Two Years On – Ajit Prajapati
It took Ajit Prajapati a bit of time to get used to working as a Client Director for Konsileo, but one year on the job has completely changed his life.
“I think I was a bit institutionalised,” explains Ajit. “I’d worked for 25 years for big brands like Swinton, Endsleigh and Markerstudy. I was used to pressure, tight deadlines, and having someone looking over my shoulder and checking up on me. So when I started with Konsileo I was calling in to tell people where I was going and what I was doing. Eventually Prina in HR told me, look, you don’t need to justify yourself here – we trust you to do your job.
“I think there are very few employers out their who would empower and trust employees to this degree.”
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Ajit came to Konsileo after being made redundant in the pandemic. He’d used the time to re-think his priorities. With his wife super-busy in her job as a local GP near their Birmingham home, Ajiit took up the reins on the home front, looking after their young son.
He explains: “I’d been working 50/60 hour weeks for years, and the opportunity to just stop was amazing. It really made me think about what I wanted – and about what on earth I’d been doing!
“I had various job interviews at the time, and towards the end of the process in one place the interviewer literally said to me, ‘I don’t care what your kids are doing at school, I don’t care about your personal life – I need you to give us 110%.’ And despite the lure of a handsome salary, benefits and bonuses – I just knew that’s not what I wanted anymore.
“I want to be able to be me all of the time, not just when I clock off. And being a partner and a dad are part of who I am.”
Flexibility
Ajit started off as a Konsileo employee doing 8 hours a week, then went up to 18 hours, managing his own book and his own time. He’s found it so flexible he’s about to go back up to full time hours – for the first time in two years.
Ajit says: “Lots of employers these days say they do flexible working, but they don’t really mean it. Konsileo does. And now I’m confident that I can work full time, get the salary I want AND have the work/life balance I’ve been looking for.
“One of the things I’m proudest of is how many of my former clients have followed me. They’ve told me they weren’t just buying policies, they were buying me – and now it’s been a year I’m free to work with them again.”
Ajit’s book includes motor trade clients, including supercar dealerships, plus some general liability and construction liability. And being able to tap into Konsileo’s resources has meant he can be the sort of independent broker who can really prioritise the customer journey.
Independence and support
“I’m really close to my Konsileo colleagues – especially those that were part of my cohort,” says Ajit. “Getting my head round the flat structure with no managerial level took a while, but now I feel more empowered and more supported than I have in any other role of my career.
“We work on Teams, and we can see who’s in, who’s offline, have a chat and use the group messages to ask for direction or help when we need it. Just asking ‘what’s the best way to do X?’ gets you ten different perspectives and recommendations within minutes. Every single person Konsileo employs is a talented professional who wanted to do what they do, but a bit differently. That means not only do we instantly share values, but we’ve got this massive pool of knowledge we can all draw from.
“I’ve been free to set my own goals, and decide not just my hours but what it is I want to achieve in the next 2, 3, 5 years. There aren’t many organisations that ask you what it is you want, and how they can help you get it. And that’s exactly what makes Konsileo so different – and what makes it work so well. One year on it’s lived up to every one of my expectations, and more.”
To learn more about working at Konsileo get in touch with Chris Sulman directly at chris.sulman@konsileo.com or 07898210760.
