don't think.
Customer experience suffers whenyou drive operational efficiency.
In fact, I think it's enhanced aswe drive operational efficiency.
Um, examples of things that we have doneattempting to drive parody in servicing
channels across each of our channels.
And so what you can do from a voiceperspective, you can do on the servicing
(25:32):
website, what you can, uh, uh, Do in chat.
You can do via SMS.
And so, um, driving parodyand servicing channels has has
been a game changer for us.
Um, it's listening to customers.
It's making data led decisions, right?
So if you have 10, 000 customersdropping out of the IVR for this call
(25:53):
type, How can you get ahead of that?
How can you be proactive as opposed tojust reactive and answering their calls?
Um, and so I think listening tocustomers being data led and, uh, again,
enhancing self service capabilitieshas made the difference for us.
Colton Pond (26:08):
I want to jump into one other specific aspect.
And because I've spoken with the Vestigteam at length, I know that this is a.
Big aspect of how you've really wowedyour customers and showed up for your
customers in meaningful way of we'vechatted at length about how your
customers were your first priority whenthe COVID pandemic hit and what you
did for your customers and what thatmeant and the impact that that had.
(26:31):
I would love if you would give us arecap of how Best Egg really showed
their true colors during that time.
We're able to really.
Focus on the customerand what they needed.
Alex Rhodes (26:41):
I'll talk about that first, you know, six to eight months.
Um, Was one of the defining periodsI think for our business, uh for me
personally and professionally Oneof one of the proudest periods of
time that i've had in my career.
Um, We were able to flip a 100percent in house call center to
working from home inside of two weeks.
(27:02):
Our technology teams were, um,we were able to be there for
our customers in a way that I'dnever experienced prior to that.
And so just for a little bit ofcontext, we generally speaking have
somewhere around four to 5 percent ofour portfolio on a payment program or
a loan extension at any given time.
(27:24):
As we entered, I think it was theMarch or April period, uh, during
COVID in 2020, that spiked about 15%.
So 15 percent of our portfolio, we're now,uh, not paying, you know, they weren't
going past two, but they were not paying.
And we quickly had to come up witha way to transition customers from
not making payments back into making.
(27:46):
Full, uh, contractual payments,not an easy thing to do.
It was, it was a scary time forcustomers and as a business, it
was a very uncertain time for us.
Uh, and so talk aboutruthless prioritization.
We prioritized and focused on gettingthese customers the support and
flexibility that they needed to getback to, to paying on their loans.
(28:08):
Um, and so in record time,it was a matter of weeks.
We were able to, uh, from, from.
Concepts through to, uh,implementation and in production
build, uh, to repayment programs.
And, you know, if I were to fast forwardSix to eight months after that, that
(28:28):
period, it was, it was just a littleblip in the, in the radar, right?
Customers use those, those extensions.
They, they, they got on theseflexible repayment programs that we
were able to build in record time.
And they went back to paying, uh,as agreed in, in, in record time.
And so it was very affirming to mehow customer centric this business is.
(28:50):
When we were able to, you know, first ofall, gain the buy in and then get the tech
resource and then, uh, focus and executeon getting those, those programs in
place, it was, uh, it was an amazing time.
Tedd Huff (29:01):
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It definitely makes menot surprised at all.
That best egg achieved a top 10 spot in J.
(29:42):
D.
Power's ranking for personal lenders.
Not just once, but over the pasttwo years, what contributed most
to that success and how you'regoing to carry that forward?
In the changing environment that isrelatively uncertain at this time.
Alex Rhodes (29:59):
I can only tell you.
So there's some secret sauce behindthese, these, these rankings.
I am really proud of, uh, of, ofthat accomplishment and being able
to, to be named alongside, you know,some of the, the biggest financial
institutions that have been inbusiness for hundreds of years.
In some cases, um, we, we heardfrom customers through that,
(30:20):
that, uh, JD power, uh, surveythat they appreciate us for.
The ease of doing business withus and for the, the, the value add
that our customer servicing agentsprovide when they service loans.
And so that's something that again, youknow, pulls at my heartstrings a bit.
I firmly believe that, that, that peoplemake the dream work and we are a, a
(30:45):
customer centric business, but we arealso a people centric business internally
and, um, you know, getting that feedbackis, uh, Again, it's heartwarming to me.
