We recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Stephanie Odunston, our dedicated Head of Bad Debt Protection (BDP), to delve into her role and explore what makes her such an integral part of our team.
In this conversation, Stephanie shares her insights on BDP, how it helps businesses mitigate risk, and some personal reflections that give us a glimpse into her life beyond the office.
Whether you're curious about the importance of BDP or just want to get to know the people behind the service, Stephanie has plenty of wisdom and personality to share.
Q1) Please describe your job role here at Skipton Business Finance
A) I oversee SBF’s Bad Debt Protection (BDP) product and service for any of our clients who’ve chosen to protect their business against customer bad debts.
Q2) Which three words would you use to explain BDP?
A) Peace of mind.
Q3) How can BDP help businesses mitigate risk and protect their financial health?
A) If a business has BDP in place as part of their risk strategy, they can trade with confidence. Knowing that if the worst were to happen and a customer ceased trading, their cash flow wouldn’t be impacted because a BDP payment would be made.
Q4) What piece of advice would you give to a business that is considering BDP?
A) A couple of examples: BDP can help your business grow safely with new customers you don’t have a track record with yet, or with existing customers who make up a large percentage of your business, so you can’t afford not to be paid by them.
Q5) What do you enjoy about working in BDP?
A) I love calling a client with the great news that a BDP payment is on its way. It’s rewarding to know I’m making a difference, especially when we can agree on a limit that also creates more cash availability.
Q6) What is the best thing about working at Skipton Business Finance?
A) The trust to just get on with your job—I can’t bear micro-management!
Q7) What's one thing you have achieved in 2024, which you are proud of?
A) The growing number of clients taking up BDP.
Q8) Describe a colleague you enjoy working with
A) My boss, Andrew Hill—he didn’t pay me to say that, by the way! We have an open and honest relationship and bounce ideas off each other.
Q9) What's a life motto you go by and how does it help you?
A) Carpe Diem—seize the day! Whether it’s professionally or personally, I believe in just getting things done and not procrastinating. One of my old bosses even used to call me “Action Jackson!” (Jackson was my maiden name).
Fun Facts About Stephanie:
- Favourite food: I love pretty much all food, but you can’t beat rare fillet steak and chips!
- Favourite movie: Gosh, so many genres! Here are a couple: The Notebook for romance; The Shawshank Redemption for drama.
- All-time favourite song: One song?! Scrolling through my playlists, stopped at Crazy In Love by Beyoncé.
- Favourite city you have visited: I’m hopeless at choosing—I love so many! But my most visited abroad is Barcelona.
It was fantastic to chat with Stephanie and get to know her on both a professional and personal level. Stay tuned for more insights from the rest of our team!