"I'm Ali Brown, I’ve been working in the Client Services Team at FMB for some time and now I supervise the team making sure everyone is on top of the work that is coming into the team and supporting and training new starters. We’ve had quite a few lately as we have been growing and everyone that comes into the business needs to know how our systems and processes work.

Although there are some routines that need to be done every day, generally it’s a very varied job.

One thing that is a constant is that I will always start with my morning coffee (this is a much- needed daily activity)!

We use a powerful data management system that automates workflows and tells me what tasks are outstanding for me and the team so I keep an eye on what needs to take priority each day.

Tasks could include requesting information from investment and insurance companies and then inevitably having to chase it up! Lot of companies work through the night so sometimes the info I need to complete a task will be waiting in my inbox for me first thing in the morning. We send off applications on behalf of clients and check on the progress in order to provide the best service we can. Quite a lot of our job can be done online now but there is still a surprising amount of paper-based work. We have been working hard to streamline our own systems and processes – you can now sign your FMB client agreement online for example, but not all big companies are doing this yet.

As supervisor of the team, it’s my responsibility to make sure that our work queue is kept on top of and that everyone is happy with what they’re doing! I’m always there to assist less experienced members of the team with any training issues, and I’m also constantly learning myself! We do a lot of training and development to make sure our skills and knowledge are up to date, for instance this week all the staff are completing training on a new initiative from the FCA called Consumer Duty.

Lunches and breaks are a good chance to step away from my desk and speak to people outside of my team and relax a bit with some lunch and a nice cup of tea. The well-being of the team is a top priority for us, I recently undertook some training to become a Mental Health First Aider. Part of my role also includes championing our charity days and getting ideas from the team as well as organising fund raisers."

Ali Brown - FMB Client Services Supervisor