Jamie Hyland - Mortgage product manager

Economics graduate Jamie joined The Nottingham just two weeks after his final exams. Several years later he now manages our mortgage product portfolio. 

At school I was really into sport and wanted to be a teacher. I gained eleven GCSEs - including drama, PE and two maths GCSEs - and A-levels in business studies, economics, psychology as well as a maths AS-level. I really love football but actually, I was quite good with numbers. 

I went on to study business economics at Nottingham Trent University and joined The Nottingham straight after my final exams. I worked at a supermarket at university which obviously helped with the finances but also gave me some experience on my CV when I started looking for a job. 

I started my career at Stapleford branch as a customer adviser dealing with customers’ transactions. However after a year, I really wanted a move to head office. I initially undertook a role as product assistant on a 6-12 month secondment, covering maternity leave. I was apprehensive that I would end up returning to branch but luckily, I was offered a permanent role after just a few months in the role. 

I undertook a development programme to support my progression from product assistant to assistant product manager and finally product manager (initially for savings) through a clearly defined plan which helped me to identify areas for personal improvement and support as required. An opportunity to switch from savings product manager to mortgages (also covering a maternity leave) came up and two years later, I am still here! 

Following my development into the product manager role, I had the opportunity to undertake an external qualification at Nottingham Trent University, studying a Level 6 Diploma through the Chartered Institute for Marketing. I applied for sponsorship from the business and got it. 

I have gained a lot of insight and experience throughout all my roles right the way from marketing meetings to sitting in at Executive Committee board meetings. I definitely believe that my academic qualifications have helped me move up the career ladder however, experience is also really important. 

The advice I would give to someone starting their career now is to get experience - no matter how little – as lots of skills are transferrable and you never know where you may end up.