Credit Management April 2024 issue

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RISING STAR DARREN WHITMARSH MCICM STONEGATE PUBS “For many publicans, it wasn’t just their livelihoods or their businesses; their life savings were in the pubs.” Stonegate was impacted immediately. Some 4000 pubs were shut within 24 hours. The credit team was furloughed for three months. The business couldn’t collect any money from the publicans, so debt rose rapidly from £5m to around £35m. Astonishingly, though, that wasn’t the biggest challenge for the team: “For three to six months, the team became councillors rather than credit controllers, listening to 20 people a day saying, ‘it’s really difficult, I’m struggling, I can’t trade.’ “For many publicans,’’ he explains, “it wasn’t just their livelihoods or their businesses; their life savings were in the pubs.” But Darren refused to be thwarted by the pandemic in his CICMQ ambition. With Karen Tuffs’ guidance, he started working with the team, translating the benchmarks for Stonegate’s business model and introducing best practices in everything they did. Working through and recording all the steps, they discovered so much information was already available; it just hadn’t been documented. They did find gaps which had to be filled, such as creating a brand new credit policy and developing other new systems and processes that were needed to qualify. It was quite the two-year journey, but the team pulled together, supporting one another, learning a huge amount as they went, and their outstanding debt fell below pre- COVID levels. Darren is proud of his team: “It was amazing to get that accreditation for the team and for the business.” Lesson from Life During his long career, Darren says he has had the privilege of learning from some amazing people. Some have taught him on the job, but he has never had a mentor or sponsor. He has seen the value mentorship or sponsorship has brought to others but is also keen for people to know that not having them doesn’t have to hold you back. It certainly didn’t stop him. He remains a staunch believer in the university of life. Listening and watching people in action, he suggests, is a great way to learn: “You see how amazing people deal with situations; when somebody does something you don't agree with, or don’t understand, that shapes the type of leader you become and how you move forward.” The people he admires most he respects for more than just their technical skills or what they bring to the business: “It’s the fact that they take an interest in you”, he explains. About two years ago, Stonegate ran an engagement survey of the credit team to understand how the team were feeling and what support they needed. Management then provided more of the support they wanted. That kind of approach makes a difference: “People look up to good leaders”, he says, “and follow them on a transformative journey like the CICMQ accreditation.” Darren thinks the accreditation process, the experience and opportunities are invaluable in enabling everyone to see the bigger picture: “It actually helps teams understand the benefit of what they do every day, rather than just being stuck, looking down and thinking they don't know what's going on.” He thinks the CICMQ accreditation helped the Stonegate credit team go on and win the British Credit Awards in 2022 for the Employer of the Year. “It really helps to get people on board, ensures the team understand that anything's possible and that they need to keep pushing themselves. CICM accreditation makes the team more invested in making a difference.” Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / April 2024 / PAGE 42
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