Beyond scripts: How to embed advice culture across high-volume teams

In a mortgage market shaped by volatility, volume and rising customer expectations, creating a consistent, client-first advice culture remains one of the industry’s hardest problems, especially at scale.

Martin Baker, Managing Director at Fluent Money, believes it can be done. With two decades of experience across major UK banks and now leading one of the country’s highest-volume advice firms, he argues that advice culture isn’t about slogans or training slides, it’s about structure, leadership, and what happens when no one is watching.

“There’s a lot right with the industry,” he said. “The opportunity is to raise the bar on how advice is actually delivered, not just how we talk about it.”

Personalised advice, not prescribed outcomes

Baker defines a strong advice culture as one rooted in empathy and adaptability. "There’s no such thing as a typical mortgage customer," he said. "Each has different needs and pressures. Customers told us they don't want one-size-fits-all answers. They want advice that suits their situation."

Scaling that kind of personalised advice, Baker adds, requires more than well-meaning individual effort. "You can’t rely on heroics. You need a shared mindset and structure that supports consistent delivery without losing the human touch."

The firm’s team-based model is central to that. "There’s always someone available. Customers aren’t left waiting for their advisor to return from two days off. That availability helps maintain momentum and reduces decision wobbles."

Structure without scripts

Baker is clear that consistency doesn’t mean uniformity. "Advice isn’t black and white. Two advisors might arrive at different, reasonable outcomes based on the depth of the conversation. What matters is how that conversation is approached."

That means giving advisors tools and guardrails, not rigid scripts. "If you sheep-dip customers through a formulaic process, you lose people’s personality. You lose trust. We want advisors to shine, whether we’re busy or quiet."

Demand can fluctuate 30–40% month to month, by leaning on systems and well-designed processes, quality remains high even when volumes surge. "You start with the end in mind," said Baker. "Build processes that scale."

Technology helps ensure consistency while preserving space for real conversations. "We break long journeys into bite-sized stages, support screen-to-screen dialogue, and deliver prompts that come at the right moment."

Culture happens when no one's watching

Maintaining an advice culture across a dispersed team, with both office-based and remote staff, requires deliberate effort. All new advisors spend their first two weeks onsite to build rapport and immerse in the culture.

Remote work, he adds, brings customer-facing benefits. "It saves people hours of commuting, which they can reinvest in doing the job. And it allows us to be available when customers need us, that’s usually not at 10am on a weekday."

To bridge distance, the firm leans on coaching tools, playback technology and open communication. "You don’t need to be sat in a room with someone to learn. The most powerful feedback is what the customer actually said, and how you responded."

From aspiration to implementation

Baker is candid about where advice culture often breaks down: when process, training and tools fall short under pressure. "The biggest risk isn’t bad intent. It’s what happens when demand spikes and someone’s stretched. That’s when things slip."

Leadership and structure are key. So is setting the right expectations. "Culture isn’t what you say in training. It’s what happens when no one’s in the room."

Practical change, he said, also requires looking beyond advisors. "It’s about incentives, segmentation, support. First-time buyers and over-55s are typically more vulnerable. Having experienced people handle those groups is better than just relying on box-ticking."

Baker believes the industry has made progress, but a gap remains between intention and execution. "A good advice culture isn’t about asking more questions or doing more checks. It’s when a customer said, ‘I felt like they actually listened.’ That’s the standard we’re aiming for."