What No One's Telling You About the SBA Talent Crisis And Why It’s About to Get Worse

By: Shatterbox
‍

The SBA job market isn’t just changing. It’s breaking.

Behind the scenes, layoffs are quietly happening. Compensation is swinging back up (for those who deserve it) and mosthiring strategies are still stuck in 2019.

Here’s what you need to know.
‍

Layoffs Are Here… But the Headlines Don’t Tellthe Whole Story

If you’ve seen the layoffs at a few big-nameshops and assumed the sky is falling, just pause. What we’re seeing isn’tcollapse. It's a correction.

When business slows down, banks don’t just lookat loan volume. They look at pull-throughs. They look at efficiency.And they start asking hard questions:

  • Who’s clogging the pipeline with non-closable deals?    
  • Who’s overpaid and underperforming?
  • Who’s demanding time and resources with little return?


We’re seeing the bottom quartile of BDO teamsget trimmed. Not because there isn’t business, but banks are finally gettingserious about performance.

Compensation Is Climbing (Again) But Only forClosers

After a flat 2024, compensation is trendingupward again. Top performers are earning more, and for good reason. They’reproducing real volume, with minimal friction.
‍

But here’s the catch: the days of throwing sixfigures at every résumé with SBA on it? Over.

“You want to be the highest-paid person inthe shop? You better be the most valuable,” we tell candidates.


Are you chasing a top-tier salary withoutbacking it up in volume, efficiency, or leadership? You're putting a target onyour back.‍

‍
Most Hiring Strategies Are Still Broken

Here’s the old way:

  • Hire someone with  “experience”
  • Hope they bring deals
  • Plug them into your broken ops flow
  • Cross your fingers

The result? Churn. Burnout. Disappointment.Repeat.

Here’s what actually works:

  • Promote from  within
  • Train the hell out of them
  • Pair them with strong mentorship
  • Give them a ramp-up window
  • Track progress over time

In one case, we placed a 24-year-old throughthe Shatterbox training track. By month 16, he’d closed $10M in one quarter.Not a typo.
‍

AI Isn’t Just a Buzzword. It’s a Blueprint.

A lot of folks in this industry still treat AIlike it’s optional. It’s not.

It’s already cutting hours from:

  • Narrative writing
  • Memo building
  • Doc prep
  • Borrower interviews
  • Borrower interviews
  • Internal screening
  • Email and follow-up communication

And we’re not even scratching the surface yet.Are people being replaced? No. But roles are evolving fast. You’ll still needthe human touch, but if your team can’t leverage tech, they’ll get outpaced bythose who can.

So, What’s a “Safe” Production Number in 2025?

The number we hear over and over again: $10M.

If you’re closing $10M in SBA loans annually,you’re a safe bet at most shops. But the real question is: how are you getting there?

  • Is your loan size strategic?
  • Are you profitable to the bank?
  • Are you clogging underwriting with dead  deals?
  • Do you play well  with the ops team?
    • ‍

Volume alone isn’t enough. In today’s market, efficiencyand alignment matter just as much.

The Smarter Way to Build an SBA Division

If you’re a bank looking to scale, here’s whatwe recommend:

  1. Start with one experienced credit/ops lead who knows SBA.
  2. Promote internal talent with strong soft  skills.
  3. Train them thoroughly (yes, we built Shatterbox for exactly this).
  4. Set milestones and goals over a 12-month period.
  5. Build from the  inside out—before hiring flashy producers.

This model drives more volume, more loyalty,and lower turnover. And it costs a fraction of what you’d spend hiringplug-and-play talent from another shop.
‍

Why This Matters (And Why It’s Getting Worse)

The SBA industry is facing a real talentcrisis.

  • Baby boomers are  retiring.  
  • Most banks still don’t offer proper SBA training.
  • Cultural misalignment is driving attrition.
  • AI is shifting job  expectations faster than people can keep up

And yet the demand for great SBA talent hasnever been higher.
‍

The shops that win won’t be the ones whooutspend the competition. They’ll be the ones who outthink it. Who buildintentionally. Train thoroughly. And adapt fast.

‍

If that’s your goal, let’s talk.

‍

We built Shatterbox to help SBA lenders finallyfix the hiring equation. And if this blog hit a little too close to home, maybeit’s time to change how you scale.

‍

Want to build a smarter SBA team?
Let’s start with a 15-minute call: shatterbox.io/artofsba

 

 

‍