How we carry that going forward into thefuture is we continue to invest in people.
We continue to invest in technologyand again, empowering our frontline
colleagues, putting, uh, relevantreal time information, uh, at their
(31:09):
fingertips to be able to best servecustomers, um, and continue our, uh,
high focus on, uh, simplicity, Ease andflexibility in all things servicing.
Colton Pond (31:20):
I will second that and I love that you brought up your
frontline staff and your people.
One, talking about how your team,who is building in loan pro and
the origination system and othersystems you have, shadow them.
But two, how they are just asimportant as your customers because
they are the face of your company.
Um, I don't, I won't share the numbercause I don't know if I can share the
(31:42):
number, but of all the customers we have.
Best egg that I've chatted with.
And I typically ask this question,best egg has one of the lowest employee
turnover rates from your frontline staff.
And like that makes a huge impact.
And that's an area that transparentlya lot of people don't focus on.
They're like customer, customer, customerfocus on the people that interact with
(32:04):
the customer to make sure they candeliver in a consistent, meaningful way.
Tedd Huff (32:09):
Yeah.
How are frontline colleagues?
Secret sauce item there, Colton.
Colton Pond (32:13):
I didn't share how they did it.
They're doing cool stuff.
Alex Rhodes (32:17):
Our frontline colleagues are the best.
Um, I won't share the attritionrate, but I will tell you if you're
familiar with, uh, call centerattrition rates, we are probably one
sixth of the average call center.
So, yeah.
Incredible.
So I'm
Tedd Huff (32:31):
going to ask you, Alex, to reach under the desk,
out of the closet, whatever it is.
And heck, even if you want to,we'll hop in the DeLorean and head
into the future about five years.
I want you to go there.
I want you to look at what's goingon, come back and share with us.
What you see happening inlending and specifically personal
(32:58):
lending in the next five years.
Alex Rhodes (33:02):
So Ted, I thought this question might come up and I consulted
my crystal ball, uh, and it was justa cloud, a bunch of fog in there.
Um, but, uh, What did you set on fire?
But I will tell you, I, Iknow that customers will have.
More optionality thanthey have today, right?
(33:23):
They will have options.
If you think about the options thatthe customers have today, it is a
simple click of a, of a, of a coupleof buttons on their computer and they
can understand they get, you know,dozens and dozens of loan offers.
And so I think, uh, options and choice.
Will will will be plentiful.
Personalization is goingto separate companies.
I think, uh, customer loyaltyis going to separate companies.
(33:47):
So being able to attract consumers intoyour ecosystem, um, is is step one.
Maintaining that that relationshipgoing forward, serving that
customer's needs over a longer periodof time is going to be critical.
Um, data is going to be important.
Use of data is going to be important.
(34:07):
You know, the amount of data, uh,specifically from an alternative data
standpoint is just growing exponentially.
And so, um, that is, is, is, is critical.
Uh, is going to influencethe future of lending.
Um, I think from an operationalstandpoint, uh, customers already
expect to be able to, again, servein their, um, through the channels
(34:32):
that they prefer when they prefer.
Um, I think hopefully best day can,can, uh, change the industry a bit
from a flexibility standpoint so thatcustomers aren't surprised when they have
flexibility within financial services, butalso But that it becomes more of the norm
and, uh, and, and, and customers are shownthat their business is valued because
(34:54):
businesses are willing to be flexibleand again, meet them where they are
Colton Pond (34:58):
as more optionality comes, the personalization
becomes really important.
I want to hit you with two rapid firequestions because we didn't touch on it
and we touched on every single episodeand like we need to AI overrated here.
He goes, goes a I Alexoverrated or underrated.
Alex Rhodes (35:16):
Uh, too new to rate.
So I'll go outside the box.
Yeah,
Tedd Huff (35:21):
I like that.
But critical.
Alex Rhodes (35:23):
I will tell you, I think it's critical.
There are many applications that thatare discussed in industry forums around,
uh, customer facing applications.
And I think all of that is very important.
I can tell you what I am probablymost excited about are the agent
facing, um, use cases for AI.
How do we make it.
Things more efficient.
How do we allow our employees to focuson the things that are more important?
(35:47):
Um, and how do we, how do we enhancethe agent experience with the same level
of tenacity and focus that we, thatwe go after customer experience with?
