09/02/2026
A new episode of On Hook with James McNeil is live.
James sits down with John Messiha, Head of Loss Mitigation and Lending Operations at Bridgecrest, for a wide-ranging conversation that moves between personal history, leadership, and an honest look at how lenders and recovery companies actually work together.
John shares how his family and upbringing shaped his work ethic, why September 11 led him to join the Marine Corps, and what he learned working on F-18 electronic countermeasure systems. He carried those leadership principles into his civilian career, starting with the one that matters most: take care of the people responsible for getting the mission accomplished.
From there the conversation follows his path through Bank of America, Capital One, Uber, Goldman Sachs, and Bridgecrest, including the experiences that first connected him to the repossession industry and the people who helped shape his approach to lender and recovery-partner relationships.
James and John also dig into the bigger conversations our industry keeps having:
• What lenders and repossession companies misunderstand about one another
• Why relationships and scorecards both matter
• How performance should influence allocation
• The role of direct agents and forwarders
• Compliance and contract challenges
• Industry standards, and what it takes to build partnerships that last
Along the way there are stories about conferences, old business cards, Air Jordans, barbecue, military history, and bourbon, plus the many people John credits with helping shape his career.
It is personal, candid, and often funny, and it offers a real look at how one lender leader thinks about relationships, accountability, performance, and the future of this industry.
Watch on YouTube: https://f.mtr.cool/wjwrq4jkij
Listen on Spotify: https://f.mtr.cool/50obrqkjvl
