Carl Woolfenden

Loving the Kenergy from one of our brilliant volunteers at BA Lufe 💙💚 I totally agree with what Kenny has said. I self-funded the BSC International Diploma in Business Analysis many moons ago and it opened a door into a job purely on this basis alone, because no one else in the team had the qualification (although I like to think there were other qualities my manager liked too!). As they say, “control the controllables” and organise your own self development!! Consider paying for it yourself if your employer won’t (depending on circumstances and benefits youlll get from the course). I’ve been told this week I don’t need to go on an ‘Agile Fundamentals’ course (which may be slightly true), but on the other hand, what’s wrong with a refresher? Or knowing how this organisation is applying it? So I’m doing it. And I’ve got a Product Owner course coming up soon too which will help reinforce my current role. What courses have you decided to do and why? Keep learning. Keep improving. #ba #balife #balife2025 #businessanalysis #businessanalyst #selfdevelopment #selflearning #keepimproving

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Current account customer satisfaction tables are often interesting! No major surprises here, as fintechs Monzo Bank, Starling Bank and Chase do well, as does Nationwide Building Society. With Virgin Money and The Co-operative Bank plc doing badly, I wonder how the takeovers by Nationwide and Coventry Building Societies will impact their performance?

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It was great to be a guest on Irina “Mateeva” Hollatz WFM Unfiltered podcast talking all things imposter syndrome, working parents and how we're making WFM fancy again 🙌🏻 I'm sure a lot of us can relate, but I'd love to share some of the best feedback I've received and it get's me through some really challenging days & to show, it's ok to be honest and vulnerable: "I love how passionate Loz is about being a working parent. Being in a similar boat I often think that people don't realise how tough it can be in having another "full time job" in being a parent - school drop offs, school holidays, unexpected closures and just general madness of having a toddler is tough. It'd be rude of me to say Loz makes it looks easy because she doesn't try to do that - I love that she shouts about it not being easy and how she manages things on both fronts. One of the other gripes I've had in the past is seeing people portray themselves as superheroes with juggling everything - it makes other people think they can't do what they see others do, but again, Loz is so open with the challenges and how she overcomes them that it should give people confidence that they can do both things, be a great parent and have a great career - if that's what they want." Be vulnerable, ask questions, believe in yourself - If I can do it, you certainly can! ✨ Watch here: https://lnkd.in/ePFnJ5XJ

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Interesting read on Starlings SaaS and how it is helping new banks launch.

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Just had a call from 'Sara' who works for a company who provide repair services for household products. Now I do actually have a contact with the company she mentioned so was willing to hear her out... 'Sara' : Nothing changing in my contract but they're updating their contact centre number so just need me to confirm my bank sort code.... me : ✋️I'm not giving you my bank account details🤨 'Sara' : no don't worry I'm not asking for your card number or security code, just your account details because I need that because we're changing our contact number. me: 🤦🏼‍♀️don't be ridiculous why would you need my bank details because you're changing your contact centre number?!?!?! 'Sara' then hung up on me. Don't be afraid to say no to people calling and asking for your details. Legitimate businesses don't do this. Who knows what her end game was but I wasn't in the mood to play.😠 Your money, your bank details and your personal information are yours, always take 5 and think about what you're being asked. Protect yourself and your information, always! 🔒 (The number they called from is now blocked too) #takefive #mymoney #myinfo #idontthinkso #scammers #telephonescams

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Our latest SME Growth Tracker highlights that September’s rise in construction activity among SMEs is a clear sign that demand is rebounding, driven by new contracts and a renewed willingness to invest after the election. Among SME manufacturers, while we’ve seen that a drop in output and new orders is certainly a challenge for them, it’s encouraging to see that the reduction in staffing remains modest, and confidence in future growth remains. Great to have chatted through the latest findings with our Chief Economist, Sebastian Burnside #ukconstruction #shoutaboutukmfg

