Bio

Amber Kennelly is the chief human resources officer (CHRO) for William Blair. Amber leads our human resources team globally. She is accountable for people-centric and business-oriented human resources strategy development, programs, and processes across the firm, including our diversity and equity programs. Before joining William Blair, Amber served as CHRO for HUB International, an insurance brokerage company headquartered in Chicago, with more than 15,000 employees and 500 offices. She drove all core human resources strategies, programs, and processes. Previously, Amber delivered impactful strategies and programs at Allstate Insurance Company for 12 years before joining HUB. In her last role at Allstate, she was the vice president of total compensation and an officer of the company. In a previous role with Allstate, Amber served as vice president of human resources for Esurance, an independently operated subsidiary located in San Francisco. She also led the executive compensation, executive development, leadership development, and executive talent acquisition functions for the company. Amber's earlier career included eight years at two leading retained executive search firms, and positions at Deloitte & Touche as an audit professional and Jones Lang LaSalle as an assistant controller. Amber serves on the board of CareerSpring. She holds an M.B.A. from The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University and a Bachelor of Science with honors in accountancy from the University of Illinois. Amber has also earned designations as a CPA and Certified Compensation Professional. She lives in the Chicagoland area with her husband, two sons, and daughter.