Digital Lending & CX Analyst

Ascend; Wallingford (CT); On-site; USD 65,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

Ascend is seeking a Digital Lending & Customer Experience Analyst to enhance the lending experience while ensuring compliance and optimization throughout the process. This hybrid role requires someone skilled in credit analysis, customer service, and process improvement.

The ideal candidate possesses 3–5 years of relevant experience, strong organizational abilities, and a commitment to delivering exceptional customer experiences.

Qualifications

• 3–5 years of experience in credit analysis, underwriting, or loan review.
• Experience with consumer, marine, or commercial lending preferred.
• Ability to manage multiple applications in a digital workflow with high accuracy.

Responsibilities

• Own the application lifecycle from submission through funding.
• Perform pre- and post-funding quality checks.
• Build and maintain trusted dealer relationships.

Skills

Credit fundamentals knowledge

Organizational skills

Verbal communication skills

Analytical mindset

Education

Bachelor’s degree in finance, Accounting, Business, or equivalent work experience

Tools

Microsoft Office

Reporting tools

LOS/CRM/workflow tools

Job description

If you are unable to complete this application due to a disability, contact this employer to ask for an accommodation or an alternative application process.

Wallingford, CT, US

4 days ago Requisition ID: 1176

Position Description

The Digital Lending & Customer Experience (CX) Analyst is a customer‑centric role within the Digital Banking team responsible for delivering a seamless, high‑quality digital lending experience across consumer and indirect dealer channels. This hybrid position blends hands‑on digital lending execution with proactive customer experience oversight, process optimization and innovation. The Analyst is the primary driver from application through funding, engaging directly with borrowers, dealers and internal partners to drive application pull‑through, while maintaining strong compliance and operational standards.

This is an experience‑forward position designed for a highly motivated professional who thrives is a dynamic, growth‑oriented environment and energized by removing friction, improving workflows and delivering meaningful customer impact.

General Description of Duties

Digital Application & Experience Management

• Own the application lifecycle from submission through funding for consumer and marine loans, ensuring a fast, confident, and transparent borrower/dealer experience.
• Proactively manage borrower and dealer communications and application pipelines: document requests, condition explanations, next‑step clarity, and expectation setting.
• Actively remove friction: elevate intelligently, anticipate bottlenecks, and ensure “no surprises” closings.

Credit Analysis & Underwriting Support (Non‑Decisioning)

• Review credit applications, documentation, and financial information (e.g., tax returns, financial statements, credit reports, collateral details) to ensure files are complete, accurate, and decision‑ready.
• Conduct preliminary credit analysis and file preparation to support decision‑making by the bank’s credit/underwriting teams. Summarize key risk factors, strengths, and mitigants in a clear, concise format to assist underwriters and credit officers in their evaluation.
• Collaborate closely with credit/underwriting teams to clarify information, address questions, and respond to additional documentation requests.
• Track and document conditions, approvals, and exceptions as directed by credit/underwriting, ensuring alignment with established policies and risk appetite.

Marine Lending Specialization

• Serve as a key operational and experience partner for the bank’s marine lending channel.
• Review marine‑specific documentationfor completeness and accuracy, including (as applicable):
  • Marine surveys and inspection reports
  • Vessel details (HIN, make/model, year, engine information, options)
  • Manufacturer information and program documentation
  • Charter company financials and related operating information
• Coordinate and validate all collateral and lien‑perfection requirements (title/registration, insurance, UCCs as applicable) to support clean, fundable files and reduce post‑funding defects.
• Build and maintain trusted dealer relationships through responsiveness, education, and proactive communication, while reinforcing the bank’s risk standards and expectations.

Documentation, Quality Control, & Compliance

• Maintain best‑in‑class documentation standards for consumer and marine loans, ensuring files are complete, accurate, and clearly organized from application through funding.
• Perform pre‑ and post‑funding quality checks to minimize defects and rework; Support or perform post‑funding QC reviews to confirm that conditions were met, collateral and lien perfection are accurate, and all required records are present and properly stored.
• Adhere to applicable consumer lending regulations and bank policies, including fair lending, UDAAP, privacy, information security, adverse action, and disclosure requirements.
• Track exceptions, defects, and repeat issues, identify root causes, and partner with risk, credit, and operations to implement sustainable fixes (process/procedure updates, training, templates, system rules).

