FEATURES
COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE SYDNEY JOY DOOKWAH Vice-president, operations Sherwood Mortgage Group
With nearly a decade of experience in the mortgage industry, Sydney Joy Dookwah plays a key role in Sherwood Mortgage Group’s leadership team as the VP of operations, responsible for overseeing the head office staff while providing underwriting support and handling escalation issues for more than 30 agents across Canada. Dookwah is passionate about the customer experience and is a firm believer in cultivating effective internal processes to adapt to the changing financial landscape while improving performance. In recognition of her achievements, Dookwah was the recipient of a Distinguished Award in 2014 and an Award of Excellence in Mortgage Underwriting in 2015. She attributes her success to being surrounded by positive influences at her firm and throughout the industry.
AMINA MOHAMED Broker Amina’s Mortgage Services
After having worked in film and television as a producer and production manager, Amina Mohamed entered the mortgage industry three and a half years ago with a passion to help people attain homeownership. Now a professional mortgage broker based in Newmarket, Ontario, she assists clients who are eyeing properties across the Greater Toronto Area and York Region. Mohamed works primarily with real estate investors in Canada and in the US, as well as non-resident investors – Canadian citizens living and working in other major cities such as Singapore and Dubai and hoping to invest in their home country, which they still consider to be the safest place for their savings.
MEL LEWIS Mortgage broker and partner DLC Regional Mortgage Group
Mel Lewis continues to break records as partner and broker at DLC Regional Mortgage Group, while also ranking among the top 5% of DLC brokers across the nation. Lewis started her career in the human services field and attributes her years of experience there to helping propel her success as a mortgage broker. Since becoming licensed in 2007, Lewis has been with DLC Regional Mortgage Group, which is composed of more than 40 agents throughout Alberta. In addition to her day-to-day duties, Lewis sits on the board for the RECA Mortgage 2020 Forum; is involved with Regional Mortgage’s charitable foundation and event, Golf/ Build a Kid to Cure; and is a very active member in her local BNI group.
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SUSAN COWLING Owner DLC Homeline Mortgages
Since 2001, Susan Cowling has been instrumental in helping to grow one of Canada’s first franchise organizations for mortgage brokers, which she managed to expand to 23 franchises while achieving annual sales volume of $1 billion. Cowling also developed the majority of the training programs for the network. After it was sold in 2008, she went back to focus on building her personal mortgage business, which she managed to grow to more than $80 million while working with a staff of four through the purchase of an existing brokerage. Today as the owner of DLC Homeline Mortgages, Cowling’s key to success lies in her ability to find balance. “Maintaining and growing a successful business should not be at the expense of the things that are important in life,” she says. “With extremely exceptional circumstances on the family side in 2016, I credit my staff and especially Michelle, who is my partner in the personal mortgage brokerage side of my business, for helping to keep the business on track and growing throughout the year.” Prior to entering the mortgage industry in 1998, Cowling was the marketing director for Western Canada for Royal LePage Real Estate Services and was recognized as a Medallion Level Realtor by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver in the early ’90s.
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca
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