Toshiba Tecra 9100 Excels

Voluntary programs generally entail equipping and training a smaller portion of staff that is Toshiba tecra 9100 laptop literate and prone to be early adopters. Naturally, this is less expensive than outfitting an entire staff.

It is likely that some of the loan officers who sign up for such a program will already own Toshiba tecra 9100 laptop computers and know how to use them. Therefore, the initial group will require less hardware, less training and less support, which further reduces a lender's start-up cost.

Another benefit of a voluntary program is it allows management to slowly build consensus for a program rather than simply mandating it. If the lender has selected a viable system and provides proper support, participating loan officers will tout its benefits to their nonparticipating colleagues. In addition, an institution can document and display the increased productivity and success of the program to reticent staff. In this way, voluntary programs create their own momentum.

"That was one of the ways in which we championed our program," says North American's integration manager. "We made sure that our nonparticipating loan officers saw how well those who participated were performing. We would broadcast their names at every opportunity, and we really let them know how pleased we were with their hard work." In the last two years, more than 500 North American loan officers have enrolled in its voluntary laptop program after witnessing the program's performance benefits.

Many mortgage lenders that implement voluntary programs also require participants to buy their own laptops. This lowers corporate start-up costs and can boost enthusiasm among volunteers. Employees who buy their own equipment tend to be more interested in learning about and using it than employees who are given the tools. At North American, many loan officers already owned a Notebook PC or had access to one at the branch.

"We definitely found that since our loan officers were spending their own money, generally between $ 2,500 and $ 3,500, to become part of our point-of-sale program, they were very motivated to use the laptops," says North American's integration manager. "That also inspired them to learn considerably more about the products and system."

Finally, many mortgage providers prefer voluntary programs because they allow for greater flexibility in adjusting to a new system. For example, if a lender finds that its voluntary system isn't working as planned, it is easier to make incremental adjustments to a small-scale operation than to a large, department-wide operation. And should a program prove unworkable altogether, scrapping the smaller program is less costly than eliminating a large-scale system.

While mortgage lenders can reap several benefits from voluntary point-of-sale programs, these programs aren't without a few drawbacks, some of which are direct byproducts of program benefits.

For example, although requiring program volunteers to purchase their own computers can save a great deal of money, it can also create difficult program-management issues. If loan officers have the option of purchasing different laptop brands or models, as they did at North American, it can be difficult to support a multiplicity of hardware platforms. Some computer brands can also suffer from higher failure rates.