Meet Ted Dimitry | Insurance and Risk Management Specialist, Marine & Energy Practice Leader, Higginbotham

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ted Dimitry and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ted, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
Honor and Integrity.

These are relatively simple words that many people believe they understand. However, as I push the envelope of a half-century in age, I have learned (sometimes the hard way) that honor and integrity are harder to live by – consistently – than I thought growing up or in my 20s. We all encounter circumstances in both our personal and professional lives that challenge our notions of honor and integrity. I have found that the key to implementing these concepts in my personal and professional life is through conscious action and deliberate choice. It is easy to say “Go with your gut” – and sometimes that may be the right call. However, the gut can be selfish (especially if it is hungry)… so sometimes that may be the WRONG course of action.

Thus, I try to be thoughtful in the choices I make and the way I interact with others. My goal with that is to live up to my internal expectations of my own honor and integrity. If I somehow compromise those in my own self-interest or for short-term personal gain, I will jeopardize everything everything I’ve built. As my father told me many times growing up and early in my professional career, it takes a lifetime to build one’s reputation but only an instant to destroy it. I’ve seen that happen to people – sometimes deservedly so, sometimes not – and I hope to avoid it.

I feel that it is important that my family, my colleagues, my clients, my friends and anyone else who interacts with me is aware of my outlook on these things. It also allows me to proceed through life knowing that I’m on the right path and, in doing so, that I will continue to be successful. That, in turn, allows me to share success with others… thereby creating a beautiful ecosystem of mutual benefit and success.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Depending on which list you read, Higginbotham is the 19th or 20th largest insurance brokerage firm in the United States. It is also the largest insurance broker that is based in Texas, being headquartered in Fort Worth. The Houston office – where I work – is the second largest in the firm in terms of both people and production. I am the Energy & Marine Practice Leader for the Houston office and am excited to be carrying the Higginbotham brand into my little slice of the global insurance market during these baffling early 2020s. We are building a top flight risk and insurance practice that services the needs of companies active in the energy and/or marine (maritime) sectors. This includes everything from oil and gas to renewables; from offshore platforms to offshore wind; from inland waterways to global logistics; and everything in-between.

As noted earlier, Higginbotham is a place where values are important – especially the values of trust, generosity, respect, honesty, accountability and, believe it or not, honor. This is probably what I am most proud of from a brand perspective. Higginbotham is proof positive that good can and will prevail.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I find that Houston’s art and museum scene is much, much better than it is ever given credit for. So I’d probably take a guest there for the first 2-3 days to take in the 19 museums in the area. Of course, being in that part of town would necessitate a visit to the Houston Zoo and perhaps a walk or bike ride through the Rice University campus and/or Hermann Park. Following that, I’d probably take them to Rice Village for a meal and some refreshments.

On another day, I’d likely take them downtown – perhaps to watch the Astros or Rockets play or see a live performance at one of the many fine theaters. There are also many great places to eat/drink there. A visit to NASA/Space Center Houston might be in order as well… along with a segue to the the Kemah Boardwalk, some quaint locale on Clear Lake or even down in Galveston.

I live in West Houston, so a gander through Memorial Park on the way home might be in order, along with a trip into the Galleria – and avoiding the traffic on the West Loop if at all possible! Houston has an amazing variety of restaurants featuring cuisine from all over the world, so I would imagine we’d eat our way across town – from high-end steakhouses to craft barbecue joints, from Vietnamese crawfish kitchens to a Korean food in Spring Branch to Persian/Indian cuisine off Hillcroft and everything in between. We might stop by BPD, Kirby Ice House (Memorial) or Lazy Oaks Beer Garden to wrap up the day.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?Dan Nicholls, Michael

I have a long list of friends, colleagues, mentors and family members to thank… so here goes:

– My wife, Susan, for sticking by me… especially when things were rough. I am truly lucky to have her in my life.
– My children for being such great kids, for believing in me and for the immense love I feel from them every day… even when they’re being grumpy teenagers/pre-teens.
– My parents and sister for always being there for me, through good times and bad.
– My in-laws and extended family for their acceptance, their generosity and, most importantly, their love.
– Several key mentors at different points in my career, including Bradway Widing for convincing me to consider insurance/risk management as a career path, Paul Finlay for being such a great “first boss” while I lived/worked London, John Mizell for being a mentor in an era when Gen-Xers were generally disregarded and left to fend for themselves, Michael Boyette for always listening and helping out, Cran Fraser for taking the chance on me in 2009, allowing a “technical guy” to become a successful producer and Dee Jacobson for always providing me with solid feedback and reliable advice.
– Dudley Ray, the Managing Partner Higginbotham in Houston, for giving me the opportunity to join this firm and reinvent my career.
– Chris Rooker, Higginbotham’s COO, for allowing me to expand and implement ideas as the firm grows on the national stage.
– Rusty Reid, Higginbotham’s CEO, for his leadership and dedication to preserving the Higginbotham culture and value system as we expand across the country. That is not easy to do, especially when faced with the pressures that come with significant growth.
– My team at Higginbotham – especially Stefanie Fernandez, Zoraida Alviso and Miranda Perez – for supporting me, believing in my vision and keeping me grounded when I need it.
– Many current and former colleagues for their help, advice and friendship… especially Emma Rios, Justin Radcliffe, Julie Stone, Matt Raymer, Chris Lavigne, Gray Holden, Eric Sims, Lanette Norgan, Carrie Freeman, Sheila Lindsey, Chris Alviggi, Tiffany Werling, Kyle Garoni, Brian Toglia, Cindy Peters, Joy Simpson, Stuart Ray, Cindy Peters, Evan Douglas, Braden Griffith, Todd Mohr, Jeff Torda, Duke Gim, Corey Huey, Aro Umfress, Alex Torres, Rebecca Newton and Kevin Khoury.
– Many other people I’ve met in my career who I met in some professional capacity or another but who have become friends and partners over time – specifically Matt Fuhrman, Sarah Potts, James Vavasour, Steve Weiss, Stacey Horne, Bill Chadwick, Lianne Portman, Steve Portman, Dan Nicholls, Michael Addington, Alastair Dalrymple, Seb Graham, Charlotte Marsh, Bob Clarkson, Heather Clarkson, Jan Herveat, Ray Ward, Stephen Vallender, Martin Hayes, Mike Johnson, Kathy Mitchener, Doug Shoemaker, George Chalos, Arlene Chalos, Briton Sparkmann, Jana Byron and many, many others….
– My personal friends who have nothing to do with insurance/risk management (and who probably don’t WANT to!), including but certainly not limited to Ben Connally, Paul Taegel, Mark Cizek, Walker Peacock, Allen Rustay, Temple Cone, Richard Tarco, Blair Garrou, Amy Garrou, Ernest Pillow, David Renshaw, Mac McKinnie, Chris Newton and many, many others.

Website: https://www.higginbotham.com/team/ted-dimitry/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ted-dimitry-b1373b1

Youtube: https://youtu.be/P65Rb6sQfTo

Other: http://voyagehouston.com/interview/hidden-gems-meet-ted-dimitry-of-higginbotham/ https://houstonmeic.com/planningcommittee/ https://houstonmeic.com/program-info/guest-speakers/ https://youtu.be/VMl2M2h3kCs https://youtu.be/eViYEmb4svE

Image Credits
The Cinco de Mayo photo is courtesy of Higginbotham