Featuring on Mortgage Solutions’ podcast in association with Skipton Building Society, Jon Rawley, business development manager at the mutual said it was about going “back to basics”.

He added: “The better the pre-application discussions that the broker has with myself or my BDM colleagues, the better the presentation of the application, the easier it is for us to make a quick decision. 

“The broker is always going to have far more knowledge and insight about a client than we may be able to glean from an online application. So, if there are soft facts which would support the loan request, whatever those soft facts might be – assets or savings – then please, brokers, share those with us.” 

Julian Raper, underwriter (SME), added: “The more information the broker can provide us, the easier the underwriting decision will be.” 

He said the mutual had also invested in technology to work alongside its “human touch” such as its automated income verification function. This eliminates the need to submit payslips and bank statements to enable quicker decision making. 

Listen to the podcast below [9.58] featuring Shekina Tuahene, commercial editor of Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions, Jon Rawley, business development manager and Julian Raper, underwriter (SME) at Skipton Building Society.

For intermediary use only.

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

I have a very broad geographic area covering the Midlands and North of England, as well as Scotland, and parts of Wales. Unsurprisingly, this is a lot of broker firms, although I also have help from our great team of account managers as well as the national account managers. Luckily I enjoy driving.

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

Whilst the way in which we all communicate has changed drastically over the last year and a bit, with Zoom and Teams meetings replacing face-to-face, the basic role is still the same – talking to people, listening to them, and being available for them. Also, it really doesn’t matter if it’s early and you’d rather not have your camera on. Oh, and my two cats now play a much larger part in my work meetings, whether I want them to or not.

What personal talent/skill is most valuable in doing your job?

Honestly, I think experience. You can’t cheat time, to get 10 years’ experience takes 10 years, not two. You learn from your mistakes, you learn from others, you learn from life – every day is a school day – never think you know it all.

What personal talent/skill would you most like to improve on?  

Delegation. I still find it difficult to delegate things.

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

Zoom calls – don’t get me wrong, I’d much prefer seeing my brokers face to face than remotely – but I do detest motorway traffic jams with a vengeance.

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

Never take things too personally.

What was your lockdown coping strategy?  

Making sure I get out of the house every lunchtime, and ideally again after work, for a short walk – come rain or shine. Get some fresh air and unwind a bit.

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

It may sound corny, but I like helping people. The ability to help a broker resolve an issue and get a case to completion is very rewarding, especially when you remember there is usually an end client desperate to move into their new home. On the wider matter, it is great to impart your knowledge to brokers of things we can do to help them overcome issues in their day-to-day job, enabling them to give a better overall service to their clients.

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

Many years ago, we had a client buy an old sea fort in the middle of the Solent, which we financed. It doesn’t get much more specialist than that.

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

I’d love to be a high-end architect. Some of the wild and wacky property designs you see these days are amazing whilst, on a more serious note, to be able to improve the energy efficiency of properties and the way we lead our lives.

What did you want to be growing up?  

A footballer – but it was never likely to happen.

What’s your favourite face mask design/pattern to wear?  

Fairly boring here I’m afraid, either the ubiquitous pale blue, or plain black.

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

Well, if you’d have asked me 18 months ago, I would have said “What’s your favourite face mask design/pattern to wear”?

When asked what brokers wanted to keep about BDM service following the changes brought about by the pandemic, Wilson said: “I think the overarching comment would be that brokers want to be able to communicate with a BDM or telephone business development manager (TBDM) when they need them.  

“In the eyes of the broker, they should be the font of all knowledge and we like to think they are; we know exactly what they’re doing.” 

“The trick here though, is to make sure brokers help themselves when they can, and keep that contact with a BDM or TBDM to situations where they really need help or they really need information that they can’t get elsewhere,” Wilson added. 

He said the industry should not lose sight of the benefits of virtual means of communication learned during the pandemic. 

To increase availability at Halifax, Wilson said the bank had expanded the number of TBDMs so brokers would have a contact if their BDM was busy. 

He also pointed to the criteria changes available on the website and the new ‘ask me’ section, saying both could provide information for intermediaries. 

“I would encourage the use of that as much as possible,” Wilson said. 

Watch the video below [11:25] hosted by Samantha Partington, contributing editor and freelance journalist at Mortgage Solutions, featuring Ian Wilson, head of Halifax intermediaries.

This advertorial has been produced in association with Mortgage Solutions. 

Wolstenholme joins the growing team following a ten-year career with large personal finance and commercial lending businesses. He also has experience of the short term lending sector.

Wolstenholme (pictured) said: “I’m really looking forward to getting out and meeting brokers and to be able to discuss our fantastic lending proposition. Long term, I want to significantly increase the amount of work we have within my area, introducing new networks and packagers.”

