I joined NFU Mutual six years ago. At that point I was already working within a call centre and whilst I enjoyed the pace, I was looking for a new challenge.
The first thing I noticed about Mutual Direct was the culture; the stereotypical call centre is so far removed from what the office is like. There’s a really supportive family atmosphere. Most mornings we have a team briefing to talk about the day ahead, discuss progress and share best practice. It’s a close knit team and you never feel like you’re just a number.
The induction process was really beneficial; I left with a real understanding of NFU Mutual’s strong values. They feed through into everything we do, especially our customer service. Unlike the stereotypical call centre you are not constantly bombarded by calls, and that is simply because the focus is on that excellent customer service. You are encouraged to take the time you need to complete the call to a high standard; completely different from my previous experience where it was all about high call volumes and completing a quick call.
What I really love about the company is how much interest they take in their employees’ job satisfaction. You really feel informed on the wider business and have so much access to training and coaching to help you drive your improvement. I’m trusted to work autonomously and achieve my personal targets. Although my targets are there to stretch and challenge me, I have a wealth of support and tools to help me achieve these. All of these factors really provide me with a great level of job satisfaction.
If I had any advice to someone starting out in this role it would be to really value great customer service, but to also have the drive and motivation to meet targets. Mutual Direct is such an agile business unit there is always something going on, it’s such an exciting part of the company to work for.