Abdallah

Abdallah joined CIBC in 2011 with the credit card franchising team, helping Citigroup’s (Citi) clients transition to CIBC upon acquisition of the Citi portfolio. Abdallah says he’s been at CIBC for 9 years because of the environment and the teams he’s had the opportunity to work with. He says, “it’s a big organization, and if you want to grow differently you can because there are so many opportunities.” After the credit card franchising team, he moved to the servicing team, and as a top performer, he moved to the solutions team in 2014, where he is now. In his current team he is required to profile clients by asking appropriate questions, identifying the right products, and taking them through the process. As a solutions agent, Abdallah could truly be his best, winning Annual Achiever twice. According to him, you need to have empathy in the role to build a rapport with the client and ensure a great client experience. When asked about the most rewarding part of the job, he says, “knowing that I’m helping someone makes me happy. When I helped a client save an extra $700 and just hearing her voice gave me happiness.” Empathy is at the heart of the work, and Abdallah highlights that when COVID first hit, there were no hard sales targets, but instead CIBC focused on helping clients during these challenging times.

Abdallah speaks highly of the leadership he’s had, saying, “I would never be able to be an Annual Achiever if it wasn’t for the support of all my leaders. They always look to make sure you’re successful whether it’s professional or personal. I can’t thank them enough for being so supportive.” He also speaks of the connected culture at CIBC’s Contact Centre. He says, “CIBC’s culture at the Contact Centre is one of family. It doesn’t matter who’s in charge. You can take any problem to anyone and they will all be ready to listen and help. I’ve had 8 leaders, but it’s always been the same. Your leaders will work with you and take care of you no matter the situation.” Abdallah’s piece of advice is to feel free to ask questions because as long as you’re willing to learn, there are always tools to help you get where you need to go.