The Association of Independent Mortgage Experts (AIME) has created two senior roles, with Brendan McKay (pictured above) appointed as president of broker advocacy and Karis Koehn as vice president of partnerships (pictured below).

In addition, AIME has also promoted Jennifer Leonard to vice president of brand strategy. It has also formed six new member committees responsible for targeted topics crucial to the wholesale channel’s growth (including channel development, community, consumer, government affairs, partnership development, and women’s mortgage network).

Lifting the lid on the move, AIME said that the new leadership structure “reflects the strategic importance of the association’s interaction with its members and the transformative initiatives being launched to protect, support, and grow the broker channel.” AIME’s membership has increased by nearly 400% since the first quarter of 2021 and continues to exceed its own growth every quarter.

Read more: AIME unveils new mortgage career training and small business programs

“The channel is growing, as is AIME membership, so now is the perfect time to expand the leadership team at AIME to help lead and support this dedicated and passionate community,” said Marc Summers, president of AIME. “All of these committees will work to propel AIME’s mission of supporting, growing and protecting the independent mortgage broker channel.”

McKay, who brings more than a decade of experience, will be in charge of member development and act as a voice of brokers within the community. Koehn also joined AIME with 10 years of experience in the mortgage industry, focusing on partnership development and technology integration. She will lead the association’s partner management.

“We are pleased to announce the newest members of the AIME leadership team as we continue leading a movement to protect the independent mortgage broker community and advocate for the growing broker channel on the key issues facing the industry each and every day,” said Katie Sweeney, CEO of AIME. “Our team is dedicated to creating valuable new initiatives that support independent originators to assure their business succeeds today, tomorrow, and well into the future.”