My alarm goes off at…

…usually I’m up by 6.00am and looking at what has come in overnight by 8.15am. I’m an early riser but I need that coffee before the brain kicks into gear.

The first email I look at is always the daily figures; some good numbers really set me in a positive mood for the day.

I like to try and respond to everything that’s come in overnight before I crack on with the normal workload.

I wanted to work in the mortgage industry because…

…I got the choice in the mid-90s, while with another lender, of whether to work in branches or mortgage sales, and sales was the route I took.

It’s a great feeling when you get one of the more unusual cases agreed

That morphed into business development and working with clubs and networks. That’s what I keep coming back to as it’s what I really enjoy.

Something that surprised me about my job was…

…just what a buzz I got when I restarted my face-to-face meetings after our working-from-home hiatus.

That high you get from a great meeting is hard to beat in the workplace and I don’t think I really appreciated just how much I had missed it.

A perk of the job is getting to spend time with professionals in an industry that I enjoy

I was completely re-energised for two weeks after a conference I went to in October. In fact, I’m not sure I’ve even come down yet!

A misconception about my role is…

…that we just pop up, have a cup of coffee, have a bit of a chat about mortgage products and then leave.

Until you’ve been out for the day with one of us in the field, you don’t realise just how much hard work goes into it.

It’s nice to see how much the building societies are appreciated, and how grateful the broker community is

You’re on the go constantly; thinking, adapting to the person in front of you and continually assessing the information given to you. Thinking on your feet is a must.

My typical day entails…

…I’m lucky enough to be able to wear two hats. In my new role as key account manager I get to work closely with the key people in all parts of the mortgage clubs and networks, but I also do the business development for central London.

Being a lender that manually underwrites and looks at areas such as expat, self-build, holiday let and older borrowers means that nothing is simple and I see lots of quirky cases. I work really closely with our underwriters and it’s a great feeling when you get one of the more unusual cases agreed.

I got a real buzz when I restarted my face-to-face meetings after our working-from-home hiatus

The newer part of my role is alongside the clubs and networks.

The end of the year is full of review meetings and budget planning as the marketing rate cards come out, and the rest of the year is spent at events.

What’s also really nice is to see how much the building societies are appreciated, and how grateful the broker community is to have people who will look at the more unusual cases or lend in the more niche areas as standard.

A perk of the job is…

…getting to spend time with professionals in an industry that I enjoy.

My favourite work memory is…

…the first time I got a bonus for hitting my target. I’m a sucker for praise, recognition and results.

Until you’ve been out for the day with one of us in the field, you don’t realise just how much hard work goes into it

To unwind after work, I…

…spend time with the children, take the dog out for a walk with my partner, or go to see something at the cinema. I’ve been a real cinema lover since I was very young.