Her Story
About Kerry
I started my career in the insurance industry 30 years ago on the business side as an underwriter for insurance companies, where I spent 13 years building a great foundation for my career. Back in the day, everything was manually processed and rated for the insurance business, and as technology started to lead the path in our industry, I took a leap of faith and moved over to the solution provider side. I've spent the last 25 years leading sales teams and go-to-market strategies around enterprise technology, including policy, billing, claims, data, and analytics for the casualty industry. My journey has led me to the InsurTech space, where I founded GTM Collective to help founders and growth companies who have great ideas bring them to the marketplace. Many of these founders don't have insurance industry knowledge or sales and go-to-market experience, so I help them align with market needs and differentiate themselves from others offering similar solutions. My passion is for the people and the technology of this industry, and what I hope to accomplish is bringing solutions that help this industry transition to better servicing their customers. In the end, their customer is looking for a promise to be fulfilled when a claim actually occurs, and the new technology and innovation is really helping these companies get to better customer service and fulfill that promise much quicker than we have been able to in the past, which builds more trust and visibility across our industry.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Kerry
01What do you attribute your success to?
I think of myself as a service leader, and what I'm most proud of is really bringing solutions and solving very complex problems for this industry in a collective manner with the solution providers that have helped advance these carriers' strategies in the marketplace. Second to that, I think my service back to other women leaders in this industry and the next generation is key to my success. I mentor a lot of young professionals to not only stay in insurance, but to see that they have a career path in this industry through women's initiatives and RISE Professionals. When I started 30 years ago, there were no females in my industry, in my sales roles of technology, so there were no mentors. Now there are women everywhere, and we hold ourselves responsible for bringing that next generation forward. That's the only way we'll get the change we're all looking for. I could not do what I do without the community around me, both at home and professionally.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would tell them to reach out to others in the industry with experience and find a mentor early on. That mentor or other mentors will then become sponsors for them and help them throughout their career, to whatever path they decide on. So it really is tapping into the expertise of others in this industry, and don't be shy. Be curious as to what lessons they've learned, what would they tell their younger self. When I started 30 years ago, there were no females in my sales roles of technology, so there were no mentors. Now there are women everywhere that hold ourselves responsible for bringing that next generation forward. That's the only way we'll get the change we're all looking for.
03What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Number one is faith and family. I speak of family as my birth family and my own family, but also the family of the insurance industry, so that community. And integrity is also core to who I am. Faith is a big part of our lives, so we ground ourselves, our marriage - God is center in our marriage and then our lives, as we lead our children, as we lead in our work. It is the foundation of who we are.
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