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Harmonia Assurance President Annette Dufour is living proof that it’s possible to combine work, family and community service. She deftly blends her role as a businesswoman with her family roles as a mother and young grandmother by being actively involved in her regional community and taking her employees and family along with her! She speaks about the path her life has taken and the causes that are dear to her.
What’s your insurance career been like?
I started out as a receptionist in the early 1980s and then worked my way up from there. In 2001, I became president of my own firm, ADC Assurance. We then pulled off a few mergers and acquisitions between 2007 and 2010. More recently, after merging the two largest property and casualty insurance firms in Abitibi-Témiscamingue in 2014, we changed our name to Harmonia Assurance. We now have a total of 86 employees in six branches in various parts of the region.
Community service is important to you, and it’s also one of Harmonia Assurance's core corporate values. Why is that?
Well, the reality is that it’s been Abitibi-Témiscamingue families who’ve trusted me and made my business grow. That’s why I feel it’s important to give back to the people in my region by supporting worthy causes. I live and breathe in my community and I want to contribute to it. Our company’s social involvement naturally helps our reputation. More importantly, however, it shows that we have a big heart.
Harmonia Assurance's community involvement in 2020
You’ve helped several cancer foundations? Are cancer patients an important cause for you?
Yes, because the disease can affect anyone – any family member at any age. I particularly want to help sick children and their families by giving them a moment's respite and a few hours of happiness. I’ve been committed to this cause for many years. For example, I was president of the Canadian Cancer Society's Relay for Life in the region for three years, and I’m currently involved with two Leucan fundraising activities – with my daughter, as co-chair/ambassador of Leucan’s Chef Challenge, and with my son, as co-chair of the Leucan Ski Challenge.
Do you feel that it’s important for you to be so involved in your own regional community?
Yes, I have a strong sense of belonging to my community, and I want to make a difference both locally and regionally. By becoming a Leucan “Partner with a big heart,” I feel I’m doing just that.
Your employees are also involved in various causes. How do you encourage them in this way?
By offering them various opportunities to contribute within the company. For example, they can donate $5 to wear jeans to work during our monthly Casual Fridays. Then, at the end of the year, the company matches the total amount contributed by the employees over the year. That’s how we raised nearly $2,000 for the 23rd Telethon of a local not-for-profit that supports people with disabilities – the Ressource pour personnes handicapées Abitibi-Témiscamingue / Nord-du-Québec. Our employees also contribute to an in-house lottery for Leucan and participate as volunteers at various events. Community involvement is definitely one of our core values, and our employees are very much a part of that.
What touches you most about the people you help?
Their courage. I’m always impressed by how positive they are, despite their illness. When I get involved in a cause, I also get out into the field where I can talk and interact with the people being helped. Listening to their stories and seeing how happy they are at special events – well, you can’t put a price on that!
Does Annette Dufour's life path inspire you? Would you like to join a “team with a big heart” that makes a difference in its community? Visit our Career page (in French) to check out available positions or submit an application.