During his time at Willis, Kael Coleman(pictured above, left) says he recognized that there was asignificant demand for supplier diversity from Fortune 1000 andgovernment entities. Eventually, he thought, "why couldn't wecreate a company that has the expertise, the market access andinfrastructure to help the market achieve its supplier diversitygoals?" (Photo: Protecdiv)

Protecdiv, the first tier-one minority-led insurance andreinsurance broker in the United States, has launched inPhiladelphia.

Led by founder and CEO Kael Coleman and Chief OperatingOfficer Paul Little, Protecdiv plans to target Fortune 2000 clientswith an initial focus on auto manufacturers, suppliers andfinancial institutions. They will work with these largepublicly-traded and privately-held companies as well as governmentand government-related entities to provide specialty insurancesolutions.

In the reinsurance sector, the company willfocus on providing innovative risk transfer solutions to large andspecialty insurers. In the mortgage markets, the broker willdeliver credit risk transfer services toU.S. government-sponsored enterprises, mortgage insurers,banks and other asset holders.

The past and present collide

Prior to Protecdiv, Coleman led the global mortgage reinsuranceteam at Willis Re, the reinsurance arm of Willis Towers Watson. Hewas a senior broker at Guy Carpenter and at Holborn.

Before Protecdiv, Little founded and was president of MaxfieldRisk Consulting. Before forming Maxfield, Little was CEO atUltimate Risk Solutions.

After the two met and worked closely at Holborn Corporation,they went their separate ways but remained close businesscolleagues and friends. After Coleman resigned from Willis inNovember 2018, he incorporated Protecdiv the next month. Littlejoined the leadership in January 2019. Then they spent 2019building on the business plan, talking to investors, making key hires and building out theinfrastructure.

In five years, the specialty U.S. property &casualty brokerage is aiming for $100 million in revenue, with over100 employees and clients. They have built models and set targetsfor the next six years to know where they are relative totheir growth plan at the end of each year.

Emphasis on diversity

During his time at Willis, Coleman says he recognized that therewas significant demand for supplier diversity from Fortune 1000 andgovernment entities. Eventually, he thought, "Why couldn't wecreate a company that has the expertise, the market access andinfrastructure to help the market achieve its supplier diversitygoals?"

At a time when the property & casualty insurance industry isstruggling to diversify and retain its talent pool, Colemansays, "We are letting people know that diverse backgrounds andperspectives will be represented at all levels and functions withinProtecdiv." He believes that if he and Little can create aprofitable company built on diversity of thought and background,"retaining top talent will not be a cause for concern."

"Many companies have recognized that workplace diversity is avital part of their business models — that diversity ofthought leads to significantly better business results. That viewis growing in many U.S. companies and government contracts, wherethe issue of diversity is being taken much more seriously than everbefore," says Coleman. "We are bringing together a very diverse andexceptional employee base and combining it with top technology,data analytics and an exceptional overall service offering. We wantto bring new diversity of thought to the market and make adifferential impact for our clients — while at the sametime helping Fortune 2000 companies to fulfill their supplierdiversity mandates."

Related:

• Still plenty of ground to cover for women, minorityequality in workplaces
• Leading Latinxs in the insuranceindustry
• Understanding the value ofdiversity