By Richard Healey
Exactly one year ago I would wake up, don my tracksuit bottoms and trainers and spend most of my days shouting at people, who in return would pay me for this pleasure. I worked hard to make a living with the dream of moving to Spain and being able to do this on the beach in the sun every day – it was just another day in the life of a personal trainer.
The move from personal trainer to IVA case officer for the self-employed wasn’t a natural transition; however, as I walked in on my first day nine months ago I found out you need a lot of the same traits. I soon found the ability to work proactively and efficiently whilst remembering the slightest piece of information was vitally important – and that was just on the coffee run for my new team!
My first day as a case officer assistant went extremely well, and I knew I would fit in well. There was a hardworking, motivated vibe in the office. Everyone I spoke to was friendly, helpful and knowledgeable, but above all else it was obvious I had joined a winning team with a positive attitude.
I really enjoyed my time as a case officer assistant and the three months I was in the role completely changed my mind on the country’s economic climate. I was, and to be honest still am, surprised at the actual number of people needing our help every single day. To date we average 90-100 new clients in our department each week.
I worked as an assistant for three months before training to become a case officer. On reflection my time as an assistant was crucial to my current role. When joining the department I was under the impression a CCJ (County Court Judgement) was a wrestling move and so essentially I was a blank canvas. It gave me a view of the process our clients go through. When my first client was granted an IVA it made me proud of the work we do. Now, nine months on it is something I am getting used to as the vast majority of our clients are granted an IVA, but I still remember the overwhelming sense of achievement from my first client.
As a case officer no two days are the same. This is the aspect of the job that engages me the most. This, coupled with the fact that on a day-to-day basis I still get a buzz from being able to help people and oversee them through a process. It really goes some way to explaining why I enjoy my role so much. One of the roles I undertake every day is assessing each of my new clients as they come into the department. This includes looking at all aspects of the case and familiarising yourself with it. For me, I enjoy working with clients with limited companies. Often looking at their cases is comparable to doing a complex Sudoku puzzle.
Nine months on and I am still learning and adapting to new challenges every day. Every case is different as we deal with buy-to-let properties, limited companies, sole traders and partnership companies.
Just when I thought I had things under control one of my clients turned my day upside down by announcing they had just bought a property in Spain – and the irony of that was not lost on me!
Written by Gemma on May 30th, 2012
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