Energized by Purpose
InLife’s Chief Technology Officer Gwen D. Kelley is an accountant by profession who found her calling in the male-dominated IT field. She entered the work force during the time of the Y2K scare when a lot of IT career opportunities opened even for those without an IT background.
Gwen started her career at a financial software company, and eventually handled IT support for financial processes in the financial services industry. She joined InLife in 2013 as Project Manager supporting financial processes and moved up the corporate ladder to head the Business Process Management Division and then the Business Transformation Division.
In 2020, Gwen was appointed Chief Technology Officer and IT Division Head. This was at the height of the pandemic. During the lockdown, she and her team had to double down on digital transformation initiatives and online platforms to enable employees to work remotely, financial advisors to continue online selling of insurance products, and policyholders to complete their service transactions. InLife was recognized for innovations created during this challenging time, and Gwen was hailed as one of top technology leaders in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong in the 2021 CIO75 ASEAN recognition program.
“I lead a team of IT professionals (engineers, project managers, solutions architects, and analysts) who are responsible for providing secure, stable, efficient, scalable, and resilient IT solutions and platforms that support the company’s business strategies. Our team works closely with different InLife stakeholders to understand their requirements, offer alternative digital solutions, manage the change that comes with implementing new tools and processes, and drive innovative ways of working,” she said.
At InLife, technology stands front and center to strengthen the company’s business operations and drive customer centricity. To put this into action, Gwen explained that the IT team follows an agile mindset, IT standards, and IT Governance through collaboration with Information Security, Risk, Audit, Compliance and Finance; and actively engages consultants to bring in new perspectives. She added that each IT role follows a career path embedded with the prescribed trainings and certifications.
“At InLife, I found purpose in what I do and the business we deliver. Life insurance is a need and the benefits it provides help not just an individual, their family, but also the economy of the country. Technology is a key enabler in the business, and this makes working in InLife more exciting and more fulfilling,” Gwen said.
While admitting that women remain under-represented in technical fields, Gwen said she personally advocates for more women in the IT profession. She noted that women bring diverse perspectives that can lead to more innovative solutions and better problem-solving approaches; and empathy to foster positive relationships and teamwork. She added that a woman’s keen attention to detail can be advantageous in IT roles that require precision and accuracy, integrations of various tasks, and management of issues and risks.
Like Gwen, InLife advocates workforce diversity which has been proven to lead to inclusive growth, and collaborative enterprise. As of end-2023, 61% of InLife’s 706 employees are women. Additionally, 49% of InLife’s 92 leaders (ranked assistant vice president and up) are women.
