Illustration by Dan Murrell
My alarm goes off at…
…between 6am and 7am, depending on whether I’m in the office or working from home.
I tend to steal an extra hour in bed when working from home, which is the best part of hybrid working, in my opinion.
On the days that I head into the office, I get ready, prepare my lunch then take our dog, Merlin, for a walk before driving to work.
I wanted to work in the mortgage industry because…
…it’s a cliché, but I fell into it!
When I took the job I wasn’t sure what industry I’d spend the rest of my career working in.
It was great to return to a job in lending after nearly 10 years in credit risk, where I’d built up lots of experience and knowledge I could apply to my new role
But as soon as I started I quickly realised I had genuine interest in mortgages and the property market, and I have never looked back.
Something that surprised me about my job was…
…how much work went into making a change.
As we are such a highly regulated industry, everything we do has to be right. So it requires involvement from lots of stakeholders, and agreement through the correct governance process.
A misconception about my role is…
…that mortgage underwriting decision making is always straightforward. We get lots of complicated cases and always take a pragmatic view so that we can do the right thing for customers.
I am responsible for a team of underwriters, so I make myself available to support them with any issues or complex queries they may have
Where possible, we work closely with brokers to try to find out more information that may open up more options for customers. But this has to be done in a responsible manner so, unfortunately, we can’t always help.
My typical day entails…
…I know everyone says this but, honestly, no two days are ever the same, and this is what keeps it interesting.
The first thing I do after making a cup of tea is check my emails and diary. Some days can be back-to-back meetings depending on what is happening in the business, and other days I have more time to work through cases.
I’m very fortunate to be working within an inspirational management team
But generally my day involves interacting with my team to ensure everything is on track.
This could mean reviewing quality to identify trends and training points, or looking at procedures and policies to ensure they fully articulate any changes in a format the underwriters can understand.
I am also responsible for a team of underwriters, so I make myself available to support them with any issues or complex queries they may have.
A perk of the job is…
…apart from hybrid working and having an extra hour in bed, it’s the people who make it special.
We get lots of complicated cases and always take a pragmatic view so that we can do the right thing for customers
I’m very fortunate to be working within an inspirational management team who support each other and the wider department. They are always looking for ways to improve everything from the customer journey to colleague development and engagement.
My favourite work memory is…
…I have quite a few over the many years I have worked at Leeds Building Society.
We are quite a sociable group and we like to have fun, but my standout memory is securing my current role back in 2017. It was great to return to a job in lending after nearly 10 years in credit risk, where I’d built up lots of experience and knowledge I could apply to my new role.
As we are such a highly regulated industry, everything we do has to be right
Having a focus on quality and improvements, I was able to implement changes to the underwriters’ training, which was a proud moment for me.
To unwind after work, I…
…during the week it’s pretty low key but I enjoy cooking and the occasional gym visit or run.
On a weekend it’s generally long walks with my husband and Merlin, and maybe some drinks with friends and family.
This article featured in the April 2023 edition of MS.
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