Lowes Magazine Issue 115

SPOTLIGHT

Spotlight on Lowes staff

BARRY STRATHEARN JOINED LOWES IN 2018 as the Head of Compliance before being appointed to the board in 2020 and becoming Director of Compliance. Barry has a long history in financial services, beginning his career as a cashier with Nationwide Building Society in 2001 and quickly rising through the ranks, performing a number of advisory, supervisory and managerial roles within Nationwide, Halifax and the Cumberland Building Society. While he enjoyed success in each of the roles, Barry says he wanted to expand on his leadership, consultancy and team building skills outside of the banking sector. With this in mind, he began taking the qualifications he needed to qualify as a financial adviser - but he didn’t stop there. He now has a wide range of qualifications to his name, with more than one qualification body, having achieved Chartered Associate status with the London Institute of Banking and Finance (LIBF) and also becoming a Chartered Financial Planner and a Fellow of the Personal Finance Society, the highest accolade granted by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). Barry believes having that depth and breadth of knowledge is key to his compliance role. “Financial services is one of the most heavily regulated markets in the UK but by its nature, regulation is not so much black and white as grey, so much of my role day-to-day is providing answers to questions on the regulation, rules and guidance put in place by the regulators.” Having a comprehensive knowledge of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA’s) Conduct of Business handbook and the many documents and papers issued by regulators every year helps. “If I don’t know the answer off the top of my head, I know where to look to find it.” The compliance team oversees Lowes operations to ensure they always conform to the appropriate regulations, rules and guidance relating to financial services and in particular, providing financial advice. “Regulation is constantly changing and we need to ensure we keep up-to-date,” Barry says. “As an example, in the past week I’ve read over 600 pages of regulatory documents. We will absorb that information and pass it on to Lowes Consultants and staff and ensure all our processes and procedures are updated to reflect the new rules and guidelines.”

Having good compliance and appropriate systems and controls in place, leads to

better client outcomes, Barry points out. “By making sure all our staff are following the necessary rules and guidance, and through regular training and testing, as well as continuous professional development, we are ensuring Lowes clients are being served by people with up-to-date knowledge and skills.” He adds: “Compliance is part of our quality control, if you like. As well as ensuring we conform to the regulations, we are Involved in training and coaching and we provide feedback to Lowes staff that can help them execute their roles and help Consultants explain complex matters to clients in ways they can understand.” Barry leads by example, in this respect. Not only does he undertake continuous professional development in excess of what is required of him by the overseeing body but to add to his long list of qualifications, he is currently undertaking a Masters degree in Financial Planning. He encourages others to take extra qualifications. “In our roles I think it is good for people to take exams and there is nothing better than seeing the smile on someone’s face and their sense of pride when they pass.” Outside of work Barry is a keen footballer. “I’ve played 11-a-side football all my life. I find it’s a great release at the end of a working week. And when I can’t run around anymore, then I’ll move onto walking football. It’s a big part of my life.”

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Sudoku solution We hope you enjoyed the Sudoku puzzle we published on page 3 of this issue of the Lowes magazine. Here is the solution to the grid.

14 Lowes.co.uk