“My goal is to strengthen brand awareness of BFS and the products and services we offer, whilst bringing new brokers onboard and forging strong relationships, based, most importantly, on trust.”

Steve Barber, managing director of BFS added: “Adam will be a great asset to our business development team. He is astute, keen and ambitious and whilst he already has excellent contacts within the industry he is keen to strengthen his network to support our wider ambitions. We’re really pleased to have him on board.”

Owen Bentley (pictured) joined United Trust Bank in 2019 as a BDM and was later promoted to key account manager.

In his new role as head of sales he will assume responsibility for the bridging sales team which currently comprises Paul Delmonte, Nick Warren, Paul Mansell and new appointment Scott Apps. In addition, he will support the director of bridging, Gavin Diamond, and sales director of property intermediaries, Mike Walters, in continuing to develop the Bank’s bridging product, process and service proposition.

Scott Apps is an experienced BDM who has worked in specialist property finance for over seven years, most recently with Castle Trust. He will be assisting brokers across London and the South East with all of UTB’s bridging portfolio, and is particularly knowledgeable in unregulated loans.

The director of bridging at United Trust Bank, Gavin Diamond, said: “We’re seeing exceptional demand for UTB’s flexible and competitive short-term funding from brokers up and down the country and we’re continuing to develop our sales team.

“I’m delighted to welcome Scott Apps to the team and congratulate Owen on his promotion to this key role in the bridging division. We have exciting plans for the future and I know Owen and the BDM team will continue to build on our recent strong performance and provide support to even more brokers across England, Wales and Scotland.”

The changes come during a period of unprecedented growth in the Bank’s bridging business following a record year for new lending in 2020 with higher volumes of enquiries and completions being sustained in 2021. In July, broker network Sesame Bankhall Group added United Trust Bank to its PMS Mortgage Club and Sesame Network’s lender panels.

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

In my role as a BDM, I cover the whole of the south coast and that includes London and South Wales. As a result, I look after hundreds of adviser firms and thousands of advisers. It’s great. 

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

Interaction and communication are key at all times. Even though face-to-face appointments had to take a back seat for a period of time, phone calls and the offer of a Zoom call really became an important part of the BDM role.  

What personal talent/skill is most valuable in doing your job? 

I believe a BDM has to be personable, adaptable and knowledgeable. Such a big part of the role is building and maintaining relationships that produce a level of rapport and trust.   

What personal talent/skill would you most like to improve on? 

Assertiveness is a skill I would like to work on. I believe it’s okay to question things in the correct manner and challenge things in the right way.  

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

As much as I love Zoom calls and what they did for contact during the pandemic, I am a firm believer in face-to-face meetings. Sitting in traffic comes with the territory as a BDM and it’s in those quieter moments that we can still touch base with our advisers, albeit on the phone. 

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

Always put in 100 per cent, do your best and keep plugging away.  

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

I had a query about a property with 100 sheep on the land once. These were used as pets and also referred to as ‘lawnmowers’. That was unique. 

What was the greatest lesson you learned during lockdown? 

Talk to each other. Being in lockdown at times felt lonely and to work from home day to day after being out on the road every day was a big change.  

Some days may have felt difficult but talking through this and being open and honest not only creates a platform for me but others as well who may be feeling the same.  

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

I love being out of the office and meeting people. Not one day is the same in the life of a BDM and I always find myself in a different town speaking to different people. I get to visit new places and it’s great to see businesses grow from strength to strength.  

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

It would be great to be a property developer and own a portfolio of properties to renovate and sell on. Homes Under the Hammer, here I come. 

What did you want to be growing up? 

Growing up, I wanted to be a nurse. 

What’s your favourite face mask design/pattern to wear? 

Having wanted to be a nurse growing up, I do like a standard surgical mask 

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

What favourite face mask design I like to wear. 

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

I look after the West Midlands area along with Shropshire and mid-Wales, and I am currently supporting in excess of 600 advisers.

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

Given that the entire industry has had to adapt following the pandemic, it has highlighted the importance of being available to offer that vital support which BDMs can provide day-in, day-out.

What personal talent/skill is most valuable in doing your job?

Communication is vital – regardless of the type of communication it provides key information between the adviser and lender. Good, bad or indifferent.

What personal talent/skill would you most like to improve on?

Personal development should always be on each person’s agenda. even if it’s already a strong point. For me though, I’d love to be able to speak another language fluently.

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

Bumper-to-bumper traffic. I very much prefer to be out and about and seeing brokers face-to-face. Although Zoom calls provide great support and the ability to reach out to a wider variety of brokers, I’m more of a people person.

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

I was once told to find out what I like doing, and then find somebody who is prepared to pay you to do it.

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

I’ve been involved with many deals over the years; but one that sticks out in my mind would be a deal that didn’t fit the standard criteria for a couple where one applicant had suffered a critical illness. However, with a common sense approach I managed to get the deal through and the customers were so emotional that they couldn’t thank me enough.

