| From the front desk to the C-suite
Cindy Koebele, CEO of Minnesota-based TitleSmart Inc., recalls her unexpected entry into the title insurance industry with a smile.
 Her journey from a college music major to a leader in title is a testament to treating every day like a fresh start and believing in herself, she says.
“Both my parents were Realtors, and my mom was a loan officer,” Cindy says. “I was 18 and in college, and I didn’t really like what I was doing. My mom suggested I check with the title company lady she knew, and within two days, I was hired.
“I dropped out of college and started working at Universal Title, which is now First American. My first job was at the front desk. Coming full circle, our attorney at the time now works for me here at TitleSmart.”
A sudden shift from music to title insurance was not without its challenges. However, hard work continued to pay off as Cindy climbed the industry ladder.
“About a year in, I was moved to the closing department when a colleague got sick,” she says. “Three months later, I was told, ‘You’re a closer now.’ That’s when I knew this was a serious career path.”
Cindy’s career trajectory continued upward, marked by new leadership roles.
“I took a job with Keller Williams, helping them build their first title company in the Twin Cities,” she explains. “After five years, I thought, ‘I know how to do this now, so I’m going to do it for myself.’”
In 2007, as effects from the infamous housing bubble became apparent, Cindy launched TitleSmart.
“I opened during the worst time ever, but I had very small overhead and no debt,” she says. “I limped along for two to three years, building one customer at a time. Then, in 2009, things really started to get rolling the way we knew they could and we hit our stride.
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"I tell my closers all the time, if you don’t stay up with technology and embrace electronic closings, you’ll get erased right out of the industry."
Cindy Koebele
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“No matter what company I worked for over the years, my favorite part was always the momentum of the ‘push.’ When starting TitleSmart, there was a lot of negative energy from the outside, but I told my team to focus on the work and ignore the noise. Now, we’re the number one company in the Twin Cities.”
Cindy acquired Executive Title of Minnesota this past January, with the combined separate entities now operating a combined 13 offices across Minnesota. She is a licensed title producer in Minnesota and Wisconsin and an active member of the Title Action Network.
Numerous accolades earned across Cindy’s title career including being named a Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal’s Women in Business Honoree in 2015 and winning the 2015 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in the Upper Midwest for insurance services.
Additionally, she served more than six years on the executive committee of the board of directors for Spare Key, a nonprofit dedicated to assisting families in crisis with critically ill or seriously injured members through housing grant payment assistance, resource referrals and advocacy.
Currently, Cindy sits on the board of SAVE (Suicide Awareness Voices of Education), a national nonprofit working to end suicide through education, training, advocacy and support for suicide loss survivors.
Further beyond the office, Cindy and her husband Jon have been together for over 17 years and their four children have found ways to help out at TitleSmart, in addition to overseeing their own successful businesses.
“Jon has two daughters, and I have two sons. We’re a modern blended family,” she says. “My daughter Maggie owns The Social Collective, a digital marketing company and she has done a ton of work for my companies on social media and marketing. Alec owns Bircher Films and handles all my video needs. Andre is our chief technical officer at TitleSmart and Executive Title, and my oldest daughter Paige works in medical software.”
Cindy’s entrepreneurial spirit extends to passions outside of work. She owns Hay Creek Ranch in the Black Hills of South Dakota, a destination for horse enthusiasts that also acts as a setting for family gatherings.
“People come and camp with their horses, and we provide access to trails in the national forest,” she says. “It all kind of came out of a personal experience. I was going through work burnout, and my husband gave me a horseback ride as a gift. I loved it so much that we ended up buying the ranch. I enjoyed riding horses even before this came up, but having access to a place like this is just a dream. We all love it so much.”
Looking to the immediate future of the title industry and housing market, Cindy remains optimistic as uncertainty looms amidst elevated interest rates and subdued transaction volume.
 “I’m waiting for the election to gauge my strategy more, but I believe in the importance of staying adaptable and ready to change,” she says. “The industry could advance much faster with technology, and those who don’t keep up will get left behind.
“I tell my closers all the time, if you don’t stay up with technology and embrace electronic closings, you’ll get erased right out of the industry. I’m confident that we are doing RON (remote online notarization) closings better than anyone. That’s the kind of team we have here. It’s one that’s ready to embrace change and whatever comes next.”
As far as advice for industry peers considering a new business venture or working through less-than-ideal market conditions, Cindy says it’s vital to start every day with a clean slate and push through.
“Never give up,” she says. “If you’re having a bad day, let it be a bad day and start fresh tomorrow. Every day is another chance to start new and turn it all around.”
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