Matt Parnell joins our busy customer service team as a Telephone Account Manager support assistant. We took the time to get to know Matt a little better and find out how he’s getting on so far.
What was your first ever job?
I clung onto a paper round from the age of 13 to 17, but my first proper job was doing data entry at Midlands Co-Op Dairy as they moved milkmen from using paper order books to digital handheld devices.
What was your previous role before joining SortRefer?
IT Business Analyst, working mostly on process and data migrations to a third-party supplier for mortgage, loan, credit card and savings accounts. Prior to that I was an Application Support Analyst managing system changes, incidents, and access security for credit card systems.
How are you finding it so far?
It’s going great so far, there’s a lot to learn but the induction process was very thorough and gave me an overview of the business and the products SortRefer offer. The team has been very welcoming and eased me in gently!
Is there anything you are looking forward to learning?
I’m looking forward to learning more about the conveyancing process as that side of the industry is relatively new to me, and how the team develops relationships with brokers and suppliers.
What are your first impressions of the job role?
There’s a lot to learn about the SortRefer website, products and processes, but everyone in the team has been accommodating and patient as I get up to speed. All the brokers and suppliers I’ve dealt with so far have been very helpful too when following up on cases.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
I’m borderline obsessed with cooking, baking and nutrition, like photography, music and films, and have a love/hate relationship with running (i.e. I love the first couple of miles and hate every step beyond that when my body notices what I’m making it do!)
What is your favourite meal for breakfast?
Toast sandwich with Marmite on one slice and crunchy peanut butter on the other - the breakfast of champions!
What’s your favourite place you’ve ever visited?
Bahia Honda State Park in Florida Keys, there’s a broken old railway bridge which is a great spot for watching sharks and rays in the sea below. Closer to home, probably the Devon and Cornwall coastline.
What’s the first CD you ever bought?
Now That’s What I Call Music 30 – I’d like to pretend I was a fan of Massive Attack and Portishead in 1995 but was more into N-Trance and Clock…
Tell us something most people don’t know about you?
I started lifeguard training at school but didn’t pursue it, which is probably for the best because my translucent skin would have been very distracting to swimmers.