Endsleigh is a leading travel insurance provider in the student and youth travel market. We have been providing a range of effective and innovative insurance solutions specifically designed for tour operators, travel agents and education providers for over 30 years.

Since taking the role as CSM I have continued to manage and grow the Stroud team. I have also been working very closely with the area development manager and have taken on a number of other roles including mentoring new managers and looking after a cluster of branches. During this time I have helped other managers with recruitment and getting the best from their new teams. I have assisted the ADM with a number of things including interviews, performance management, disciplinary and grievance procedures, but most importantly I have been left to run the area in his absence.

Since being promoted to Store Manager I have really enjoyed making my branch a top performer in our area and also making it a great place to work. I have dealt with a number of challenges from resource/people issues to big changes within the financial industry and the company. I am a firm believer that you need to adapt to succeed and have therefore taken these challenges in my stride.

Moving to the Stroud office of Swinton promoted me to the most senior sales executive in the branch. Using my sales skills and insurance knowledge was still vital; however I became a role model for the other members of the team. I was often left in charge of the office while the manager was away. I made use of my management experience to drive the other executives as a team, not only to exceed targets, but to help others to succeed.

Working for Swinton I have built an extensive bank of insurance knowledge and find myself learning more every day. I worked as part of an ambitious and motivated sales team, calling on all my previous sales experience. It is essential to work together for the branch to hit targets, and for the whole team to benefit from uncapped incentive schemes. This job has taught me a lot about insurance and helped refine my sales techniques.

As landlord of a busy village pub and restaurant my job role was extremely varied, including interviewing and hiring new members of staff, training and managing all employees, bar and kitchen work, monitoring stock levels, dealing with suppliers and placing orders. It was very important for the business to build and maintain rapport with local residents and regular customers. Through continual staff training and management, I made it possible to maintain a constant high-level of customer service

Being a personal banker, a good understanding of the banking system was essential. This was a sales-driven customer service role. Whilst ensuring customers were happy and confident that they had received a good level of service, there were also sales targets to consistently hit. The good training and support from the management team taught me a lot about sales.