5 minutes with…Roy Thompson

What makes Carpenter Box Financial Advisers (CBFA) stand out from the rest is our people and their commitment to having great relationships with their clients, and with each other.

In our ‘Five minutes with…’ series we meet some of the great team at Carpenter Box Financial Advisers. We posed various sets of questions to people across our firm to provide a glimpse into their lives and perspectives.

We begin our series with an interview with our Head of Carpenter Box Financial Advisers, Roy Thompson!

Tell us about yourself

I’m Roy Thompson, Head of Financial Services at Carpenter Box Financial Advisers. I am a local lad born in Worthing and outside of living in Brighton for 15 years, have always been based locally. I live with my wife and between us we attempt to parent 2 of my own daughters and my 2 step daughters. It certainly keeps us busy. 

I have worked in financial services all of my working career which is now over 20 years in length (I can’t deny I am anything other than middle age now). Initially, I worked as a mortgage adviser for HSBC before moving into financial planning. I did stint of 6 years for National Australia Bank in an advisory capacity, prior to joining Carpenter Box just over 10 years ago. I took on the responsibility of heading up the financial services team in January 2018.  

Tell us about an accomplishment that shaped your career

I can’t think of one single accomplishment that has shaped my career. I know my first boss left quite an impression on me. He was not one to suffer fools and it was quite clear from working with him that it was not what you said, it was what you did that made the difference. This was an important lesson for an individual such as myself, starting out in a career. It taught me that to work hard and deliver on promises that you might make. This ethos has been crucial as my career has developed.

What personality traits make a good leader?

I am a little uncomfortable with the notion of being called a leader. As far as I am concerned, I look to facilitate those in my team to help them with their own work and I also like to encourage ideas from those that I work with.

It’s rare that I would come up with the best idea and when you work with 15 other people, you don’t have to go too far to find someone with an idea that can help the business. In addition to that, I think that I am a hard worker. I think it is wrong to ask a lot of others if you are not prepared to do it yourself!

What makes you excited about Mondays?

I actually like Mondays. It’s a new week, you have traditionally had some down time and you can tackle issues at work with a renewed energy. The idea of getting them resolved in the upcoming week provides a feeling of positivity.

What opportunities are there for Carpenter Box Financial Advisers in the next few years?

I believe there are great opportunities in Carpenter Box Financial Advisers. The company has steadily grown in size over the last few years, now employing 16 people. I am excited about continuing to improve the service we offer clients, providing further growth to the business. It is this growth that fuels the ability to move people on in their own careers and it feels like we are on the cusp of being able to do this for a number of people within the team in the coming 12 months.

We continue to branch out to new geographical areas and are soon celebrating the one year anniversary of our Chichester office. This accelerates the potential for growth, the ability to service a wider client base and thus increases opportunities for those working within the team.

Find out more about ways in which we can help you by get in touch with our team on 01903 534587.