Clifford Noonoo
I graduated from Concordia University with a Bachelor in commerce and from McGill University with a certificate in accounting. The economy was tough in the 80’s. You could not get a job if you had no experience, and you couldn’t get experience if you didn’t have a job. After working in accounting for a brief period, I was able to work at Mcleod Young Weir (Scotia McLeod today) as an investment advisor. My business was built from scratch making 200+ cold calls a day. If you were to ask me what one of the world’s great inventions has been, I would rank the push button phone in the top 3. Many a night that I would have to soak my fingers in warm water after all those dials using a rotary phone! In 1987 I was given an opportunity to join Wood Gundy (CIBC today) where I remained until 1994.
In 1994 I was hired by TD to open their first wealth Investment branch in Montreal. For the first 13 years at TD I managed the operation as well as client accounts. As I grew that branch to be one of Canada’s largest, I gave up my management responsibilities to focus on client accounts. Our team is one of the largest teams at TD with assets under administration of $2.4 billion. I use the word large while the team understands that I dislike all the implications that come with that word. At our shop, customer service is not a department, it is a state of mind. It is a value that I am willing to always guarantee.
What I am proudest of from a business standpoint:
- That we have so many clients that have been with us for so long. Many from my day one in business.
- That the core of this team has been together for 25 years in the case of the team's principals and between 5-20 years in the case of my associates. We do not lose good people. The team has always heard me say that while we don’t change our people, our people need to change. Time’s change, technology changes, and we need to always improve. There is no such thing as tradition or remaining static at our shop.
- That a 13-person team was able to work remotely during Covid without missing a beat in terms of investments or customer service.
- That a team based in Montreal can so readily compete year in and year out with teams in Toronto and Vancouver with much bigger markets at their disposal.
- Being a part of TD for the last 27 years and having the opportunity to start and grow a nice business for our shareholders.
Of great importance to me is my family. Amazing parents, terrific wife, and wonderful kids that make me laugh, wind me up, but mostly make me incredibly happy. I can be in charge of so many things and yet a pawn to my kids when I come home!
Finally, I came to this country when I was 16 years old from Iran on what was supposed to be a few years of schooling. I am of the firm belief that when you are lucky in life and have things that are good happening, you need to give back both of your time and money. We are as a result active in the community. In particular, an involvement with hospitals and children’s charities has been of utmost importance.