Funnel Analytics & Optimization

• Monitor the digital lending funnel and operational workflow: conversion, drop‑off points, condition cycle time, touch counts, and root causes of delay.
• Partner with Digital Banking, Loan Originations, Marketing, Operations and Compliance/Risk teams to improve application flows, disclosures, document collection, and self‑service success.
• Maintain reporting dashboards and recurring performance insights (weekly/monthly).

Training, Bank‑Wide Enablement & Process Improvement

• Serve as a key subject‑matter expert for digital consumer and marine lending, acting as a go‑to resource for branches, contact center, digital support, credit, and operations.
• Train internal teams (branch, contact center, digital, back‑office) on:
  • Consumer and marine products, structures, and eligibility
  • Digital application workflows and best practices, documentation standards, and common pitfalls
• Design, deliver, and maintain training content and job aids, including:
  • Step‑by‑step guides, playbooks, and “how‑to” materials
• Act as a project contributor or workstream lead for initiatives related to:
  • Digital journey enhancements
  • New product rollouts, policy changes, or channel expansions
  • Automation, workflow configuration, and onboarding of new tools or integrations
• Use a structured process improvement mindset:
  • Identify bottlenecks, handoff issues, and failure points
  • Propose and help implement future‑state workflows that improve speed, quality, and CX; track performance before/after changes
• Partner with leadership to plan and execute small to mid‑sized projects, including timelines, stakeholders, communication needs, training plans, and post‑implementation reviews.

Other Requirements

• Builds productive relationships with internal and external stakeholders to ensure efficiency, compliance, service quality, and cost management
• Demonstrates excellent verbal and written communication skills; can create influential documents and facilitate discussions across audiences
• Attends Compliance/Regulatory webinars for a full understanding of Lending Regulation and Compliance Requirements
• Represents the interests of the Bank by providing leadership to and/or participating in various community and civic activities

Key Qualifications

• Working knowledge of credit fundamentals, consumer and/or marine lending guidelines, and relevant compliance/regulatory expectations.
• Experience reviewing personal and business tax returns, financial statements, credit reports, and marine‑specific documentation (e.g., marine surveys, vessel valuations).
• Strong organizational and execution skills; able to manage multiple applications in a digital workflow with high accuracy and follow‑through.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; ability to work effectively with customers, dealers, and internal partners.
• Strong cross‑functional collaboration.
• Analytical and KPI‑driven mindset, using data and metrics to prioritize work, optimize performance, and drive continuous improvement.
• High ownership, high standards, and a deep commitment to customer experience—simplifying processes, reducing friction, and delivering clean, timely execution.

Function Supervised: None

List of Positions Supervised: None

Education Required

Bachelor’s degree in finance, Accounting, Business, or equivalent work experience.

Experience Required

• 3–5 years of experience supporting credit analysis, underwriting, or loan review activities in a consumer, marine, or commercial lending environment.
• Experience with indirect lending channels and/or marine lending strongly preferred.
• Comfort working in a performance‑measured environment (turn time, conversion, quality).
• Familiarity with credit policies, documentation standards, and consumer lending regulations.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, Outlook); reporting tools and Adobe Acrobat experience a plus; comfort with reporting and trend analysis.
• Experience with LOS/CRM/workflow tools; ability to learn new systems quickly.
• Bonus: experience with experimentation/optimization, journey mapping, or digital funnel analytics.

Managerial Responsibility

• Serves as a senior individual contributor and functional lead

*Compensation: Compensation is based on our market pay structures. However, individual salaries are determined by a variety of factors including, but not limited to, business considerations, local market conditions, and internal equity, as well as candidate qualifications, such as skills, education, and experience.

Ascend Bank is an equal opportunity employer and offers equal opportunity to all applicants for all positions without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, and veteran status.

Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation in the application process should notify Human Resources.