Not only is Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC) CEO Angelo Mozilo horrifically bad at creating (or even retaining) value for shareholders, but he's also not so good at managing email.
A Countrywide customer emailed Mozilo asking the company to modify the terms on his adjustable rate mortgage. The email was sent to 16 Countrywide employees, a common practice in the current market environment.
Annoyed by the email, Mozilo did his best Marie Antoinette impersonation:
"This is unbelievable. Most of these letters now have the same wording. Obviously they are being counseled by some other person or by the Internet. Disgusting."
Instead of forwarding the email to someone else, he accidentally hit reply -- giving the anti-Countrywide gang further ammunition to tar and feather him as an imperial executive completely out of touch with the lives of his customers.
In a statement, Countrywide said that the company and its CEO "regret any misunderstanding caused by his inadvertent response . . . Countrywide is actively working to help borrowers, like Mr. Bailey, keep their homes."
Of course they are. In a related story, Countrywide is the subject of a federal mortgage fraud investigation and a federal judge authorized a probe into allegations that the company was taking advantage of the bankruptcy system to extract illegal fees.
Hey Angelo: Sit and spin, my friend. Sit and spin.
More Countrywide Financial news:
Peter Cohan: Why Countrywide (CFC) CEO Angelo Mozilo is like Enron's Ken Lay
Douglas McIntyre: Countrywide (CFC) CEO stock sales questioned
Zac Bissonette: Countrywide (CFC) has a new PR campaign, but what about real change?
Eric Buscemi: Countrywide (CFC) showing some class and good business sense
Peter Cohan: Is Countrywide (CFC) too big to fail?
Douglas McIntyre: Could subprime problems hurt search engines?
Peter Cohan: Is Bank of America's (BAC) purchase of Countrywide Financial (CFC) a good bet?
Joseph Lazzaro: The (still) foggy subprime mortgage sector
Peter Cohan: What the mortgage meltdown means to you
Michael Fowlkes: Countrywide Financial (CFC) adds to subprime panic
Peter Cohan: Could Countrywide Financial (CFC) be put down?
Cramer on BloggingStocks: Don't paint everything with the jobs brush
Seven banks go up in smoke ahead of the holiday weekend
Sears offering hedge for consumers who lose their job -- good idea?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-21-2008 @ 2:48PM
MatWith1T said...
He is right though... blogs like Consumerist advocate bypassing customer service and sending complaints right to executives, providing e-mail addresses and general templates that have proved successful for other 'consumer advocates.'
Stupid to send the response he did? No doubt - but he is still right. His job isn't to be a Service Rep, its to destroy the value of his company.
5-21-2008 @ 3:09PM
james carter said...
HE LEARNED FROM BOA CEO THE WAY TO AVOID CUSTOMERS IS NOT TO ANSWER E MAILS OR REGESTERED LETTERS THATS WHY BOA CUSTOMER SERVICE SUCKS
5-21-2008 @ 7:51PM
winslow said...
I'd like to see a government agency formed to prosecute executives that have destoyed shareholder value while pocketing the riches
5-22-2008 @ 12:05PM
dee said...
The same thing happened to us only with another mortgage lender. They were adamant that we would be able to get into another 30 year fixed at the end of the two year adjustable rate. Guess what, never happened and we are struggling like thousands of hard working Americans to keep our home.
5-22-2008 @ 2:44PM
Dee said...
This is typical of the behavior we have encountered with Countrywide.God help us all.
5-22-2008 @ 2:49PM
Dee said...
Countrywide & their CEO's behavior is disgusting!
5-27-2008 @ 5:49PM
Joe said...
I don't see what the guy did wrong other than hit the wrong button. If the customers have a sincere problem that needs to be heard, say it from the heart. Form letters are not the way to do it because it sounds insincere and unbelievable. Countrywide was not the originator of these subprime loans, they purchased them later. The bad guys are the ones who sold the loans to Countrywide. Countywide is taking the hit just like the homeowners, so the guy should be cut some slack if he is being critical of his customers asking him to lose more and more of the companies money by renegotiating loan terms.
6-16-2008 @ 10:33AM
IrishGal57 said...
Uh, Joe - you are sadly misinformed. Countrywide was a HUGE originator of "these loans". They retained the servicing, but sold them to investors such as Fannie Mae. They have retail "stores" and wholesale centers. The originated and brokered in subprime as well as prime loans.
The big question now is whether BofA will shutter all their brick-and-mortar retail offices. They may opt to retain some of the loan officer sales force, but do what Wells Fargo has done for years - put mortgage people in their bank locations. Ken Lewis has already said publicly that the Countrywide name will go away (as it should).