History // Board of Directors // Key staff //
Demerara Mutual is more than just a financial services company - we are a family. We have a family tradition that has gone on for generations and keeps getting stronger. Our success and development is a function of that family; its structures, its relationships, its ability to stick together in times of testing and its ability to place the common good above individual interests. We all win when one wins.
Though now as diverse as the Caribbean Region that is now our family home, the Demerara Mutual family shares common values and traditions. It is these values that make us who we are and that will determine what we become. Among the values that shape us are prudence, thrift, thought, foresight, confidentiality and dependability. These values have long been a part of our fabric. As early as 1918 the international journal, The Review, in drawing attention to the quality of work we were doing, singled out for mention the fact that we were encouraging “… thrift and prudence …”
Our sense of tradition and values has always been acute, that is why for example in 1927 we bought the Old Colonial Bank building, the building where we have our headquarters until today. Our foresight and vision enabled us to see and respond early to change so that long before gender was an issue on the agenda we had women attending our AGM, as early as 1931. As part of our tradition we have valued those things and structures that are important and have kept ahead of the important social and economic changes that matter to those who are members of this family. This was also evident in 1950 when we embarked upon what was then a phenomenal move – radio advertising and commissioned a gentleman to prepare radio talks.
Demerara Mutual, with an eye on the wellbeing of its family members and potential family members, strives to ensure that the product offered meets the needs and requirements for not only the present but the future wellbeing of our family members.
The welfare of our family members and their families is and always will be important to us; (in fact in 1934 the Board deemed it important to advise the young male employees who earned a salary of less than $120.00 that they should not marry at that point of their career). This interest in the total well being of all our family members continues to be a part of our tradition and excellence at all levels is emphasized and is evident in the service which is provided to all of our family members. And, we do not forget to show our appreciation to those who work long and hard, a fact that our top producers can attest to each year. We recognize that a vital part in our success lies in the vigor and effectiveness of those engaged in selling our policies.
Our Society inspires the devotion of all who are a part of it – from the policy holders to the clerical staff. This is credited to the effective management effected by the Board of Directors and the Chief Executives. Of credit to us is that over a period of 111 years, our Society has had eleven Chief Executives, all of whom brought with them a heritage of talent and dedication.
Long service by our family members is part of our tradition signifying the obvious job satisfaction derived from being a part of our team. Evident in our tradition is the high esteem with which our family is held by the wider society and as far back as 1905 when the position of Junior Clerk was available, management had to choose from 173 applications.
Giving back to the society is also part of our tradition. Contributing to natural disasters, to sports development, to scholarships, to housing development schemes is important to us because it creates a better society for our family. Our family supports a range of charities across the Caribbean including the Guyana Red Cross Society, the St. Lucia Crisis Center, the School for Children with Special Needs in St. Vincent and the Bel Air Home for Children in Grenada. In our family, such involvement is necessary because we would not be a family if we do not extend a helping hand when there is a need.
Today, we have moved from being a 217 strong family to over 20,000 and as our traditions and values continue to carry us we will grow as a Caribbean family in the years to come. We stand proud on our innovative “Demerara Mutual Spirit” which has caused us to be on record as one of the first supporters of an integrated West Indian community as early as 1958. We have demonstrated this in our commitment to establish linkages throughout the Caribbean Region. Today, our Society remains a positive link between the past and future as we continue with our family tradition which grows stronger each day.
