In a business and strategic leadership pivot, Tri Pointe Homes' tech-powered future got sharply clearer yesterday with the elevation of long-time marketing chief Linda Mamet to Executive Vice President.

This new role expands Mamet's responsibilities to include oversight and integration of the organization's Information Technology, customer data, operational data, and business data into a holistic business system. At the same time, the newly appointed Chief Information Officer, Urmila Menon, will report to Mamet. Menon brings a wealth of experience from her previous role as Chief Technology Officer at ATI Restoration, positioning her to lead Tri Pointe into a future driven by data and advanced technological solutions.

Corporate personnel stories seldom make for big news. This time's different.

• One reason has to do with a business sign of the times. Namely, that homebuilding – despite an arguably deserved distinction as a notoriously change-resistant industry sector – is taking action on commitments to and investments in a real world of data and technology's exponential impacts on value creation, performance, and customer experience.
• Another is a relatively exceptional case example of a female homebuilding executive's cross-over into rarefied strategic leadership territory, with an inference that Mamet's star can rise even higher.

Mamet’s journey with Tri Pointe Homes began 10 years ago, during which she has seen the company grow from a relative fledgling to a national superpower. Under her leadership, Tri Pointe has expanded its marketing and sales efforts, incorporated business intelligence, and utilized data analytics to understand better and meet customer needs. Her ability to adapt and integrate various business functions has been crucial in establishing Tri Pointe as a "premium lifestyle brand."

According to a Tri Pointe Homes statement:

From day one, Linda’s dedication to outstanding leadership and commitment to excellence has not only been a recipe for success at Tri Pointe Homes, but a source of inspiration and admiration for those who work alongside her,” said Doug Bauer, CEO of Tri Pointe Homes. “Linda possesses a masterful understanding of how to operate and thrive in today’s customer- and technology-driven world, and we could not be more pleased that she is expanding her leadership role as we look forward to a bright future for Tri Pointe Homes.”

In a one-to-one conversation with The Builder's Daily this week, Mamet highlighted the importance of leveraging technology to enhance customer and team member experiences.

Mamet’s personal background also plays a significant role in her approach to her work. Growing up in Auckland, New Zealand, with a father involved in building and developing, she developed a deep appreciation for the hands-on aspects of the homebuilding industry. Her promotion to EVP at Tri Pointe marks a significant step in the company’s journey towards integrating advanced technology and data-driven strategies into their business operations.

What's more, Mamet's teaming up with Urmila Menon draws emphasis to a fundamental recrafting of homebuilding enterprises' business model into an asset-light "demand-machine" that pulls construction operations and its ecosystem of related design, land purchase and development, community-making, and marketing, sales, and customer care disciplines through that machine.

We wrote of Lennar's hiring of CTO Scott Spradley this time a year ago, quoting Lennar executive chairman Stuart Miller.

It's a very integrated set of systems that is dependent on feedback loops. And any time that you find a process that becomes data-driven and the data improves to the point that it's actually relevant, at some point, there are large learning models that can be helpful in enhancing productivity.

These are the areas where we are leaning in. I mentioned that we brought on a strategic Chief Technology Officer in Scott Spradley. And all of this is a coordinated program of taking steps at a time to improve the ingestion of data, to use the data more constructively and then to bring it to its next level where we're actually driving productivity gains within our business."

Menon joins Spradley in the ranks of a growing business-level capability to connect all the dots between disparate data and planning, resource investment, and business performance results. In our conversation with Linda Mamet this week, she discussed the foundational platforms at Tri Pointe, which are set to scale and provide more seamless customer interactions. Mamet emphasized the need for technology to automate mundane tasks, allowing team members to focus on strategic initiatives and creative problem-solving.

We can now focus fully on ideas like a single source of truth," says Mamet. "This means holistic integrations among our platforms – where information moves meaningfully in real-time, back-and-forth between what the customer is doing and what we are doing internally, and gathering that data so that it's there to act on at each step a customer takes in the home buying process or home ownership process.”

She discusses the importance of having a unified and integrated data system where information flows seamlessly between customer interactions and internal operations. This concept of a "single source of truth" ensures that all team members have access to accurate and up-to-date information, facilitating better decision-making and enhancing the overall customer experience as well as the business value lifecyle. This integration is a key focus in her new role, aiming to align various functions within the company and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their processes.

A Rising Star

To get to know Linda Mamet is to recognize a gaping difference between an introvert – which she is not – and the inspirational and motivational power of a humble person, which she is. In our conversation, Mamet points to her work with Tri Pointe founders Doug Bauer, Tom Mitchell, and Mike Grubbs, who each embraced a collaborative and innovative culture.

This culture values humility, strategic thinking, and a forward-looking approach, all critical as Tri Pointe continues to expand and evolve, Mamet notes in our conversation.

They are all extremely humble, brilliant leaders. They create an engaging, passionate culture without unnecessary structure, and one that empowers people to do their best work and collaborate as part of a team."

Here are some highlights of our chat with Linda Mamet this week:

New Responsibilities and Technology Integration

I think for all of us, there's some mundane aspects of day-to-day work that we would gladly give up for more automated solutions using existing and emerging technologies so that the talent of our people can be used to its fullest potential.”

Linda emphasizes the importance of leveraging data and A.I. technology to automate routine tasks, allowing team members to focus on strategic and creative work. This reflects her new responsibility in integrating IT and data systems to improve operational efficiency and employee satisfaction.

Holistic Customer Experience

People's experiences when they come to buy a home are shaped by all of the other experiences they have in their lives. Buying the most important item they'll probably ever buy in their lives comes with high expectations.”

Linda highlights the need for a seamless and holistic customer experience, recognizing that homebuyers’ expectations are influenced by their interactions in other areas of their lives. Her role will ensure that Tri Pointe’s technology and data systems support an integrated and positive customer journey.

Alignment Across Functions

The first and highest priority is having all of our team members understand holistically the customer's experience and what systems are powering that experience at different points in time.”

Linda underscores the importance of alignment and understanding among team members regarding the customer experience and the systems in place. This alignment is crucial for effectively leveraging technology to enhance customer satisfaction and operational performance.

Customer for Life Opportunity

We hope that in the future, the shopping and purchase journey doesn't stop at the end of a warranty period. It's more about a customer-for-life philosophy and all of the affiliated services and products and experiences that our customers want to tap into once they're living in their home in a Tri Pointe community.”

Linda speaks to the long-term vision of maintaining relationships with customers beyond the home purchase, supported by data and technology. This reflects a shift towards a more service-oriented and customer-centric approach.

That's a profoundly new vision for the future of one of homebuilding's top 15 national enterprises. That's big news.