Colton Pond (35:57):
We've learned about the incredible success of best day without
sharing all the secrets, so don't.
You don't need to share the secrets, buthelp us understand what's next for best
day lending, verticals technology, likethe direction that best egg is headed.
Alex Rhodes (36:09):
We were a monoline business, a personal loan business for a number
of years, you know, eight years ofour history within the last two years,
we've launched several new products.
And so I don't think the near termor midterm future, uh, Lots of new
product implementations, but I thinkit looks like making enhancements on
(36:30):
the flagship product because althoughwe've come a long way and we have
a very good value proposition forcustomers, we can always get better.
And so we were focused there, um, andwe were also focusing on scaling these
new businesses, nothing, uh, nothing towrite home about by way of, you know, New
and interesting, um, products out there.
But, uh, but scaling thebusinesses that we've launched
(36:52):
recently is really important.
Tedd Huff (36:53):
So we, we, we're talking about all these different personalized
loan products and making these changesand all these different things.
And, you know, in past episodes with,with other folks that, that are in the
lending space, we've talked about thepotential role that blockchain and smart
contracts can play in these spaces.
(37:15):
I would love to get.
Your perspective on that technologyand playing a part in what
you guys do over at best eggs
Alex Rhodes (37:23):
Admittedly, I I am not the the expert on blockchain technology.
Uh, what I can tell you is that umI, from an unsecured personal loan
standpoint, you know, it's, it's unclearto me how that technology plays a
big role when you get to the securedside and you start dealing with UCC
(37:43):
filings for our home secured product.
Um, if you've ever worked in theauto lending industry, then, uh, you
know, more power to you, it is oneof the most archaic, uh, processes
that, that one can imagine, Iwould love to see a blockchain for.
I would love to see a blockchainfor mortgages or deeds.
(38:06):
And so, um, you know.
My hope is that that technology isadvanced in the future because I can
tell you, it is a friction full processto originate, you know, secured loans
where you have to go through governmentalagencies today to, uh, perfect liens.
Tedd Huff (38:23):
So as you're talking about all these great new technologies and all
these different pieces about making surethat you can leverage like the blockchain
and smart contracts to really tightenup some of the things that are a little
loose, How do you see the regulatoryenvironment supporting things going
forward in the personal lending space?
Alex Rhodes (38:44):
Yeah, I think, I think the regulatory environment in my experience,
uh, has been one of really good intent,uh, highly interested in supports, uh,
new technologies that, uh, You can clearlyarticulate how it supports customers
and how it is good for customers.
And so the specifics of how theregulatory environment will change,
(39:04):
I'm uncertain of, but I do knowthat good intended technologies that
are responsibly deployed, generallygarner favor from regulators.
Tedd Huff (39:15):
That's something that I noticed through our conversation today, that
everything is based on a purpose, on data.
And on an expected outcome.
And that is something that I look forwardto seeing more in FinTech in general.
Uh, I think we're, we'reheaded towards that a lot.
(39:36):
So I really appreciate yousharing all of that with us today.
Absolutely.
Happy to.
Colton Pond (39:40):
Yeah.
And Alex, the, the keynote for me isthere's a lot of ways to differentiate.
Right.
And there's a lot of things andit's not one, uh, one of my, uh,
the old co founder of MX that CTOis one of my really good friends.
He said.
There's no silver bullet,just a truckload of lead ones.
And it's the same, likethere's not one differentiator.
(40:02):
There's a bunch of ways, butwe're really highlighted is.
Y'all's focus on the agent experience.
Y'all's focus on the customerexperience post origination.
The pre origination side is importantto be able to get them in the door.
But one thing Best Egg is bestin class of, what does that
experience look like after?
So after I pay off my personal loan,I come back and I come back to Best
Egg next time I need something.
(40:22):
And, um, how to change lending.
Rhett and I talk about this often.
How to change lending from atransaction to a relationship and
y'all have been best in class there.
So thank you for joining us today.
Alex, it was an absolute pleasure.
Alex Rhodes (40:38):
True pleasure.
My end, Ted Colton.
Thank you both.
Great to see you both.
Tedd Huff (40:42):
Well, folks, that does it for another episode of accrued.
If you've made it this far, go ahead.
Like the episode, share theepisode, leave us a comment.
We love him having the feedbackswe talked about earlier today.
And as always.
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