I’ve worked in the financial sector, most of my adult life, initially with the Halifax group in various roles before becoming a regional manager. The training was excellent, as I learnt every role in depth meaning my understanding of a client’s needs and wants became my focus and became second nature to me. I moved branches quite regularly within the group and this further added to my learning and the lessons learnt have been invaluable in building relationships with my clients.
I managed and worked with many talented individuals, including the investment and mortgage specialists which was of great interest to me and has led me to where I am today.
My role within the Bank was becoming more admin and less client focussed and the areas I enjoyed were becoming more restricted with a demand that we could only sell one product, i.e. the Banks own, and that didn’t fit with my own personal ethos of putting the client first.
I already had all the qualifications and took the leap to join a National Estate Agent as a mortgage broker. It was great knowing that I could make a difference again and quickly established myself as the leading broker in the region. The role suited me, and my clients were delighted that I could offer them real choice as an independent whole of market mortgage broker.
During this time, I mentored many aspiring mortgage brokers including a certain Shaun Sturgess. It became clear he would go on to achieve great things and his acknowledgement of my help and support in his early years are reward itself.
I wanted another challenge, especially as the Estate Agency chain I was associated with were bought by a corporate rival. Shaun and I had always stayed connected and when he offered me a role utilising my experience and skills, it was an easy decision to make.
