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Diane Dupuis is the chief executive officer of Dupuis Langen Group, a Richmond-based health insurance agency.

Photo courtesy Diane Dupuis

Diane Dupuis shares business journey

By Matthew Cheung

Published 2:42 PST, Fri February 17, 2023

Last Updated: 2:43 PST, Fri February 17, 2023

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A certified health insurance specialist and financial planner, and the chief executive officer of Dupuis Langen Group, Diane Dupuis recently sat down with host Jim Gordon to discuss how she has grown her business and the challenges she’s faced along the way.

Jim Gordon (JG): You’re a successful businesswoman, when and how did you get started?

Diane Dupuis (DD): I started my company in 1985, but I trained with Sun Life Canada in 1978.

JG: You said you got to a point where you wanted to go off on your own. Was there hesitancy?

DD: My objective when I started working for Sun Life was to get as much education (as possible) and then start my own boutique firm. I grew up in small business, so it was natural to have a business.

JG: It’s been amazing to see how time has progressed specifically for women in business. Was it difficult when you first started?

DD: When I started my firm it wasn’t difficult, because I set the rules and parameters. But following the rules and guidelines of being in the insurance business (as) a woman in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s had some interesting challenges. There was a dress code (and) I wasn’t allowed in the front door of the Vancouver Club and the Terminal City Club; I had to go in through the back door.

JG: How have the last two and a half years been for you and your industry?

DD: We’re in an industry where most companies did not want to take anything away from their employees during this period. People want to keep their health, dental, and pension plans. We’ve been busy managing our clients (and) their expectations and concerns. We were one of the firms that had the first COVID death registered in B.C. It’s been an interesting time. Just as we were about to start a marketing campaign into the hotel and tourism industry, the pandemic hit. The industries that we work in—which is construction primarily, (as well as) healthcare, community living sector, and professional services—were very stable throughout the pandemic.

JG: I hear consistently that (the pandemic) was about adapting, evolving, and pivoting. A lot of people have shared with me that on this side of the pandemic, two and a half years later, they’re better.

DD: We are absolutely, unequivocally, a better company now than we were before. I’m old school where you get up, get dressed, and go to the office. We have beautiful offices, and I love the chatter of the firm. (In 2020) when Trudeau announced the shutdown, our staff were leaving the office with computer monitors, bags, (and) boxes, loading up their cars (so they could work from home). I am proud to say that we were fully operational within two and a half hours.

JG: Is your company continuing to work from home?

DD: We have a full remote workforce now. Most of our staff (members) are under 40, they’re family people who have children, and they’ve been able to save money during the pandemic, spend more time with their families, and the efficiency of their work is phenomenal. We have a core group of people that go into the office, but the majority of our staff (members), 70 per cent, are fully remote.

JG: It’s interesting that out of this darkness that none of us had experienced before, it made people understand the work-personal (life) balance.

DD: I think back about the applicants over the years I’ve said no to, because they lived in Chilliwack or Kelowna and wanted to work remotely four days a week. Now we have our first employee in Calgary and she’s a superstar.

JG: You’re very involved in the community, raising millions for the Richmond Hospital Foundation, but there’s also something very dear to your heart: the ACT WEST Community Foundation, started by you and your late husband. Could you tell us about it?

DD: The core values of our company are education, partnership, and excellence, so we started this foundation and fully funded it. We educate single mothers for four years of university. We had our first graduate, but unfortunately two dropped out; there are now three women in the program and we’re just about to choose two new candidates to start the program. We’re really proud to be able to watch these women, who are resilient, get educated so that they can break whatever cycle they were in so their children can lead good healthy lives.

JG: You were just in Toronto to receive an award for Women’s Executive Network (WXN). Could you tell us who they are and about the award?

DD: I was nominated for this Top 100 Canada’s Most Powerful Women award in April. They called me in August to let me know that I had won; I was deeply honoured. There are different categories, (and) I won in the category of entrepreneur out of twelve nominated. I met 100 amazing women in Toronto. Kudos to WXN.

JG: What advice would you give people who are asking you how to get ahead?

DD: Find a mentor or someone that you really look up to and ask them for help. I think most people want to see the next generation of young people grow and thrive.

To watch the full video interview, visit richmondsentinel.ca/videos