Aimran Alkaff’s Greatest Legacy is His Family
His main priority? To protect their interests, passing on opportunities and the values he’s gained to his daughter.
When it comes to defining legacies, Aimran Alkaff’s wife and daughter are the foundation, a success that he’s built on his own. But for himself, he considers his greatest inheritance to be his parents’ words of wisdom, and hopes he can offer the same for his daughter.
“I was very close to my parents. In many ways, they were my anchor and support network,” he recalls fondly. “My parents had me when they were older. For my mum, I was the only child, so even though I didn’t share an active childhood with them, we spent a lot of time together.” He admits that he was closer to his father, a businessman who could spend more time with Aimran compared with his mother, who had a full-time career as an administrator in an English firm.
Learning from family
He recalls precious memories with his dad as they waited to pick his mum up from work. “Those times really helped foster a closer bond with my father,” he explains. It was his father who would offer him the advice that’s shaped his life and career. “He suggested that I further my studies in an industry that would remain a mainstay of Singapore,” he clarifies. “That was, at the time, either in the maritime or aviation industries. He believed, as I do, that these are two sectors that will not disappear. So I went into maritime engineering.”
After graduation, he joined Motoren Turbinen Union as an engineer, before moving into sales. With 15 years of experience under his belt, he remains an incredibly humble man, summing up his work with one self-effacing line: “I sell diesel engines to shipyards across the region.” His work is in fact far more complicated, supplying engines and equipment to naval building shipyards, managing customers across the region and undertaking large-scale, long-term projects that take years to complete.
He credits his client management skills to the lessons his parents taught him from young. “What my parents instilled in me was patience, when I could not get what I wanted. They taught me perseverance and to be patient, to not rush into things and to learn to compromise,” he nods sagely. “Thanks to them, I’ve learnt to deal patiently with my customers today, to be even-tempered and problem solve when handling difficult situations.”
Building his own family
He built his family in the same steadfast manner with which he developed his career. “I’ve known my wife since university but we never spoke then. I got to know her through a pre-Facebook social app, Friendster. I guess she recognised me because she’d seen me at school as well,” he smiles.
They were married three years ago, and a year later, his daughter was born. He credits her as his greatest achievement and joy, and takes pride in encouraging her curiosity and bold nature. Protecting her has become his priority which is why he chose Opus by Prudential to help broaden his financial security and to ensure it will be shared with his daughter in the future. “I know that if anything happens, they will be taken care of,” he says, referring to his family.
Defining his own legacy
Previously, Aimran would travel regularly for business which meant time away from his family. In a way, the global lockdown has now given him the chance to spend more time with his young daughter and instill in her the same values that were passed down by his parents. “She does not have patience,” he observes. “When she wants something, it’s now. We’re trying to teach her that good things come to those who wait.”
He also believes in prudence and the power of planning ahead. “Whether it’s investments or insurance, it’s better to start early and plan early. These things take time to build. Don’t wait for something to happen. By then, it’s too late,” he advises. For him, ensuring his family’s well-being and protecting their interests as a father and husband is the greatest role he can play in life, a role that he’s incredibly proud to claim.
