Jack Dowd
Partner, Vice President, Sales & Marketing, The Dowd Agencies: Age 37
Jack Dowd says he never really thought about anything other than a career in insurance when he was young. This certainly differentiated him from most people his age, but for a good reason.
Indeed, he watched his father, John, and grandfather before him thrive in this business, with their name on what had become a Holyoke institution, and he liked what he saw.
“It all centered around my father — I held him in such high regard, and I just wanted to be like him,” recalled Dowd who represents the fifth generation involved in the family business, and worked his way from the ground up — literally. Indeed, he started as an intern working in the basement, converting paper to electronic files.
At his father’s advice, he started his career outside the family business, gaining experience at an agency in Boston and then for Quincy Mutual. He joined the Dowd Agencies in 2016 and has moved up the ladder to partner and vice president of Sales and Marketing.
He wears a lot of hats during this intriguing time for the company and industry, one marked by continued consolidation — and opportunities for companies like Dowd to grow and expand their footprint.
He’s a producer himself, but he also manages the sales team as well as the marketing team. And as a member of the senior leadership team, he’s involved with efforts to explore acquisition opportunities and, in many cases, make them happen.
“We’ve really started to push and grow beyond Western Massachusetts; we’ve realized there’s some opportunity to grow faster in Northern New England,” he said, adding that Dowd has purchased two agencies in Vermont over the past 18 months, among other acquisitions, and is looking at similar opportunities across the region. “We’ve tripled in size since I came to the agency.”
Dowd is also active in the local community, serving on the Swish Night committee for Make-A-Wish Massachusetts and Rhode Island and on the board of directors for the Holyoke Taxpayers Assoc. Previously, he served on the board of the Western Massachusetts Council of Boy Scouts of America, and on a committee supporting Brightside for Families and Children.
And when not working and volunteering, he’s spending time with his family — wife Vanessa and two children, John IV and Clara — especially at Lake Sunapee during the summer.
“They’re getting into sports now, and T-ball will be starting soon, so I’ll be coaching that,” he said — yet another hat for someone who already wears many.
—George O’Brien
