Brookfield Voices

Sophie Fallman moved to New York in 2010 from her native Australia and was offered a job at Brookfield. Unsure if she should take it, she called an associate back in Australia. “He said, ‘Sophie, any job at Brookfield is a good job—take it,’” Fallman recalled.

She followed his advice, and in 2016 returned to Australia, where she’s a managing partner and head of our Australia real estate business. “It’s fast-paced and it’s intense, but it’s also truly collegial,” she said. “I think that’s extremely rare.”

The key to Brookfield’s success is a shared understanding of the importance of our values, largely because senior management exhibits them. “The senior people at Brookfield share a common mindset—and they instill that in others,” she said.

Growing up in Brazil, Esteban Fornasar knew of Brookfield’s long history there. He joined Brookfield in 2014, and a year later, the Brazilian economy entered a severe downturn. Many foreign investors pulled out of the country. But Brookfield not only stayed—Brookfield invested.

“What differentiates Brookfield is the firm’s ability to create value by investing in those moments and markets when others are doing the opposite,” Fornasar said.

In 2020, he became chief financial officer for our Brazilian business and notes he’s proud to work for a company that has created so many jobs for Brazilians and continues to invest in the country.

Philippa Elder was working as an attorney for Multiplex in Australia when Brookfield acquired the listed property trust and global construction company in 2007.

Elder was pleased at the autonomy Brookfield gave her. “There was so much trust and faith in our abilities. Brookfield is not a place that micromanages its people,” she said.

Brookfield was also responsive to her request to relocate and shift her role from transactional to regulatory work after she had children.

“There was a tremendous show of support and faith in my continued growth potential,” Elder said. “I think very few firms would have responded that way.”

Daniel Cheng didn’t know much about Brookfield before joining the company, but he quickly learned that youth was no barrier to advancement. Cheng was hired in 2015 at the age of 25 as an M&A analyst for the Renewable Power and Transition Group in Toronto.

After spending three years in Toronto, Cheng relocated to China to help manage and expand our business in the region.

“From a career perspective, it was a no-brainer. It was a chance to move into a fast-growing area of the business, create something and be accountable,” Cheng said. “We don’t let hierarchy bog down how employees are treated from a career or performance perspective—and that’s something a lot of us truly appreciate.”

Jaspreet Dehl left Brookfield for a few years before returning in 2010, which “was the best decision I ever made in terms of my career,” she said. “I love the culture of the place. There are a lot of bright people here, there is a lot to learn, and there aren’t a lot of barriers.”

The diversity of our businesses and global footprint, in particular, appealed to Dehl. “You get to know a lot of businesses,” she said.

Now that she’s in a leadership role, Dehl encourages employees to take initiative and have an entrepreneurial mindset. “That’s what really distinguishes the people who are successful here,” she said.

Ankur Gupta still remembers the deal that got away. He was representing an Indian company in a potential real estate transaction with Brookfield when Managing Partner Cyrus Madon concluded that the deal wasn’t right for us. “I liked the way he asked questions,” Gupta said. “By the end, it made a lot of sense to me why Brookfield didn’t do the deal.”

Today, Gupta is head of real estate for Brookfield in India, where he helped establish our real estate presence through three of the largest private investments in the country’s history.

“I’ve had the privilege of working my way up from part-time intern to managing partner,” Gupta said. “It says a lot about Brookfield that so many of us have been able to grow within the firm.”