Know Your BDM: Gaynor Morgan, YBS Commercial Mortgages

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  • 20/04/2021
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Know Your BDM: Gaynor Morgan, YBS Commercial Mortgages
This week, Specialist Lending Solutions is speaking with Gaynor Morgan, relationship director for Yorkshire Building Society Commercial Mortgages.

 

What locations and how many advisers and broker firms do you cover in your role?

I work with adviser and broker firms all over the country, ranging from those with one adviser, to firms with 12 advisers.

 

How have you changed the way you establish and maintain a good relationship with brokers in the pandemic?

We’re actually known as relationship directors, so the clue is in the title – maintaining good relationships with brokers is key. Like many others there’s more use of video conferencing, which everyone seems to have adapted well to. Understanding that the pandemic brings everyone different challenges has been key to remember, as we are not all working in the conditions that we’re normally accustomed to.

 

What personal skill is most valuable in doing your job?

Being approachable, open and honest is key for the role that I do. I want people to feel they can approach me with a proposal, and get a direct, straight response on it. That doesn’t always mean I will be able to accommodate their requirements, but I will always be upfront about why.

 

What personal skill would you most like to improve on?

Personally I’d like to improve my skills when it comes to giving presentations – there is probably still more ‘umms and aahhs’ in my speeches than required.

 

Where would you rather be stuck, in bumper-to-bumper traffic or back-to-back Zoom calls?

100 per cent back-to-back zoom calls – although I do find sitting in traffic is great for making call backs. Hands free of course.

 

What’s the best bit of career-related advice you’ve ever been given?

During a discussion about growth and development I was asked how I wanted people to see me. This was something I had to think long and hard about, as I needed to understand whether my actions fitted this perception.

 

What is the most unique property deal you’ve been involved in?

It may sound cliché but it’s true – all the deals I’m involved in are unique and no two deals are ever the same.

 

What has been your lockdown coping strategy?

I took advantage of the extra time at home to spend the time with my two-year old, study for my DipFA and lose 20lbs – I’ve found keeping myself occupied has helped.

 

If you were head of the FCA for the day, what would you change about regulation in the mortgage industry?

This might be a bit controversial, but I would probably bring in some regulation around advisers having qualifications for undertaking non-regulated deals.

 

What was your motivation for choosing business development as a career?

I’m very much a people person and I love to talk, as I’m sure a number of my colleagues will confirm, but I enjoy the flexibility of going out and meeting various people, as opposed to feeling like a blank face behind a computer and telephone.

 

If you could do any other job in the property sector, what would it be and why?

Being a valuer might be interesting because I just love nosing around houses.

 

What did you want to be growing up?

I wanted to be in a crime scene forensic team – I spent far too much time watching CSI.

 

What’s your favourite face mask design to wear?

To be honest I don’t pay much attention to what it looks like – I’m normally stressing about where my toddler has hidden it.

 

And finally, what’s the strangest question you’ve ever been asked? 

Honestly, with 16 brothers and sisters, and countless nieces and nephews – I have forgotten what strange looks like.

 

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