Some Thoughts on Our Mascot
Sharon Romano, Vice President, Demotech
September 9th, 2015 marked the thirtieth anniversary of Demotech’s incorporation. As milestones are reached, one can’t help but be a little nostalgic. Why did we incorporate Demotech thirty years ago? What were we trying to accomplish? What was our vision for the future?
Demotech has always been a bit of a contrarian. In fact looking at things a little differently is imbedded in our corporate culture. We wanted to be innovative and creative in the utilization of financial analysis. We wanted to be able to take on projects because they were exciting as well as challenging. We wanted to make a difference. We didn’t want to be limited by the usual constraints and believed there was another way of approaching challenges. Criteria such as size did not factor into our business, and should not for the market we intend to serve.
The dragonfly came to mind. We were developing an ad for an insurance publication and the tyrannosaurus and the dragonfly ad fit. It expressed our thoughts, and the data, on size and survival perfectly. The more we used it, the more we could identify with the dragonfly, and it became part of our brand.
The dragonfly represents more than meets the eye. The dragonfly was the first winged insect to evolve and survive for 300 million years. It survived because it could adapt. It was this adaptability and size that attracted us to the dragonfly in the first place. Adaptability, size, and an instinct for survival related to this vision we had for serving our target market in the insurance industry.
The correlation does not stop there. Scientists have identified key features of the dragonfly’s brain, eyes, and wings that allow them to hunt unerringly. The nervous system of a dragonfly displays an almost human capacity for selective attention. They are able to stay focused. Similarly, it is our belief that insurers that stay focused on insurance fundamentals, and stick to their knitting without straying from their area of expertise can be successful, no matter what their size.
A dragonfly can track a moving target, calculate a trajectory to intercept that target and adjust its course in transit, as needed. Demotech’s vision has always been to be focused yet flexible to address the issues that plague the niche we serve. This strategy has served us well these past thirty years and it will continue to serve us in many years to come. Demotech, like the niche of insurers we serve, are build to adapt. We can make a difference!