Josh Friend is a mortgage technology entrepreneur and AI innovator with more than 25 years of experience as a loan officer, lender, and business leader. After building and operating mortgage call centers and training thousands of mortgage professionals, he founded Insellerate to help financial institutions create stronger, more valuable customer relationships.

Today, Josh leads the advancement of Aithena, powered by Insellerate—an AI platform designed to help lenders prioritize opportunities, improve loan officer performance, strengthen borrower engagement, and turn customer interactions into measurable business results.

A recognized mortgage and fintech thought leader, Josh is a frequent industry speaker and contributor focused on practical AI, intelligent automation, and the future of customer engagement in financial services.

John Lowenthal is the VP of Sales at Ocrolus, a leading fintech platform leveraging artificial intelligence to automate document processing and underwriting for the mortgage industry. With over 10 years at Ocrolus, John has played a pivotal role in scaling the company’s mortgage presence and driving innovation across lending workflows.
He has partnered with a wide range of lenders, particularly within the top 25 mortgage institutions, helping them modernize operations with intelligent automation, AI-driven data analysis and frictionless borrower experiences. His deep understanding of the mortgage lifecycle, coupled with a strategic approach to enterprise engagement, has made him a trusted advisor for digital transformation in lending.
John is passionate about helping financial institutions harness the power of AI to make faster, more informed decisions and is committed to shaping the future of mortgage technology through scalable, data-driven solutions.

Joe Welu is the founder and CEO of Total Expert, the fintech software leader that launched the first customer experience platform purpose-built for modern financial institutions. Since 2012, Joe has led Total Expert’s vision, culture, and growth to more than 300 employees today. The company powers CRM, marketing, and customer engagement for more than 170 financial institutions—from leading community banks and credit unions to 15 of the top 25 U.S. banks and lenders. Total Expert’s growth has skyrocketed since its inception, being named the #1 CRM platform by STRATMOR Group and earning top spots on the Inc. 5000 and HousingWire Tech100.

Alec Hanson is a contemporary leader within the Mortgage Industry.  Constantly striving to improve, he began his career in origination in 2004 funding over $85M and was named Rookie of the Year by Scotsman’s Guide. Every subsequent year, Hanson landed on Scotsman’s Top 200 Originator list finishing his best year at $185M. From there, Hanson began coaching and growing a successful branch network in Orange County with his peak year in 2010 funding over $1B at the branch level. Hanson has received Housing Wire’s Rising Star award both in 2017 and 2019.  Previously he has served as the Senior Vice President of Production for loanDepot for the West Division, overseeing approximately $8B in annual production and as the Chief Marketing Officer for loanDepot. Currently, he serves as the Head of Revenue Development and Growth for the company.  A dynamic coach and thought leader, Hanson believes in leading and coaching within the trenches of the mortgage business.  

He is the author of loanDepot’s Modern Lending Playbook: a strategic and tactical tool designed to equip, train, and evolve the traditional mortgage professional’s skill sets into the modern era. Alec is also the author of “Bypassed: A Modern Guide for Local Mortgage Pros Left Behind by the Digital Customer,” which details a systemic approach to help Mortgage Professionals succeed in the digital world.

Alec is married to his beautiful wife of 20 years, Erica, and is the proud dad of Phoenix (14 years old) and Scarlett (11 years old).  He can be found at @alecthehanson on all social platforms.

TJ brings nearly 15 years of experience leading architecture and engineering  teams across financial services. She has a strong track record of driving change— modernizing platforms and aligning technology with business strategy. She’s  passionate about bringing product and technology together to create meaningful,  sustainable impact. 

Beyond her day-to-day work, TJ stays actively involved in tech community events  to connect with and learn from others who are shaping the future of our industry. 

Outside of work, she’s a proud mom of two daughters, lifts weights to clear her  head, and enjoys reading non-fiction.

Srijana Giri is a Product Owner Senior Director of Loan Products in the Freddie Mac Single-Family Acquisitions Division. She is responsible for Single-Family’s Credit and Capacity offerings that affect or are provided to mortgage borrowers, including the enhancement of existing loan products and the creation of new ones to drive access to homeownership. 

Ms. Giri leads strategy for Acquisitions through the ideation, design and implementation of sustainable and scalable mortgage loan products that meet borrower needs and are consumable through our lenders and partners.

Prior to this role, Ms. Giri was responsible for driving innovation activities that support Freddie Mac’s Automated Underwriting Risk Assessment, Loan Product Advisor® (LPA℠) and Asset and Income Modeler (AIM) tools with partners and clients.

Ms. Giri has more than 15 years of experience in the mortgage and housing industry, spanning origination, risk, IT solutions and innovation. Before joining Freddie Mac in 2015, she held positions implementing software solutions in the healthcare, education and mortgage industries. 

She holds an MBA and an undergraduate degree in computer science.

Jodi Eberhardt is a Project Management Senior Director focusing on Seller Strategy and Optimization in the Seller Engagement organization within the Freddie Mac Single-Family Acquisitions Division. She consults with strategic business partners to improve business outcomes by integrating Freddie Mac technology into lender processes and systems.

Ms. Eberhart has nearly 25 years of experience across all channels of the residential mortgage industry.   Prior to joining Freddie Mac in 2016, she consulted as a business architect to drive process improvement, technology innovation and cost reduction initiatives.

She holds an MBA in information technology from the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management and a Bachelor of Science in math, with a minor in business administration, from Drake University.