Financial Advisor
Nexus Insurance Brokers
Total years of experience :35 years, 2 Months
Independent consulting in Wealth Management, Investments, Assets Management, Life Insurance, Pensions and Savings.
Reporting to CEO, successfully oversaw and developed the commercial and client servicing business units of the company (Sales/ Brokerage, Customer Service, Collections, Leasing and Property Management)
• Undertake business development activities at senior level; from basic tasks such as prospecting, meeting clients, identifying opportunities, presentations, proposals and deal closings.
• Oversee the development of new business by identifying the potential client base through Sales teams;
• Manage, direct, and supervise the day to day operations of the customer service department.
• Developed and implemented annual marketing plans, budget allocations and decisions for sales and customer service business units;
• Created online/ offline marketing strategy and plans to generate customer leads;
• Putting in place plans and manage the team’s sales leads & pipeline;
• Set, monitor and drive activities (KPI’s) to achieve sales targets in a healthy team environment;
• Manage manpower planning and training of Sales teams and Customer Services staff;
• Creating an environment that sustains and encourage high performance; motivating teams in optimising their contribution;
• Recruit and hire needed manpower in the department;
• Conduct various periodical meetings with the department staff to discuss whatever problems and issues that need resolution;
• Manage and monitor Customer Relationship Management (CRM) database, customer correspondence to improve service quality;
• Conduct regular customer surveys for feedback and client service improvement;
• Plan, establish, and implement policies and procedure manual, workflow and standards in managing customers.
• Monitor and act upon all customer complaints; serve as the last escalation point in rectifying complicated customer related issues; share on a case by case basis with senior management.
• Ensuring speedy resolution of queries & grievances to maximise client satisfaction levels.
• Ensure that the company systems are fully compliant and managed as per government regulations and RERA.
Oversee sales activities, complete operations and manage profitability of the branch. Specifically:
• Plan and manage the operating and capital budget to maximise branch P&L.
• Set goals and establish incentive programs to motivate approx 30 team members to exceed sales targets.
• Develop team through training, cross-training and career planning. Conduct training sessions in sales techniques, ethics, and guidelines to deliver sales targets.
• Have the branch members be fully compliant as per RERA laws & regulations and see that they all adhere to company policies.
• Oversee and manage marketing plans of the branch.
• Assist in negotiating deals and closing transactions.
• Hire brokers to maintain company target levels and achieve business plan.
• Conduct regular team meetings for direction, get market and business updates, understand issues for corrective action.
• Joined Nexus as a Financial Advisor and mastered the skill of concept and need based selling.
• Successfully solicited customer appointments, offered financial planning advice and assisted them in buying financial products.
• Oversaw sale transactions of off-plan property, residential apartments, villas, land and commercial office space sales exceeding AED 120 million.
• Cold call sellers, obtain listings, market through advertisements, websites, online groups, etc.
• Conduct property viewings, obtain offers, close, sign MOUs, handle cheques and payments, mortgages, NOCs, transfers at DLD, etc.
• Manage owner properties, advertising, tenants, contracts, deposits, cheques, handover, etc.
• Reported to Middle East CEO and Global CIO.
• Managed an annual budget of USD 8 million.
• Directed operations from Dubai for 13 Middle East countries namely:
United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Syria and Yemen.
• Supported 1800 users across the Middle East.
• Managed a team of 24 staff - IT Managers, Change Leaders, Engineers, Administrators, Programmers, Desktop & Technicians and Helpdesk.
With a chair on the Middle East executive group (the top tier of Middle East area management), I participated in senior management meetings to form strategy and reported on key actions and regional deliverables.
Managed IT programs and projects across the Middle East region, with buy in from stake holders/ senior management to implement strategic global initiatives and relevant software solutions.
Oversaw and managed the IT function to develop, upgrade/ migrate and support all IT software and applications across the core business functions - Sales, Marketing, Finance, HR, Customer Services, Courier/ Distribution and Logistics
Managed process development and the successful commissioning of the Logistics Center at Dubai Airport facility, including seeking budget approvals, vendor management, deliveries to full commencement of operations.
Supported the commissioning and running of the UAE Hub operations with process development of cargo import, customs, sort, containerise & export processes.
Implemented processes and technologies for end-to-end courier sort, dispatch, shipment delivery and pickups.
Setup and supported Call Center and Telesales operations across the region with implementation of telephony and related CRM technologies.
Implemented and supported Billing and Finance technologies for invoicing, credit and collections management.
Researched and implemented systems to manage Sales and Marketing activities from prospects, lead generation, pipelines to potential business closings opportunities.
Additional roles undertaken:
Quality Manager - As a certified ISO internal auditor, developed and rolled out quality systems using procedure manuals, management and staff trainings, conducting quality audits and reporting.
Chairman, Sports & Social Committee - Implemented and managed the first Sports & Social committee for the company and ran regular company-wide events for staff motivation, team building, employee engagement and fun.
Building Project Manager
Successfully project managed the development, commissioning and seamless staff transition to DHL's building at Terminal 2, Dubai International Airport. Entire project cost was AED 20 million.
Directly supervised DHL's contractors such as architects/ consultants, quantity surveyors/ project managers, main contractor and all sub-contractors.
Directly dealt with all relevant authorities for approvals such as Dubai Civil Aviation (DCA), Dubai Municipality, DEWA, Civil Defense, Dubai Customs, Dubai Police, etc. to meet commencement deadlines.
Supervise and attend all stakeholder meetings with consultants, contractors, sub-contractors, PM, QS, MEP, FM, equipment and services suppliers.
Oversaw the full construction cycle from contract tender, contract award, commissioning, fit-out and right up to each DHL staff moving into the facility.
Over 300 happy employees go to work at this building presently.