A Big Tent That Feels Like Home: Tamara King on How MBA’s Committees, Councils Increase Member Engagement
MBA Vice President Tamara King, CAE, recently wrote an article for The Center for Association Leadership about how MBA makes its members feel seen in a “big tent” trade association that represents nearly 2,000 member firms that sometimes have differing business priorities.
MBA NewsLink recently sat down with King to discuss how MBA prioritizes supporting and engaging with its members.
MBA NewsLink: Your Center for Association Leadership article discusses the importance of balancing competing priorities and meeting rising expectations for personalized experiences. Can you tell us a bit more about that?
Tamara King: This is a two-part question.
Regarding balancing competing priorities: MBA’s strength as the voice of the industry comes from its ability to bring together a wide range of industry participants. To make informed decisions about advocacy positions, it is imperative to hear a variety of perspectives. I call these “in-the-family discussions.” MBA provides trusted spaces for these candid conversations, allowing members to work through differences and identify common ground.
Regarding personalized experiences: I think people want to feel that the organizations they belong to understand what matters to them. In a large and diverse association like MBA, that can be challenging, but it’s important. We’re looking at our programs, communications, and conferences through that lens. Our networks help create a more personal experience by bringing together members with similar business models, challenges, and interests.
MBA NewsLink: Your article also noted that creating communities within MBA was not about dividing the membership. Instead, it was about making a large association feel more accessible. How does MBA support its network groups?
Tamara King: MBA has a small but mighty team that supports our network groups. Each team member manages a portfolio of groups and serves as their advocate within the association.
While there are many similarities across the groups, each has its own priorities, challenges, and perspectives on business and policy issues. The Strategic Industry Engagement (SIE) team develops a deep understanding of these nuances and works closely with member leaders, typically co-chairs, to ensure MBA understands and reflects those perspectives.
The SIE team creates regular virtual and in-person opportunities for members to connect, discuss timely business and policy issues, and share ideas and lessons learned with one another. While policy discussions are important, there is a strong emphasis on business topics and peer-to-peer learning. These forums also provide opportunities for networking and relationship building.
In addition, the SIE team curates information from across MBA’s broad array of offerings and helps ensure members are aware of the programs, resources, events, and advocacy efforts most relevant to their businesses. The team also collaborates closely with colleagues across MBA to develop programming and resources that address the unique needs and interests of the groups in their portfolios.
MBA NewsLink: One example you’ve mentioned is MBA’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The mortgage industry faced incredible uncertainty in 2020. How did MBA’s committees and councils respond to that challenge?
Tamara King: It’s hard to believe the pandemic was six years ago. It was an incredibly challenging time for the industry and for MBA. Members needed timely information to help them make business decisions, and policymakers in Washington, D.C. were looking to MBA to understand what was happening on the ground and how proposed policies would affect lenders, servicers, and borrowers.
MBA’s committees, networks, and executive councils played a critical role during that time. They gave us a direct line to members and helped us quickly understand the challenges they were facing. At the same time, they provided an effective way for MBA to share timely updates and guidance with specific segments of the industry.
The Warehouse Lender Executive Council is a good example. Council members regularly shared what they were seeing in the market, which helped MBA communicate emerging issues and practical recommendations to federal agencies as they developed new policies and programs.
During the height of the pandemic, many of these groups met weekly or every other week. Those conversations helped MBA stay connected to members, identify issues early, and ensure that policymakers understood the real-world impact of their decisions.
Tamara King, CAE, leads MBA’s strategic industry engagement team. Click here to learn more about MBA’s residential committees, councils and networks, which include:
Accounting and Financial Management Committee
Affordable Homeownership Advisory Council
Community Bank Network
Consumer Affairs Advisory Council
Credit Union Network
Education Networking Group
Fraud Issues Subcommittee
Government Loan Production Subcommittee
HR Professionals Networking Group
Independent Mortgage Bankers (IMB) Network
Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance Committee
Loan Administration Committee
Loan Production Committee
Mortgage Technology Vendor Working Group
Regulatory Compliance Subcommittee
Residential Non-Agency Lending Forum
Residential Technology Forum
Risk Management Committee
Secondary and Capital Markets Committee
State Legislative and Regulatory Committee
Tax Subcommittee
Wholesale Lender Executive Forum