What was the greatest lesson you learned during lockdown?

Family are the most important people within life, not being able to visit them proved very difficult. Many might agree that we took time with them for granted previously.

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

As mentioned above I’m a people person, I like to meet new people and to be sociable. I also like to get involved with various property transactions and provide that vital support, seeing the cases progress from enquiry to completion.

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

I wouldn’t consider any other job. I love my job, as strange as it may sound to some people.

What did you want to be growing up?

I always wanted to join the Armed Forces. Having asthma put an instant stop to this, but it was great fun passing the fitness test.

What’s your favourite face mask design/pattern to wear?

Being a huge Formula One fan I do like to wear my F1 face masks.

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

I was once asked if I wanted pineapple on my pizza. We all know that pineapple does not belong on a pizza.

He will report to Carl Graham, who is the regional director for the lender’s Manchester office, as well as Birmingham regional manager Amjan Ibn Abdul.

Both are recent hires, with Abdul joining in August and Graham joining in January.

Prior to Tuscan Capital, Gillespie was a national BDM at Fairbridge Capital, and also worked at several specialist lenders including Elysium Bridging, MT Finance and Seneca Bridging, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Colin Sanders, Tuscan Capital’s chief executive officer, said: “We positively jumped at the chance to recruit Jamie to our expanding team. He’s a well known personality within the short-term lending industry and brings with him an impressive reputation.

“His appointment further underpins our continuing commitment to brokers in the Midlands and North West. With our regional offices now fully-functioning under experienced local leadership, Jamie will add valuable resource and knowledge to these centres of growing importance.”

Speaking to Mortgage Solutions about stress and wellbeing, Wilson said brokers had been “a very resilient bunch” of people during the pandemic. 

He added: “That’s been our biggest observation here. Their challenges actually have been very similar to our own. 

“We’ve had a very busy market, deadlines to meet on stamp duty, learning working from home, balancing work and life, family pressures.” 

To support its broker partners, Wilson said the lender did what it could to remain consistent and “visible” during the busy period. This mostly involved consolidating its Halifax and Scottish Widows business development departments into one team. 

Wilson said: “Communication has been key externally. 

“What this allowed us to do was to flex our activity based on broker demand and changes. This has resulted in higher numbers of BDMs (business development managers) being available in Halifax to support the broker population.” 

Within Halifax, Wilson said team operated a “localised” method to its mental health support over the last year and a half, encouraging staff to call each other, share photos, go on walking challenges and make use of free wellbeing apps.

Watch the video below [9:54] hosted by Samantha Partington, contributing editor and freelance journalist at Mortgage Solutions, featuring Ian Wilson, head of Halifax intermediaries. 

This advertorial has been produced in association with Mortgage Solutions.

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

I cover Yorkshire and the M62 corridor – it’s a key area and plenty of advisers and brokerages based along it. The number I deal with is growing every week so it’s difficult to say.  

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

The pandemic has allowed me to save my travel time in the main. However, I am really glad that we are starting to see a relaxing of the rules and it is great to be out seeing people face to face again.  

What personal talent/skill is most valuable in doing your job?  

I have a passion for helping SMEs as I believe they are poorly serviced by the traditional funding banks. The most valuable skill I think, given the number of people we deal with and the number of cases, is to keep all those plates spinning and to make sure everyone gets the outcomes they want.  

What personal talent/skill would you most like to improve on? 

To probably stop saying yes and spreading myself too thinly. It’s a good skill to be able to learn how to say no. 

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

In a strange way, probably neither – I think any good BDM would want to be communicating with advisers in the ways they want to be communicated with, so hopefully a mix of phone, email and face-to-face.  

Actually, sitting down with people has a lot going for it, and I think you can build really strong relationships by doing this, although I accept that’s been incredibly difficult over the last 18 months.   

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

“Slow down Jonny.” Sit up and smell the coffee, so to speak.  

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

There have been a few, for instance, I have lent to a couple of high-profile sports clubs in the past, which was, shall we say, very interesting.  

What has been your lockdown coping strategy? 

The simple ‘pleasures’ of cutting grass and walking the dog – essentially anything that gets me outside for some time.  

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

It’s great to help the SME market in Britain and knowing that you are really helping, shaping and changing people’s livelihoods.  

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

I think I’d like to be a valuer. I would love to be able to drive from site to site and take pictures for the day, although I appreciate there’s a lot more to the job than that.  

They are an essential part of our risk element, and their opinions are invaluable.  

What did you want to be growing up?  

A physiotherapist. 

What’s your favourite face mask design/pattern to wear? 

Paisley pattern – in pink. 

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

‘When you play water polo, how do the horses breathe under the water?’ If I had £1 for every time that was asked, I could open a bank.