LenderClose Continues To Grow Its Team of Experts

December 16, 2020 PROGRESS In Lending

LenderClose has hired tenured Product Manager Kaustubh Apte, Product Marketing Manager Logan Keehner and Python Engineer Anna Gass.

“Our product strategy is heavily reliant on top-notch talent and a borrower-centric mindset,” said LenderClose Vice President of Product Andrew Deignan. “Each of our new team members has demonstrated proficiency in these areas, and we can’t wait to see their impact on the continued iteration of the LenderClose platform and the community lenders we serve.”

LenderClose Product Manager Kaustubh Apte

Apte joins LenderClose from John Deere Financial in Johnston, Iowa, where he served as global product manager. There, he led the company’s digital transformation strategy alongside six agile product teams to transform the customer experience across 15 countries. Apte was the recipient of the President’s Award in both 2016 and 2018 for improving customer engagement with a new payment solution and agile delivery, efforts that resulted in a 50-percent increase in business.

Apte’s career accomplishments also include a complex multi-year business transformation and workforce planning project for banks in Europe, Brazil, China and Asia. He also served as managing director for John Deere Financial India, Pvt. Ltd. in Pune, India. While there, he established and grew a multi-million wholesale inventory financing business from the ground up to more than 400 dealers.

Apte won the Global Innovation Excellence Award for the development and launch of a mobile-based solution for customer acquisition, documentation and collection and was selected as the Apex Leader of the Year for India.

Earlier roles Apte filled include senior manager of retail banking for HDFC and regional business manager for Cholamandalam Investment & Finance Company, Ltd.

Apte holds two diplomas in engineering and one in business administration. He also has an MBA in business administration from ICFAI University in Tripura, India. He owns the international patent for Utkersh Solution, a mobile-based solution for business and financial functions.

For LenderClose, Apte will apply his nearly 20 years of leadership experience in finance and banking to this critical role in the future of digital lending. He will lean on his strong business savvy and deep expertise in risk analysis, resource allocation and product road mapping to execute strategies around end-user experience. Apte’s technology acumen and proven ability to introduce cutting-edge products to new markets will enable more community lenders to find efficiencies and work faster, all while improving the borrower experience. reducing costs and without sacrificing peak quality.

LenderClose Product Marketing Manager Logan Keehner

Keehner, joining LenderClose as a product manager, has spent his career thus far in marketing and advertising agencies.

Most recently, he held a project manager position at Two Rivers Marketing in Des Moines, Iowa. There, he managed scope, timelines and resources for numerous and ongoing client campaigns.

Prior to that, Keehner guided the creative team at Wunderman on the development of deliverables for multiple audiences as an account manager. Additionally, he was in charge of aligning asset delivery and coordinating between regional offices, while navigating global production deadlines.

Keehner earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and public relations from Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

For LenderClose, he will use his marketing expertise and project management background to lead the development of proper product positioning, as well as effective messaging to helps match features and benefits and to audience needs. Working in a cross-functional team, Keehner will facilitate go-to-market plans for LenderClose product launches, as well as track KPIs and test new strategies to continually engage clients in the transformation of their lending arms.

LenderClose Python Engineer Anna Gass

Gass, joining LenderClose as Python engineer, was most recently a software engineer for Principal Financial Group in Des Moines, Iowa. While at Principal, Gass led key business initiatives, including modernizing batch processes and automating updates to large customer datasets. Working with data and analytics, Gass also deployed machine learning and artificial intelligence models She is proficient in Python, as well as a number of other programming languages and technologies.

Gass earned a bachelor’s degree in computer science from North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. She has developed her leadership skills in her volunteer roles with OneAbility Employee Resource Group and the Intern Recruiting Committee. She is also a volunteer with dsmHack, and is a modern dance teacher at the Pointe Academy of Ballet & Contemporary, as well as a member of Iowa Dance Theater.

At LenderClose, Gass will use her software engineering expertise to improve responsiveness and overall performance of back-end components. She will coordinate with internal teams to understand user requirements and provide technical solutions. Working collaboratively, Gass will be part of a team driven to deliver high-quality, production-ready code.