TOCICO

This case study covers a three-year period of consulting work with this middle-sized independent mortgage company from the introduction of TOC as a management framework in March 2010 to the present. The environment of a mortgage company cannot be classified as traditional operations (suitable for a DBR solution) nor as a project environment (suitable for a CCPM solution). V.I.P. Mortgage worked with Aligned Consulting Services to develop a TOC solution for the mortgage industry. V.I.P. Mortgage used the classic TOC thinking processes (TP) as the whole system intervention. The company successfully adapted its mortgage automation system to support a buffer-managed, flow-focused operations system. The company developed its performance management system to encourage behaviors that facilitate flow. The TOC-based solution has profoundly influenced every sales, operational, financial, and human resources system in the company. While applying TOC, V.I.P. Mortgage grew from 50 to over 260 employees during a period of turmoil and upheaval in the home mortgage industry, achieving its long-term goal in 2012 of exceeding $1 billion in loan volume. In this context, this case demonstrates that TOC is more than a process of ongoing improvement; it can be framed as an organization theory to grow successful companies.