Mortgage is one of the few industries where you can build a genuinely impressive career without ever planning to work in it. You don’t have to have a mortgage degree or a finance background to succeed – starting out as an assistant and working your way up to SVP is a realistic path here. That’s exactly the career Michael Pearson built.
In this Mortgage Insights episode, he speaks with Jerry Byers, Senior Content Manager at AD Mortgage, about that path: what the Army taught him before he ever touched a mortgage file, and the advice he gives new account executives now that he’s training them.
An Observation That Launched a Sales Career
Mike’s start in mortgage was accidental. After leaving the Army, he took a temporary job at the mortgage company to pay the bills, with no idea what they did. His first task was alphabetizing paper loan files.
That changed when he noticed account executives’ initials coming through on those files, and that they earned commission on each one.
“I saw a commission, and that put me into sales pretty quickly.”
Twelve years as an account executive followed, then a move into management and leadership roles across the industry.
AD Mortgage is a wholesale mortgage lender that Michael Pearson joined almost four years ago and now runs its business development team as an SVP.
How Army Habits Shape a Career
Mike shares that during his military years, he learned discipline, and it helped bridge the gap until he gained the industry knowledge to support it.
“The habit of it carried me through until I could make up the skills and gain the knowledge… I made it up with just effort until I got there.”
He points to a few specific traits from his military service that translate directly into mortgage sales:
- Discipline – showing up and doing the work daily, regardless of results
- Organization – planning each day and tracking what wasn’t done
- Mental resilience – handling the stress that comes with high-stakes transactions
- Working within a structure – following process and learning from those ahead of you
A New Generation of Mortgage Professionals
As more experienced originators retire, mortgage companies are investing more deliberately in bringing younger talent in and teaching them the business from scratch.
AD Mortgage’s own sales team is a case in point. About 95% of Michael Pearson’s team has never held a corporate job before, and the average age is 25-26. AD Mortgage runs a 30-day training program for new account executives. The program teaches them the industry’s language, and many start producing within a couple of months.
“We know we’re not going to be perfect, but we can be excellent at many things.”
How AI is Reshaping the Mortgage Sales Team
That generational shift lines up with a technological one. For the young sales specialists coming in today, AI already functions as a basic work tool. It creates a two-way exchange on the team: younger AEs help keep the energy up and get more experienced colleagues comfortable with new technology, while veterans like Mike pass down the judgment and relationship skills that take years to build.
Having said that, in 2026, AI is no longer optional for any mortgage professional. It’s already reshaping how offices of every size compete.
“What the big equalizer is for medium and smaller sized offices is that AI allows them to have the same size, scope, and reach as larger companies. The problem is, many, including myself, don’t know where to start.“
AD Mortgage conducted the original 2026 Technology in the Mortgage Industry survey. The findings back Mike up: more than half of brokers (55%) now use AI daily or regularly, and 72% expect it to have a major impact on their business over the next three years. However, training hasn’t caught up with adoption: 57% of brokers say they still need more training to use these tools well, and training satisfaction sits at just 6.49 out of 10 – the lowest-scoring metric in the whole report.
Conclusion
Mike credits discipline and organization for getting him where he is today, alongside the relationships he built along the way. Here’s some advice he shares with younger professionals:
- Know what your company can’t do, not just what it can
- Know who else in the market can cover that gap for your client
- Ask yourself what you’re bringing to the client, and what they are bringing to you
For Michael Pearson, that last point is especially important:
“What am I bringing to the client? And what is the client bringing to me? That’s a partnership where we’re both bringing something to the table.”
That instinct tracks with what brokers themselves are prioritizing. In AD Mortgage’s Mortgage Professionals Pulse Report & 2026 Outlook, strengthening referral networks was the most-cited strategic priority for 2026, named by 38.5% of respondents, ahead of expanding loan products or investing in new technology.
Whatever stage of the industry you’re at, that’s the same thread: build the relationship first, and the deal follows.
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