What is your role at CCBS and how did you get here?
I’m Operations Director, and my role has changed over the years at CCBS. I was the first member of the team to come in following Peter forming the business. Having worked in commercial banking and invoice finance across a number of years I took the leap over the fence into intermediary side, working with Peter initially for a national asset finance network. The learning curve was steep and working with a much wider range of clients than I had previously. To try and hit the ground running I built relationships quickly with different lenders. This network and knowledge is what I brought into CCBS almost six years ago and I continue to build and develop it. It’s hard to believe I have been here for this long, a lot has changed professionally and personally. We’ve changed a lot as a business, grown the team, developed into a far wider offering and certainly nowhere near finished!

What is your specialism in the team?
More important than specialisms, our work is all about the relationships we have. I feel like the understanding I have built across a range of different lending products sets CCBS apart. Things are always changing and it’s critical that we keep up to date – indeed, where we work with the same client their circumstances do change over time, and we have to adapt our approach. Assimilating the essence of what the client is looking for, where they’re at in terms of trading to match against funders with appetite to support is integral. It’s a consultative approach on both sides of this which is a huge driver this us.

What is a typical day like for you at CCBS?
I’m normally the one in the office early doors! I have always been an early bird. We’re a communal business and we do work really closely together so we rely heavily on being in and around one another in the office. It’s no cliché to say no day or week or month is ever the same – the variety of services we provide is testament to that. A lot of what I do on a daily basis is keeping things moving forward, talking with lenders, talking about different options and then finding ways to use them in practice.

What do you do in your spare time?
Outside of the day-to-day I have played tennis from a young age, albeit not as often as I’d like, getting back into this is a focus this year for me. I’ve had a season ticket at Newcastle for a number of years, and there’s routine to a match day, a rhythm that I really enjoy, same pubs, same route up to the ground, the lads I go with think I’m stupid! I probably am, but it keeps me happy!  On top of that, we bought a house two years ago so we’re in the middle of renovating and upgrading the house, in and amongst walking the Northumberland Coast with the newest addition the family Lilly half Border Collie, half Labrador.

If you weren’t Operations Director at CCBS, what other job would like to be doing?
From doing my A Levels I wanted to work in finance and for a time I had aspirations to be a stockbroker but soon came to realise that it wasn’t right for me. That intrigue into the workings of the economy took me into the bank and financial services. That said having bought a new house which is definitely in the category of a ‘doer upper’ I’ve found I really like painting and decorating. In fact I painted the wall in the CCBS office as I had all the gear. It’s pretty boring, but I find it relaxing – headphones in and just leave me to it. Everyone needs a painter and decorator right?! “MJ Decorators” – I could even fund my own van!