Spotlight: Getting to Know the NTP Council

August 5, 2025

ALTA’s National Title Professional (NTP) Council manages the governance, eligibility requirements and the composition of the NTP Program and review NTP candidate applications and supplemental materials and award designations, among other things. The designation represents a measure of achievement and commitment to career development. It is designed to recognize land title professionals who demonstrate the knowledge, experience, and dedication essential to the safe and efficient transfer of real property.

ALTA shares profiles to help members get to know NTP Council members and those who have earned their NTP designation. Today, we highlight Linda Grahovec IEP, ITP, NTP, senior vice president and FNAS director of agent relations for FNF Family of Companies. Grahovec first earned the designation in 2013.

As a council member, what does the future of the NTP program look like? 
  • More promotion of the designation and how it differentiates an NTP’s dedication to education and continued learning. I also think we need to make more videos. It was so much fun being a part of the 10th anniversary video and as you know, video is always more engaging.
What inspired you to become an NTP? 
  • I was the creator and founder of the Illinois Designation program, and I wanted to make sure that Illinois’ educational program would coincide with the NTP Designation. I am proud that I was the first Illinois NTP. I also co-wrote the Wisconsin Title Professional Designation and assisted Michigan and Minnesota to establish their designation programs. 
Why should others earn the NTP?
  • Awareness! Awareness of our profession, awareness of the importance of what we do, awareness that we make the complicated look easy, awareness of the value our industry provides to the real estate industry as well as the national economy!
How do you believe being an NTP will advance your career?
  • I am not at a point of “advancing” but being an NTP is my way of leading by example. It is not just to have it but to putting the effort into it to get it.
What tips do you have for the up-and-coming title professionals to leverage the NTP for their careers?
  • Give them the “why”.  Why you have it, why you promote it, why you support your employees to achieve it, why it matters to your clients, and why it’s important to your customers. 
How did you get into the industry? 
  • My degree is in Business Administration and Marketing, but after eight years of being a Realtor and managing broker, and after eight years of being a real estate paralegal at a law firm, the next seat at the closing table was that of a title officer. I started working in new construction, moved on to sales, marketing, fraud investigations, CFPB rule training, escrow training, technology development and being an industry speaker and advocate. What a ride! I did not expect to be heading toward my 29th year!
What state designation(s) have you earned? 
  • Illinois Title Professional (ITP),  Illinois Escrow Professional (IEP) and Wisconsin Land Title Professional Council (WLTP).
What excites you about being a title professional?
  • Everything, but especially the diversity of “jobs.” There is something for everyone. Whether you are right brain or left brain, analytical or creative, you can find the right profession within this industry. I am also very proud to have been part of the first group of NTP’s designees. Being on stage with that first group was inspiring!
What makes the title industry a great career opportunity for those entering the workforce?
  • There are so many diverse jobs. There’s the title side, search, legal for those historians or puzzle solvers, and settlements and escrow accounts, for those that are math minded.  We have added so many different types of sales professionals and marketing specialists over the years to focus on customers, clients and consumer engagement too.
How has the industry evolved since you began your career? 
  • Since entering the industry in 1996, I see a lot more specialization and a lot more marketing efforts. All business needs to ebb and flow according to how markets change, how legislation changes, how technology changes and how customer engagement changes. No business—title companies or otherwise—can sit on its past to dictate their future. It used to take years to change a piece of technology or to plan for technological changes, but now, it can take just months or even weeks depending on what it is and how easy it is to implement. At the same time, there are so many program options that it is hard to evaluate what. Is it what you actually need and what makes sense for short to medium to long term planning!
What is your strongest professional trait?
  • I consider myself well organized, well versed in several real estate topics and stay connected with my Realtor and law firm roots because they are a large base of our customers. Being confident in what I do, what I know and where I work, has given me the confidence in being a speaker throughout the country over the past 15 years too.
Do you have a personal mentor or thought leader you’ve followed along your professional journey?
  • Within the industry Steve Day and Rob Wineman. Outside the industry, I would say Simon Sinek and Brene Brown are my favorite thought leaders via their books and podcasts. 
Who has been your professional mentor and why?
  • Anne Anastasi and then Erika Meinhardt—two very strong women. Anne as it related to ALTA and being an NTP and Erika for pushing barriers in leadership and career. I also was greatly influenced by Frank Pellegrini.
Tell us something that others in the industry may not know about you.
  • Well, that’s hard because I have been around for a long time and I tend to open up and tell my audiences about myself. I love to plan events from small meetings to large personal and corporate events—probably because my immigrant parents owned a restaurant and I learned how to create experiences early on. I am 100% Italian and first generation here. All of my relatives, except for four cousins and one sister are all still in Italy (yes both my mom’s side and my dad’s side) and love going back every couple of years to reconnect. Yes, I speak Italian and cook Italian!
What encouragement did you receive early in your career that made a profound impact? 
  • Learn when to lead and when to follow! Not everyone can be in a leadership position, but you can be a leader of your own goals and aspirations. You don’t have to be a leader to lead, and you don’t have to always lead, let other people in, teach them, train them and mentor them!


Contact ALTA at 202-296-3671 or [email protected].