Not just closing loans, but walking families through one of life’s biggest milestones.

In this episode of Culture Uncovered, Jena Dunay sits down with Maddi Hargrove, Director of People and Culture at Better and NEO Home Loans, to go behind the scenes of two organizations working to modernize the mortgage experience through technology, people-first culture, and a bigger mission around homeownership.

Maddi shares how Better’s tech platform is transforming the loan process, why NEO Home Loans partnered with Better, and how both organizations are building around a shared just cause: to be better for their clients, partners, and people.

They also dive into what it takes to build culture across multiple business models, from distributed retail to direct-to-consumer to tech, and why responsible autonomy, employee feedback, and mission alignment matter in a fast-moving, high-pressure industry like mortgage.

What you’ll learn:

• How Better and NEO Home Loans are modernizing the mortgage experience
• Why technology like Tinman is changing the loan process from start to finish
• What “responsible autonomy” looks like in practice
• How mission, ethos, and employee feedback shape culture across both organizations

Better + NEO Home Loans Highlights:

• Better Founded: 2016
• NEO Founded: 2021
• Headquarters: New York City
• Team Size: 1,500 across Better, including 360 at NEO
• Industry: Mortgage / Fintech / Proptech
• Culture: Mission-driven, resilient, feedback-oriented, autonomy-led

Unique Perks:

• Flex time
• Strong remote work options
• Hybrid and in-office opportunities depending on team
• High trust and responsible autonomy
• Employees help shape culture through ethos and feedback loops

To learn more about Better + NEO Home Loans:

Better's (including NEO) Careers Page (They’re hiring!)

Better's LinkedIn Page

NEO's LinkedIn Page

Maddi's LinkedIn Profile