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NatWest Group and Lombard, has issued the first bond by a UK bank that’s dedicated to financing and re-financing electric vehicles – the NatWest Electric Vehicle (EV) Green Bond* This comes after Lombard recently won the accolade of ‘Best Business Motor Finance Provider’ at the 2024 Business Moneyfacts Awards, cementing its place as the UK’s largest asset financier**and an advocate of sustainable investment for our customers***. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eNVwetbP To find out more about transitioning to EVs search Lombard Electric Vehicles *The EV Green Bond is intended to finance or refinance Eligible Assets in the form of leases (financial and operating), hire purchase agreements, loans and other arrangements to finance the use and purchase of electric vehicles. The green label of this bond derives from the inclusion of electric vehicles as Eligible Green Assets under the “Clean Transportation” category defined in NatWest’s Green, Social & Sustainability Financing Framework and the ICMA Green Bond Principles “Clean Transportation” category. NatWest is not claiming that this “green” or “clean transportation” categorisation necessarily meets others’ expectations or requirements for describing or classifying activities, products or assets as “green” or transportation as “clean”. **Asset Finance UK Top 50, 2024. ***For more information on how we define climate and sustainable funding under our CSFF criteria see: Climate and sustainable finance. Security may be required. Product fees may apply. Subject to status. Business use only

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Nations and Regions Use of external finance in West Midlands increases, as small businesses remain cautiously optimistic on the economy. The British Business Bank’s fourth Nations and Regions Tracker, published yesterday (17th October), finds usage of external finance has increased to almost half (49%) of smaller business in the west Midlands- up 14 percentage points on the previous year. The report however also found that 58% of smaller businesses see more threats than opportunities in the recent landscape. And equity deals declined by 21% in the West Midlands in 2023, but early 2024 shows signs of stabilisation. #NationsAndRegions24 Details on the Nations and Regions Tracker can be found here - https://lnkd.in/eTFsv_-z

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News from Companies House that they are adopting One Login from Government Digital Service. Great that CH are making progress on verifying directors and people interacting with the services; this is a key step to reducing fraud. I have a couple of questions on this though: ❓ Is this a global service? Can non-UK directors/citizens access the services? ❓ Is the service inclusive? If someone doesn't have documents (e.g. 13% in UK don't have passports, 25% don't have driving licence), are there alternative means to access the services? https://lnkd.in/ei2xBrDv?

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Stay clued up on fake job ads when looking for your next job. Remember that we won’t ask you to share financial details or documents - including digital copies of your passport, driver’s licence or bank details - until we’ve made you a job offer. Visit our site to find out more and see all of our open roles http://spkl.io/60454hyTR #NatWestGroupJobs #JobAds #NatWestGroupCareers

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what do you do towards achieving better performance in your world?

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The Bank of England has reduced the bank base rate by 0.25%. This finally should help improve affordability, because the Standard Variable Rates that determine affordability should reduce. But will they? We will find out in the next few weeks. Money supermarket explains on their website how the SVR works... the lenders basically do what they want... Consumer Duty allows the owner of a mortgage to set they rate they want... conflict of interest? Answers on a postcard. Bank of England Financial Conduct Authority #svr #housingaffordability

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Many congrats Precious J on winning a free ticket 🎫 to #balife2024! And you don’t have to wait very long as it’s only next week on 25th April!!!💙💚 I love that you’ve thanked your coffee machine☕️😂Anything that helps us see things from a different perspective always helps!! Did you all correctly guess the answer was ‘use case’?! 🐑🧳 When did anyone last write a use case and diagram?! It’s been a while for me! Why did you choose this particular technique? Tickets are still available at www.balife.co.uk #ba #balife #businessanalysis #businessanalyst

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We call mid-market businesses ‘the critical middle’. These companies, employing between 100 and 2.5k people, are the critical backbone of our economy - accounting for 7m+ jobs across the UK and turning over £1.3 trillion a year. Our latest report highlights how the public and private sectors can take joint action to give these businesses the support they need to do even more as vital engines of growth for our economy. Our CEO @Paul Thwaite talks more on the vital role they play. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/eHKF7Tub

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Just some of the ways in which we help our customers do the right business in the right way.

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Our Chief Economist @Sebastianburnside delves into the insights from our latest Regional PMI Report to discuss economic growth trends, cost pressures and business output across all nations and regions of the UK. https://lnkd.in/e2HMr8bu

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Really interesting to read about TISA's new select ID scheme. Allowing customers to select their preferred Digital ID provider, this will not only simplify the customer jounrey and reduce fraud but forge the future of Digital ID within the industry. http://spr.ly/6044ewNTj

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