This week, Mortgage Solutions is talking to Craig Flinter, regional business development manager (BDM) for digital mortgages at Atom Bank.
Which locations and how many advisers and broker firms do you cover in your role at Atom Bank?
I look after the West Midlands, Wales and the North West of the country, covering everything from Gloucestershire to the bright lights of Blackpool. I’m fortunate to have a mixture of both mortgage brokers and national accounts to look after as part of my regional role, and currently I have around 1,900 actively registered advisers.
What personal talent/skill is most valuable in doing your job?
I would have to say relationship management. For me, this is vital to building long-term meaningful relationships with our introducers and, ultimately, trust. A core part of how BDMs work at Atom Bank is delivering a personal touch to brokers and borrowers, getting a proper understanding of their business and what the broker’s clients need from us as a lender.
What personal talent/skill would you most like to improve on?
I would have to say my cooking skills, or lack of, I should say. Since the birth of my eldest child 17 years ago, I have perfected the art of a toasted doorstop wedge of local artisan sourdough, topped with smoky bean cassoulet and parmesan shavings – AKA, beans on toast.
What is the hardest part of your job?
One of the toughest aspects of my role would be balancing multiple responsibilities. There are a lot of varied elements to being a BDM, including maintaining existing relationships, the onboarding of new introducers, and conducting development meetings alongside the general day-to-day enquiries we receive.
It’s a nice problem to have, and is a reflection of how Atom Bank is seeing so much interest from broker partners old and new as we build a reputation for being fast and easy to deal with. It’s great having so many brokers who are keen to work with you, but it undoubtedly represents an organisational challenge.
What do you love most about your job?
I really enjoy speaking to and visiting our brokers, building a better understanding of their business and what matters to them. This insight helps me to focus on ways Atom Bank can add value to them and support their clients, whether large or small, and ultimately have a positive impact.
What is the best piece of career-related advice you’ve ever been given? Who gave it to you?
On my first day in banking in 2003, I was having a conversation with my then line manager, who told me: “You don’t need to be great when you start, but you do have to start to be great.” It has stayed with me because it shows the importance of looking to improve, which is something I do personally and that we do across Atom Bank. It’s important never to settle, but to keep looking for improved ways of working and helping our clients.
How do you keep up to date with developments in the market?
Being in regular contact with our brokers helps me to stay up to date with most market changes. Brokers are a fantastic asset, offering a great way of understanding what’s really going on, and what areas are perhaps being overlooked by some lenders.
However, following reputable financial news websites, publications and social media also plays a big part in this digital world we live in.
What was your motivation for choosing this career?
My motivation for joining banking was driven by my interest in the house buying process, particularly the funding and lending side of things. Being able to play a small part in helping clients achieve their financial goal of owning their own home still motivates me to this day.
If you could do any other job in the property sector, what would it be and why?
I think it would have to be a government role that’s involved with policy-setting, specifically around housing and planning. We have a huge housing shortage in the UK, and having such a limited supply and high demand is fuelling inflated property prices, making it much harder for potential buyers.
Shekina is the deputy editor at Mortgage Solutions and commercial editor at Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions. She has nearly eight years of experience in the B2B publishing market, having previously covered the hospitality, retail, pet, accounting and jewellery sectors.
Shekina has worked for Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions for almost five years. Here, she covers the market’s breaking news stories, engages with professionals in the sector, and oversees any commercially agreed content in partnership with mortgage-related companies.
This includes presenting webinars and hosting roundtable discussions on developing themes in the mortgage sector.
She is an NCTJ-trained journalist and was nominated for the Headline Money Awards Mortgage Journalist of the Year in 2021.
In her spare time, Shekina likes to read, travel, listen to music and socialise with friends.
She currently reports on current events in the mortgage market and liaises with financial clients to produce sponsored content.
Follow her on Twitter at @ShekinaMS
