meeting of like minds goal in terms of this transition for the company .
Darren : Ingrid and I spent a good amount of time talking about DEI and what resonated for me is that she wanted to broaden her work because she knew that the value of MWIS ’ work was what was most important . We agree – what better platform than an organization that is performing at the top financially to say that this is really good work that benefits all people . We talked about the flywheel of getting more skilled contractors capable of performing the work , who then enhance their work force , thereby contributing to the local economy and tax base – all the interconnected positive effects . To me , this went all the way back to working with my father in our family insurance brokerage and being told how important a role our services played within that community .
“ I ’ ve always said that in our work , authenticity is paramount . You cannot do what we do in an inauthentic way – transparency is essential . The authenticity came across initially and in every meeting I had [ with HUB ], including with everyone beyond Darren .”
— Ingrid Merriwether
Ingrid : The other benefit that our work has demonstrated is the business opportunity – we ’ ve had surety companies over the years that we ’ ve been operating these programs make about $ 6 million in premium income that was almost pure profit because they ’ ve never had a loss – our program enrollees have maintained a 1 / 10 of one percent program loss ratio , which is significantly below the industry average . This illustrates how diversity , equity and inclusion are of benefit to everyone and that resources have a multiplier effect , because every sector of business benefits when you bring more resources to those who have historically not had access to those resources . When our contractors get work and secure bonds , surety companies write bond premium that they would not have otherwise written .
We coined the term “ aligned risk management ” to describe MWIS ’ strategies to overcome participatory barriers for underrepresented groups in public contracting , while concurrently effectively reducing client risk through a multifaceted approach , with emphasis on construction / contractor business risk . From insurance solutions that reduce insurance as a barrier to smaller firms , to our contractor development programs with financial resources imperative to successful construction contracting like bonding and contract working capital ,
FALL 2024 CONTRACTOR REPORT - 07