Monitor's Podcast+

Most lenders didn't choose disconnected systems. They inherited them. In this episode of the Monitor podcast, Rita Garwood, editor in chief of Monitor and ABF Journal, talks with Brian Koprowski, president and general manager of DataScan by Solifi, about why credit, servicing, audit and risk systems stayed siloed, what lenders miss between 30-, 60- and 90-day floor plan audits, and how a connected...

What's the one question every contractor should ask their lender, and almost never does? For Tom Reilly, division president of construction equipment finance at 1st Source Bank, it's simple: what happens in the bad times? In this episode, Monitor Editor-in-Chief Rita Garwood talks with Reilly about the relationship-first philosophy that's shaped his 35 years in the industry, why his team refuses t...

Lenders and lessors are eager to put AI to work, but should you use an agent from your system of record vendor, bring in a third-party specialist or build your own in house? In this episode of the Monitor Podcast, Monitor Editor in Chief Rita Garwood talks with Kristian Dolan, CEO of Northteq, about how to make that call, why a weekend build is only the first 80%, what the ongoing costs of in-hous...

Every headline seems to have an AI angle, but what does that mean for middle market borrowers who aren't building data centers? In this episode of the ABF Journal / Monitor Podcast, Rita Garwood, editor in chief of ABF Journal and monitordaily.com, talks with Mike Semanco, president and COO of Business Finance at Mitsubishi HC Capital America. Semanco explains why an asset-based lender still s...

Solifi has made its third acquisition in 14 months, acquiring Inovatec and adding retail automotive and power sports loan origination technology to its secured finance platform. In this episode, Monitor Editor-in-Chief Rita Garwood sits down with Solifi CEO Dan Corazzi and Inovatec co-founder Vladimir Kovacevic to talk about why the deal made sense, how the companies plan to integrate their techno...

Access to capital in fleet lending is no longer decided by asset values, revenue growth or market share alone. On this episode of the Monitor podcast, Kirk Browning, division president of vehicle fleet financing at 1st Source Bank, joins editor in chief Rita Garwood to explain why financial transparency has become a competitive advantage for fleet operators — and what it takes to get there. In thi...

Why does one broker always seem to get the exception, while another can't catch a break? According to Jim Noel, VP of Partner Originations at Brightcap Financial, it comes down to trust — and trust is built long before the exception request ever comes in. In this episode, Monitor Editor-in-Chief Rita Garwood talks with Noel about where friction actually creeps into the deal process, why speed of s...

“Rip and replace” isn’t the only path to modernization — and for many equipment finance organizations, it isn’t even the right one. In this episode, Monitor Editor-in-Chief Rita Garwood talks with Campbell Clout, Managing Director, GTM, North America and APMEA at Odessa, about what real modernization looks like when you skip the all-or-nothing approach. They discuss:• Why vendors are now expected...

Most people buy jets backward. They fall in love with an aircraft first, then spend years trying to justify the purchase. In this episode of the Monitor podcast, host Rita Garwood sits down with Chris Lee, President of the Aircraft and Specialty Finance Deposit Divisions at 1st Source Bank, to talk about how to flip that order — starting with the mission, not the machine. Chris has been a pilot, a...

What does building autonomous vehicles at Cruise and dispatch systems at Uber have to do with underwriting a $50,000 equipment finance deal? More than you'd think. In this episode, Monitor Editor-in-Chief Rita Garwood talks with Utsav, Founder and CEO of Kaaj, about why the economics of underwriting small and mid-ticket deals have been broken for years, where the hours actually go between an appli...

Only 6 of the top Monitor 100 CEOs are women — even though 81% of women profiled in Monitor's Women's Issue say they aspire to senior executive or C-suite roles. That gap is exactly why LeadHER exists. In this episode, Monitor Editor-in-Chief Rita Garwood sits down with Lisa Rafter, Publisher of Monitor, and Lori Frasier, Architect and Co-Lead of LeadHER, to talk about the inaugural LeadHER Women'...

If AI is making it cheap and easy to build technology, what actually separates one lender — or one vendor — from the next? In this episode, Patricio Pazmiño, Chief Product Officer at Kin Analytics, breaks down why proprietary data, embedded expertise, and industry relationships are becoming the real moats in equipment finance, and why the tech stack itself no longer is.  We cover:  • Why AI is mor...

