Edwards was appointed to the new head of intermediary role in February, having been promoted from her position as national account manager.
The role was created to bring together NatWest’s entire intermediary distribution channel under Brad Fordham, head of mortgage distribution and customer servicing, with Edwards now responsible for its national account managers, telephony operations, regional sales managers and business development managers (BDMs).
Edwards has been in intermediary roles for 16 years and joined NatWest three years ago.
Edwards added that it is a “super exciting time in the market”, saying the bank would “focus on how we support brokers and their customers, looking at the support functions across our sales team, through to how we enhance service via our telephony teams and digital channels.
She said: “It’s that evolution of how we bring NatWest Intermediaries to [the] forefront of the intermediary mortgage market. [It will be] customer-focused, broker-focused and aligned to support our growth aspirations.”
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Thinking of what she looked forward to in the first year in the role, Edwards cited looking at how brokers interact with the bank and how NatWest continues to deliver a quality service and to be easy to work with as a lender.
It will also continue to focus and build on speed and certainty, attributes that brokers value about the lender, so brokers continue to get the answers they need to support their customers.
“There are key areas where we’re looking to focus our effort, in particular for first-time buyers, but key for me and my team is having brokers at the heart of what we do so they can best support their customers,” she added.
Edwards said her role was created to raise the bar and make sure brokers felt fully supported through the whole mortgage journey at NatWest.
With her leading the team, she wanted to make sure “brokers know where to get the answers they need – quickly and accurately to support their customers.”
Celebrating broker excellence
NatWest has partnered with the British Mortgage Awards (BMAs) for the second year running, which Edwards said was important because the event represented “excellence in the industry”.
She added: “It’s fantastic to see our broker partners and all the wonderful things they do to support their customers; this links back to customers always being at the heart of what we’re doing, and how we collectively continue to raise the bar for them.
“The British Mortgage Awards is an opportunity for the industry to come together and celebrate that.”
She added: “I was really keen for us to be part of it and to make sure we’re advocating for the great work that goes on across the mortgage market.”
The mortgage sector’s ‘unsung heroes’
Edwards said NatWest was “celebrating all the fantastic work that goes on out there,” adding: “Sometimes there are some really great unsung heroes and that’s their opportunity to shine.”
She continued: “It’s also a moment for us to come together as an industry and celebrate each other’s success but it’s also an opportunity to learn; talk to each other and see the best in the industry in terms of what they’re doing and what can be learned from everybody so everyone can continue to get even better for customers.”
