Guyana-born Entrepreneur Gloria Rajkumar is offering advice to young immigrants to make the most of their time, education and Canadian opportunities

SIMAC Canada founder Gloria Rajkumar on serendity and the value of leadership in newcomer communities

BY ALISON PALKHIVALA| PHOTOGRAPHY BY DANIEL EHRENWORTH

how many people can say their big break came as a result of a car accident? It’s this turning lemons- into-lemonade attitude that has made it possible for Gloria Rajkumar to rise from humble beginnings to successful entrepreneurship.

Gloria’s history reads like a classic rags-to-riches tale – minus the Prince Charming rescue. She was born and raised in Guyana, the seventh of eight children in a family of Indian descent. Never wealthy, their financial situation was further strained by the death of her father when Gloria was only eight years old. Putting food on the table was a struggle. “My goal was to go to university and maybe become a nurse, but funds were not available for me to reach that goal,” she says.

Rajkumar was on a path toward an early marriage when she decided to change her story by taking off for Canada, turning a three-week visit into a permanent move. She was only 19, but she landed a job in telemarketing and picked up part-time work where she could. In 1984, she landed her first full-time job at an insurance company, earning a salary of $12,500. Insurance interested her, and she was a natural salesperson. Over nearly two decades, she climbed her way up from clerical work to customer service, then to sales and finally underwriting. On the way, she earned her broker and insurance agent licenses.

But the real learning opportunity came in the form of a car accident requiring her to make her own injury claim. “The process of going through assessments for treatment for my injuries was long, tedious and complicated,” Rajkumar explains “The insurance company waited 16 weeks for a medical report to be able to approve my benefits.” Shocked by the delay, Rajkumar did some poking around and discovered that this was the norm. While physicians completed their reports on time, the companies hired to produce these reports sometimes sat on them for weeks, even months. “I thought there’s got to be a better way to do this.” Then she proved it.

Rajkumar founded SIMAC Canada in 2001 with $26,000 in savings and a niece who was willing to work for a meal, if necessary. The company provides timely, independent medical assessments for the insurance industry. “I always had an entrepreneurial spirit,” she says. “And this was my opportunity.” Today, SIMAC earns about $12 million annually and placed 46th in the 23rd annual TOP 200 ranking of Canada’s Fastest-Growing Companies by PROFIT Magazine. And it was the only Canadian business to earn a ranking in the Women Presidents’ Organization’s 50 Fastest Growing Women-Owned Businesses.

Her road to success was bumpy. “The problem for me was lack of branding,” she says. “No one knew who I was. No one understood my background because when I worked in the insurance industry. I didn’t have high profile jobs. Also, as a visible minority there was a challenge there for me. I knew the challenge existed, but I didn’t let that stop me from moving toward my target. I made the cold calls, asking for the opportunity to come in and make a presentation. Some of them gave me an opportunity, some of them didn’t.”

Once she got her foot in the door, word-of-mouth spread among insurance companies that SIMAC could provide what some of its competitors couldn’t – high quality, timely medical assessment reports combined with friendly and professional customer service. “I set the bar very high,” says Rajkumar. “And my goal is to surpass that bar.”

Her success has not gone unnoticed. She is a 2011 RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneur Award recipient in the RBC Momentum Award category. She has also won the 2010 Ontario Business Achievement Award from the Ontario Chamber of Commerce and the 2010 Guyana Award for Business Excellence. She hopes to leverage this attention into a public-private partnership with the Ontario government to help improve efficiencies in the healthcare sector. “I want to apply the recognition that I’ve received so far toward really solving what I believe is a huge problem for Canada. Canada is my home. Although I was born and raised in Guyana, I feel more Canadian than Guyanese because Canada has done so much for me. It’s such a land of opportunity.”

Recognize and value the freedom and opportunities that living in Canada offers. There are always options. It’s what you choose to do with your time, your education and the opportunities that are presented to you that is important.

Giving back, both at home and abroad, is something Rajkumar values and has become an important focus for her. SIMAC has contributed to educational scholarships for the children and families of our fallen soldiers, supported the Women in Insurance Cancer Crusade (WICC), sponsored the Starlight Children’s Foundation Insurance Gala, and helped support the rebuilding of earthquake-ravaged Haiti.

Rajkumar’s message to young immigrants is to recognize and value the freedom and opportunities that living in Canada offers. “I cannot believe someone can’t find something to do,” she says. “What about going into a Fortune 500 company and volunteering your time to let someone see what you’re capable of doing? There are always options. It’s what you choose to do with your time, your education and the opportunities that are presented to you that is important.”

She also recommends integrating with mainstream culture. “Immigrants tend to gravitate toward their own community instead of integrating into the Canadian culture. I chose to integrate versus gravitate,” she says. “You come here [and] you’re being judged by some people. Unfortunately, that’s normal human behaviour. People’s perceptions mean a lot. You have to go out there and change a mindset. When you go into a room, you’re already being perceived as someone great, someone not so important, or someone who doesn’t know anything. You need to be able to speak intelligently and leave people with the impression that they were glad they let you in.”

Rajkumar plans to mentor young immigrants after her retirement. “It’s embarrassing when I see immigrants come here and abuse or waste the opportunities and freedoms they’re presented with,” she says. “Every immigrant community should have leaders who try to make [it] be the best community.” And Rajkumar is working hard to achieve just that.