Prosperity is a company of independent Financial Consultants which provides unbiased Financial Advice to both corporations and private clients. Taking time to provide us with an overview of the firm and the work they do, is Prosperity’s CEO Andrew Cole who goes into great detail about the exceptional services they provide.
Our expertise in International Financial Planning has made us the first choice to our multitude of clients worldwide. We work with Expatriates of all Nationalities and also cater for UAE Nationals, we have a range of products to cover Investments, Savings, Life, Health and General Insurance products including Motor, Medical, Group Life, Construction and much more. We represent Major International Blue-Chip Corporations, as well as UAE based Companies both in the traditional and Islamic market.
As Independent Financial Advisors, we work on behalf of our client’s not the product provider, so whatever their needs we can ensure the best solution to meet their requirements. Our qualified financial planners will work to create a tailor-made solution for all those specific needs.
At Prosperity, we know that when it comes to personal or corporate financial needs; trust, experience, together with a personal and discreet service are key when deciding on who a potential client will use for their financial advice.
Our aim is to provide our clients with good honest and ethical advice. Our team will do its utmost to ensure we give a professional and swift experience with consistent ongoing service. Prosperity, a refreshing approach to your financial planning.
In 2009, I set up Prosperity after having worked in the financial services industry since the mid 1980’s including a senior managerial position with a fortune 500 blue chip corporate entity. Working in the UK, Europe, the Far East and Middle East and having spent over 25 years in the UAE, means that I have first-hand personal experience of Expatriate life and a wealth of knowledge on the UAE, GCC, its cultures and traditions.
There are many and varied skills needed as CEO of a company. Establishing a business in a country, foreign to me, has meant learning additional skill sets to make the most of the challenges and opportunities. The biggest were the cultural difference’s legal structures, language, time frame expectations and having a multi-cultural work force. This demanded first and foremost respect, tolerance and understanding for the people and culture of my new country of residence. To believe that the only way things will work is the way it was done in country of origin would be a huge mistake. To be successful you need to be patient, understanding, and to listen carefully before you jump in with your own ideas and views. If you are open to alternative ways of working you can gain trust and respect; then you will be listened to and can make a difference by adapting previous experience into the new environment.
As a CEO anywhere in the world, you have the normal corporate responsibilities of profit and loss, legal, and compliance, however, it is the people who work for you that are most important and most demanding. My career in management has given me experience in retail, sport, F&B and financial services so a varied background which has helped me to work with and understand staff and staffing issues, concerns and motivation. I have had to learn to work under extreme pressure over the years and have gained experience in how to get the best from people with whom you are working with to get a project or target achieved efficiently and effectively. My ethos has always been to create a positive corporate culture, it takes time but if you can build a positive environment, people will feed off that and you can feel the energy as people want to do better.
The key is giving people support and a clear pathway which provides the opportunity for growth. I have a strong belief in ongoing training and development both internally and externally. In addition to this, I have created an internal training and development program which has proven to be successful.
Coaching is a big part of my culture, demonstration, observation and feedback is what we practice at Prosperity. This is reinforced by encouraging shared learning and weekly meetings, where everyone contributes with their personal success’ and failures, so all can benefit from each other’s experiences. I am not a fan of negativity and gossip; communication has to be open and clear with regular updates given to all staff. I have been taught that as the captain of the ship you stand on that bridge for all to see in bad weather as well as good weather. Pressure brings about changes in people, especially in difficult times so being visible in tough times is paramount. In my early years, I would take things far too personally if things did not go to plan when a member of my team left the company. One has to learn from each experience and try not take it personally which is not always easy.
Sometimes in business or in life we can get caught up in the moment, emotions run high and we feel we are in the worst situation we have ever been and cannot see the wood for the trees. Yet as the years go by and we gain experience through fresh challenges and issues, we reflect on the situations we faced in the past and realise they were not really as bad as they seemed at the time.
Personal experience is important to running a company, stretching yourself, taking risk, pushing yourself, making mistakes as well as getting it right are key to growth and success. I have always been driven by proving people wrong, I have the sort of personality that, when someone says you cannot possibly achieve something, it spurs me on to prove them wrong. My attitude is never give up no matter what. I will try everything I have learnt throughout my life to put things right and keep on track failure is not in my vocabulary. Having a positive mental attitude sometimes manifests itself as stubbornness, perhaps, but it is not how many times you get knocked down its how many times you get back up.
Overall, I have to say that it is a great honour to have been recognised and given this award I am truly grateful. Also, I would like to thank everyone who has been a part of my life journey so far that has contributed to this recognition.
Contact: Andrew Cole
Company: Prosperity Insurance Brokerage
Office 1401, Al Gaith Holding Tower, Al Wafiq Finance Building, Airport Road, Abu Dhabi, P.O Box 31998, UAE
