Lynn Gosselin

Director of Underwriting, Wells Fargo Capital Finance

Biography:

Kynn Gosselin, director of underwriting for Wells Fargo Capital Finance (WFCF), is responsible for underwriting and closing middle-market and large corporate asset-based transactions that range from $10 million to $2 billion. Recently, Lynn was selected to be a part of an elite underwriting team that focuses on fast-moving transactions within Wells Fargo Wholesale Banking that delivers comprehensive financial solutions to meet the needs of customers. Prior to joining Wells Fargo, Lynn spent 15 years at GE Capital in field exam, portfolio and under- writing, and as a Quality Black Belt followed by five years at U.S. Bank leading portfolio and underwriting teams. Lynn’s 25 years of industry experience is vital as she leads and executes complex transactions under tight timelines to meet customer needs.

Lynn holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Boston College and an M.B.A. from Kellstadt Graduate School of Business at DePaul University, in Chicago, Illinois. She is a member of the Wells Fargo Diversity & Inclusion Council and the Wells Fargo Chicago Charitable Contributions Committee.

What advice would you offer to women just starting out in the industry?

I encourage everyone starting out in the industry to excel at the intangibles, including accountability, thoroughness, inquisitiveness and communication skills. When faced with a question or problem, try to brainstorm possible solutions so you can be engaged and collaborate to solve the problem with your team. Collect subject matter experts in your network. You don’t have to know everything, but knowing who does know the answer is an asset.

What do you know now that you wish you knew in the beginning of your career?

I don’t know that I would have followed my own advice if I heard it in my 20s, but I would say that it is important to recognize that there is a limit to how much you can do at the same time and still deliver high quality results on each item. The most valuable tool to make sure that you are able to consistently deliver is to seek guidance on prioritization. It opens the dialogue and makes sure that all key stakeholders are vested in charting a course that can be successful.

What kind of role has mentoring and/ or sponsorship played in your career? 

Early in my career, most of my mentors were men, as they held most of the positions in the organization ahead of me. However, over time I developed a cohort of women who are my best resources and have played an influential role, for over 20 years in some cases. The last two opportunities I received came via women in my network who reached out to me when they heard of an opportunity that they thought would be a good fit for me (in both cases, the opportunities were outside of their respective firms). I believe that it is important for mid and senior- level women to actively help younger women with navigating their institutions and careers and I have enjoyed strategizing with younger women on how to accelerate theirs as well as opening my network to them to facilitate their goals, including jumping to consulting or origination. Mentoring and coaching are my favorite dimensions of my career.

What do you think the industry could do to attract and retain the best and the brightest today?

The industry does a good job attracting a diverse group of the best and brightest. Where the industry needs improvement is on the retention of diverse employees, as there tends to be a drop off in representation after entry-level positions. I think the industry has made strides in recognizing this need and it is a focus of WFCF’s Diversity & Inclusion Council (D&I). I serve as D&I co-chair of a development program which aims to increase retention of diverse talent by providing training, development, and job shadowing of key leadership feeder positions.