2022 Women to Watch Awards Americas EMEA
Katey Walker Americas property & casualty sales and practice leader
Willis Towers Watson PLC
Bloomington, Minnesota
The need for a job landed Katey Walker at a startup insurance company, where she began doing actuarial work.
“I went to business school. Someone had suggested being an actuary at that time, but the description was not great — it was all about calculating numbers,” Ms. Walker said. Some years later, “I began work at a startup insurance company and took on the role of the actuary, then started studying for my exams.”
The reality, she found, was that being an actuary gave her a way to help people.
“Insurance is about indemnifying people, giving them safety and comfort and assurance,” she said. “It’s fascinating the way insurance interacts with the world.”
Joining WTW in 2018, she said, “I have the pleasure of working for a large consultancy firm with a focus on how to change the industry — how to serve customers and transform how we think about the environment these days.”
What’s more, working with a company that “looks beyond the math and looks to create products and help customers solve problems is an enjoyable way to spend your day,” she said.
Ms. Walker also is intent on mentoring and helping women advance in the field. “My goal has been to support the women I work with,” she said. “Part of that is showing up, trying to be a good role model and being authentic.”
Wesley Griffiths, assistant vice president, actuarial & analytics, at Travelers Cos. Inc., knows firsthand how she strives to help people succeed in the industry.
“Katey and I have been volunteering together for about 10 years for the Casualty Actuarial Society,” he said. “She enjoys giving back to the profession and helping others to find their path both in the CAS and in their career as an actuary.”
Mr. Griffiths noted Ms. Walker serves on the organization’s board of directors and “is helping to paint a picture of where the profession is headed and the role that actuaries will have in the future, given the availability of data and the advancements in technology.”
