We are all a little guilty of wanting the most recent innovation, technology, or theory to improve our businesses. But today, we are going to take a page from an old book for the purpose of helping agents tackle the integration of new processes for the long-anticipated Real Estate Reporting rule (RER).
In 1995, Rita Gunther McGrath and Ian C. MacMillan released an article in the Harvard Business Review opining that when companies are releasing a new product or service where there is significant amounts of uncertainty, conventional planning is not always effective and may result in great losses if the product fails.
Instead, they recommended companies engage in discovery-driven planning (DDP).
Although the impetus behind DDP was originally for the purposes of testing the waters before going all in on a new venture, DDP is a process that is highly adaptable to other scenarios in that it presents a model for thinking about any business endeavor, including implementing new technology or adapting to new regulatory demands.
Here are the five disciplines that are core to DDP and how they can be used to prepare for the RER rule implementation.
Define success
Defining success means understanding with great specificity what the hoped for outcome will be.
As you are planning the integration of the RER rule, success may be ensuring minimal delays to closing by getting in front of the requirements from the moment the title order is received, streamlining the process to reduce the time drain, or successfully integrating it into the workflow in a way that is seamless and intuitive.
Benchmark
Benchmarking is a little tricky because this process has not been widely in use thus far, although under the FinCEN’s Geographic Targeting Orders, there are some areas of the country where this has been in play for a decade. Conducting even a modicum of research can help you establish if you are on the mark when it comes to understanding how much additional time will be added to a title file and establishing an appropriate fee to charge for that time investment.
Specify operational requirements
Long before the recently updated implementation date – meaning right now would be a good time – title agents can map out every step of the RER process and determine at each juncture what has to happen to arrive at the closing table with everything they need in hand.
Document assumptions
In the process of determining how this might flow, there will be assumptions made and these should be carefully documented so that if things go awry, you can go back to the initial assumptions and adjust to the reality of the situation.
Establish checkpoints
At the outset of the implementation of RER, make sure you establish a process for checking in with staff at defined intervals to ensure things are going as planned. Avoid playing the blame game if things aren’t coming together as smoothly as hoped, but work with staff to resolve any unexpected issues.
From the outset, McGrath and MacMillan emphasized that DDP is not a one and done planning mechanism but a fluid process that calls for an ongoing effort to revisit the original plan and be open to finetuning the parameters of the original assumptions as more data comes forth through the implementation process.
At VizionX, we understand the challenges title agents face in meeting a growing number of regulatory requirements. We are dedicated to developing technology that will help title agents streamline processes to further refine their complicated workflows. Contact us today to learn more.
