A Good Catch In Marlborough

It might seem like an oxymoron: Central Massachusetts is both a prosperous and difficult climate for businesses.

But even though costs might be higher here, it’s well worth it, according to Blue Cod Technologies CEO Jeff Brown.

“Massachusetts is well-known for having a great caliber of employees,” he said. “The talent is fantastic.”

And with the Marlborough-based company more than doubling its growth over the past three years, local workers have clearly been a strength.

Preponderance Of Personnel

Since 2006, the software, outsourcing and consulting company has experienced an expansion rate of 133 percent; in its eight years in existence, meanwhile, it’s grown from two workers to 175 — and 100 of those were brought on just last year.

To make room, the company added a roughly 20,000-square-foot building to its Marlborough campus this year, as well as a third location in Tampa, Fla. — situated close to one of its largest accounts — staffed with roughly a half-dozen employees.

Even in the wake of this significant growth, however, Blue Cod has maintained a grounded, small-company mindset, according to customers.

David Gerth, CFO of Blue Cod customer ARI Insurance Cos. in New Jersey, admitted that he had initially been wary of how such success would impact Blue Cod. But he’s been pleased that they’ve maintained their integrity, he said. “That’s not an easy thing to do.”

Overall, he described the company as honorable, trustworthy, intelligent, forward-thinking and consistent. Also, they have good communication skills in all situations. “When they say they’re going to do something, they do it,” he said. “And if they’re going to miss a deadline, they’ll let you know.”

Six-year customer Neal Menefee lavished similar praise. “They typically under-commit and over-deliver,” said the CEO of Virginia-based Rockingham Group. Their product is very technically proficient, their support people are “always responsive,” pragmatic and astute, he said.

He added that some vendors are only able to maintain quality over a short period of time — but Blue Cod has been consistent in the long-term. “They have performed exceptionally well in a time when we’ve seen other companies falter,” he said. “Our lives would be a bit more challenging if we didn’t have a vendor like them to deal with.”

That is precisely the company’s goal: To cultivate long-term contracts and help clients grow. “Because the more they grow,” said Brown, “The more we grow.”

Essentially, the firm provides all-you-can-eat support services to its insurance company clients. That includes the development of processing and customer service software; consultations with companies to assist with workflow and establish automation programs; and general outsourcing of insurance companies’ day-to-day operations, such as web site hosting, customer service and billing.

Eighty-five percent of the company’s expansion year-over-year is from a regular cache of 40 clients across the United States — a strategy that allows Blue Cod to grow steadily and carefully. “We’re not signing up a bunch of new customers all the time,” he said. “When you think about it, it’s a pretty simple model.”

You could say that Blue Cod was founded on such simplicity. The company launched without the support of venture capital — or what Brown calls “the old-fashioned way.” “We’ve built the company one stick at a time since then,” he said.

As for its unusual name? It reflects pride in the Bay State: The Atlantic Cod has fueled the maritime industry in Massachusetts for centuries. Brown called it a market that has prospered with hard work, innovation, dedication and optimism. These same attributes are inherent in Blue Cod.

Still, the difficult economic times ahead may test those qualities. Brown expects that clients will experience slowed growth, which will in turn affect Blue Cod. To counter slowdowns, the company will aggressively add new clients and taper growth expectations.

That said, many of the company’s customers are “innovative” insurance providers that take chances in markets that have been evacuated by other carriers (such as coastal and hurricane-ridden areas). Most of them are also regional companies that deeply understand their markets and can thus maintain strong footholds in difficult times.

Therefore, “It could be a time of accelerated growth for us, dependent on the strategies of our clients,” said Brown.

Taryn Plumb is a freelance writer based in Worcester.