What keeps talented professionals from speaking up? During the inaugural LeadHER Women’s Summit, Nancy Robles and Lisa Fleischer led an engaging breakout sessions: Speaking Up When the Stakes Are High. In this conversation with Monitor Editor in Chief Rita Garwood, they discuss: • Building confidence early in your career• Finding your voice in challenging situations• Why authentic leadership matte...

Numbers in a ledger only tell half the story. In this episode, Rita Garwood sits down with Brendan Cronin of Great American Insurance to dive deep into the world of "fuzzy data"—the emails, notes, and transcripts that hold the "why" behind your business outcomes. In this episode, you’ll learn: • Why unpredictable, unstructured data is actually a goldmine for insight • How AI is...

As of April 1, 2026, the "informal pause" on anti-money laundering (AML) enforcement in Canada has officially ended. Financing and leasing companies are now subject to full assessments and audits by FINTRAC.In this episode, Rita Garwood sits down with Marcel Buerkler from the CFLA to discuss the regulatory shift that is catching many businesses off guard. In this video, we cover:• Why th...

In this episode, Rita Garwood sits down with Joe Andries of GreatAmerica Portfolio Services Group to discuss the rapid acceleration of third-party servicing in the equipment finance sector. Joe breaks down the post-pandemic variables driving companies toward outsourcing, including business continuity, talent retention, and the need for scalable technology. Key topics include:• The evolution of &qu...

What does “consumerization” actually mean for B2B finance? Spoiler: it’s not about dumbing things down. It’s about making complexity invisible. In this episode, Monitor Editor in Chief Rita Garwood sits down with Ryan Ragland, VP of Enterprise Solutions at Valiant Finance, to unpack how modern buyer expectations are forcing the industry to change, and why that’s a good thing. From embedded finance...

What does “consumerization” actually mean for B2B finance? Spoiler: it’s not about dumbing things down. It’s about making complexity invisible. In this episode, Monitor Editor in Chief Rita Garwood sits down with Ryan Ragland, VP of Enterprise Solutions at Valiant Finance, to unpack how modern buyer expectations are forcing the industry to change, and why that’s a good thing. From embedded finance...

In this episode of the Monitor Podcast, Editor in Chief Rita Garwood sits down with Spencer Thomas, CEO, KLC Financial; Scott Nelson, CTO, Tamarack Technology and Alistair Canal, President, Syndifi to unpack a bold, collaborative effort to modernize the syndication process in equipment finance. What happens when a client brings two tech companies together? Real transformation. From culture shifts...

In this episode of the Monitor podcast, Editor-in-Chief Rita Garwood sits down with Allard Pheifer, Global Lead of Sustainability at CHG-MERIDIAN, to break down why sustainability isn't a cost center—it's a value engine. Discover:• Why the linear economy is breaking• How circular models drive profit, not just purpose• What role lessors, banks, and independents play in creating sustainable...

Cloud isn't just a buzzword anymore, it’s the backbone of modern IT. But what happens when critical finance platforms are still stuck on-prem or weighed down by legacy architectures? In this episode of the Monitor Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Rita Garwood sits down with Alex Barnes, Director of Cloud Hosting at Alfa, to discuss what really holds companies back from moving to the cloud — and what t...

What happens when two longtime industry leaders reunite to build something radically new? In this episode of the Monitor Podcast, Publisher Lisa Rafter sits down with Bill Stephenson, CEO of PEAC Solutions, and Eileen Schoonmaker, President of the Americas, for a powerful conversation on leadership, disruption, and redefining success in equipment finance. From scaling a culture of innovation to me...

Manual underwriting is slowing lenders down — and borrowers won’t wait. In this episode of the Monitor Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Rita Garwood sits down with Carolina Patiño, Product Manager at Kin Analytics, to talk about how data, AI and automation are transforming the underwriting process. You’ll learn:• The biggest limitations of traditional underwriting• How predictive models and alternative da...

TFS Solutions President Aaron Case reveals how his team is using AI and automation to overhaul outdated processes, eliminate friction and accelerate deal flow. From automating unstructured data entry to intelligent lender matching, this episode is packed with real-world insights for anyone looking to scale smarter.

Two of the industry's fastest-growing finance companies just joined forces. Onset CEO Justin Nielsen and Channel CEO Brad Peterson share the inside story behind the deal, what it means for the market and how they're building a new standard for independent lending.