This week, Mortgage Solutions is speaking to Raji Sidhu-Housden, business development manager (BDM) at the Nottingham Building Society.
Which locations and how many advisers and broker firms do you cover in your role at Nottingham Building Society?
Well, it started off with just Central London. I live in North Essex, so I fall under the CB postcode. I run my patch like I would run my own business and it didn’t make sense to have no physical presence on my doorstep, so I ended up also taking AL, BR, CB, CM, CO, CR, DA, E, EC, EN, HA, IG, N, NW, RM, SE, SG, SM, SW, TW, UB, W, WC and WD. We’re not restricted in terms of panel or distribution at The Nottingham; as long as appointed representative (AR) and directly authorised (DA) advisers meet and pass the criteria for registering, they can submit business to us. So, if any brokers or firms are reading this and are not yet registered – you need to sort it out – seriously.
What personal talent/skill is most valuable in doing your job?
I would be described as a bit of an extrovert, which helps in my role. I am good at building rapport and relationships because I genuinely have an interest in people, I find people fascinating and relatable. I’m not here to give lip service. I am naturally inquisitive, so I will research firms and individuals that I may be prospecting. I’m not around to waste people’s time or my own; if our proposition is going to work for a firm or broker, then I’m going to approach you. If it’s not quite a good fit, I’m not going to flog a dead horse.
What personal talent/skill would you most like to improve on?
Although I’m quite comfortable with holding a room, public speaking or presenting is something I’m always nervous about, so I would want to work on that. The nerves settle after a few minutes and I enjoy that part of the role, it’s just the initial nerves that can make me anxious.
What’s the hardest part of your job?
When I was covering a bigger patch, it used to be travelling. That became unsustainable for me – I am very fortunate that most of my travel is now using public transport. If I am driving, it’s generally less than a two-hour journey. Trying to catch up on calls and emails when you’ve had over five hours of dead time in the car is a challenge.
What do you love most about your job?
Everything. An intermediary BDM role suits me, my personality, experiences, and skills down to a tee. Even though delivering bad news isn’t enjoyable (choosing my words carefully), it can be rewarding because I am a lover of words and there’s always a positive, informative way to deliver the message. There’s always a lesson in it for the broker, me and the end customer.
What’s the best bit of career-related advice you’ve ever been given?
Phil Lawford, national account manager at The Saffron Building Society, said: “Raji, you are your biggest asset”. Richard Scott, my ex-boss, at The West Brom’s departing words to me “brokers love you, you’re a natural and I hope you will continue as a BDM”. I have been extremely fortunate to have worked under individuals who were personally in a good position to support, nurture and develop my potential. I am blessed to be working with Matt Kingston who, right now, is my number one supporter.
How do you keep up to date with developments in the market?
Brokers I visit are key, they are my main source of information. AE3 Media’s publications, of course. Alex Beighton, head of product at The Nottingham, is extremely well-informed and good at giving me snippets in layperson terms. Paul Purewal, national account manager at The Coventry, Anum Mahmood at The Mortgage Lender, they’ve been supportive, approachable, and help simplify stuff for me. I’m not from a financial background, so my eyes glaze over when people start talking swap rates. For me, it’s as simple as this; regardless of what the rates are doing, I have a job to do, a proposition to sell. Yes, one needs to be kept up to date, and The Intermediary and Mortgage Solutions help me do just that.
What is the most quirky/unique property deal you’ve been involved in?
My neighbour’s self-build project. Some would say it’s a bit of an eyesore, but it went up quickly and we’re yet to see another house like it.
Tell us about your trickiest case – what happened and how did you resolve the problem(s)?
If a case has no chance of going through, I wouldn’t waste the broker’s or underwriter’s time on it; I’d turn it away from the outset. Anything that has legs, I will raise before a formal application and get it okayed. The only tricky things that occur, in my experience, come from the applicant or valuation. If it’s something that needs to be presented better, I would get involved and smooth things over but then I don’t find these situations tricky. Ultimately, I feel it’s my job and responsibility to eliminate any trickiness where possible.
What was your motivation for choosing this career?
I come from a sales background, and took a career break to return to university to study law. I got off the train and didn’t sit my last exam as I had carried out a work placement with Field Fisher Waterhouse (FFW), translated for Lovells and secured a trainee contract with Kidd Rappinet. Fundamentally, I hated the day-to-day dealings of the job, paper pushing and not interacting with people on the level that I enjoy. I moved to Saffron Walden, with Saffron Building Society being the local mutual. I started out in the arrears department part-time, three days per week, when my daughter was one. I had no idea of the intermediary side. I got a call one day from the head of HR and she said: “There’s a job you’re perfect for and I’ve put you forward for it”. It was intermediary support, I said “okay” and the rest is history. She introduced me to an area that I absolutely love and had no idea existed.
If you could do any other job in the property sector, what would it be and why?
If I wasn’t a BDM, I’d like to run a brokerage, sales and marketing. Something creative, with collaborations and helping people.
What did you want to be growing up?
A Bollywood superstar; I should have been an actress.
If you could have one superpower, what would it be?
I’d want the power to heal people.
What is your strategy for tackling challenges?
It’s a bit like playing chess; you’ve got to cover all bases and be prepared and, that way, we’re just going through the motions or processes to complete a task. Start, continue, conquer, and move on.
What is your greatest skill(s), either work- or non-work related?
I’m rather comfortable with embracing my vulnerabilities. I don’t allow my vulnerabilities to make me feel vulnerable, instead I acknowledge them as being human and that way I can concentrate on the positives of being me and enjoy that and the successes it brings.
And finally, what’s the strangest question you’ve ever been asked?
“Have you been calling your family in India?” Just for the record, my family were in West London and are now in Nottingham – haha.
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
