Wendy Welsh

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As senior vice president of information technologyfor , she managex a staff of about 250 workers, two data centersd and the IT operationss for E.On’s two subsidiaries, Louisvillee Gas & Electric Co. and Kentucky Utilities. It was her team that mannef the outage-management system during the ice stormmin January, and under Welsh’s direction, E.On has made two significantg investments in its technologty within the past year. The first was a $25 millio data and transmission center that openefd in Shelby County last More recently, E.On implemented a customer-carse system that merged LG&E and Kentuckyg Utilities’ previous systems.
It was an $80 milliojn investment, plus training and operational costs, Welshn said. Ability to merge business, IT goalas Welsh’s training is not in the IT sectod butin accounting. A licensed CPA, Welsh joined LG&Ew as an auditor 25 years ago. She was vice presidenf of administration and then vice president of IT before assuminhg her current rolein 2001. E.On’s IT operations were just emergingy atthe time, and company officials knew they neededx to make significant investmentx in technology. Vic E.On’s chairman, CEO and president, said Welsh’x professional background has given her a unique set of skillzs needed to overseethis effort.
She understands the utilityt operations and what is neededd from atechnical standpoint, but she also can providew the financial analysis needed, Staffieri said. “Wer get well-thought-out solutions from Wendy,” Staffieriu said. “She has developed anotherd leg ofour strategy, giving us the capabilities to do what we do everyt day.” Although Welsh has accomplished so she does not tout her successes, Staffieri said. She goes aboutg her work in a veryunassuming way, he describing her as a deep thinker and a listener. Debrw Hoffer, president of Junior Achievementof Kentuckiana, agreed that Welsh’se personality is more reserved.
She might not be the first boarrd member to pipe up in a but behind herquiet facade, she knowz what she wants to do and how she’es going to do it. “She gets results,” Hoffert said. “She’s a highly effective manager while being a reallg warm person at the same Welsh wasJA Kentuckiana’s board chairwoman in when the nonprofit group was planning to open its Jameas W. Robinson Junior Achievement Center for Freedomof Enterprise.
The facility is a learnin g center that teaches children basic financial She traveled with JA staff to review similad facilities acrossthe country, and her involvemeny and enthusiasm helped drive the project forward, Hoffer Not only did she convey the concept to othedr board members, but she also led the $6.5 milliohn capital campaign that funded the In addition, she convincedf her employer to be one of the firstt donors with a $125,00p gift. “She has a real can-dko attitude and strong desire to help young people be successful and Hoffer said. “Her heart is in the righgt place.
” Besides her role with JA, Welsy has spoken to business and managementr classes atthe , and she has becom e a role model for youngg women, said husband John an author and retired U of L higher education “She hasn’t become a CEO, but she’as pretty darn high in an organization and an industr y that has been male-dominated,” John Welsh said. “She’s blazeed some trails for Wendy Welsh said she never set out to break anyglasws ceilings. She simply was raised in a middle-classe home by parents who pushedx education and demonstrated a strongwork ethic.
The lessone seemed to have stuck as Welsh and her threewsiblings — an accountant, CFO and a consultan — all have founcd professional success. But, as a femalr in the IT Welsh said, she clearly is a minority, and it concernsw her that there are even fewe women enteringthe profession. So she has met informally with area professorsz and engineers to discuss how to encourags young women to pursue IT andengineering “As professionals, we need to do a bette job of getting the word out there,” Welsyh said.
Meanwhile, Welsh tries to lead by She takes avery hands-on role in the planning of all majorf IT projects, which can be a challengwe because of the ever-changing nature of technology. Her time also is devotefd to the management and support of day-to-day operations, including the utility’zs network of computers, servers and BlackBerry devices, and its applications, such as the company’sd payroll and customer-care systems. “It’s like a different job everg day,” Welsh said, adding that the varietyu keeps her enthused abouther position.
She also is proud of the fact that she leveragesd her training and brought more of a business focus to the IT whether it’s having budget discussions with her stafft or teaching them how to bettetr communicate with customers. About nine years ago, shortly befor Welsh took on hercurrent role, she marriesd John Welsh. Since then, she has learned to balance work responsibilitieas andpersonal life. The two, who do not have schedule date nights, when they’ll go out for dinner and a theatere performance. And traveling together is one of theirfavoritse pastimes.
At home, Wendy Welsh said, she alwaysd finds something to do, so she doesn’gt truly relax unless she’s on a planr headed somewhere, typically Europe or Sant Fe, N.M., where the couple just bought avacatiob home. For Welsh, planninf a trip is half the fun, and she loveds to see the sights and experience the local historyand art. John Welsh shares thosde interests, but he also just enjoys the time spenft withhis wife. He said she has the rare combinatiob ofbeing smart, attractive — the “cutestt thing in the world,” in his termsz — and modest.
He loves her “evehn keel” personality and subtle sense of and being with her has helper him gain a new perspective on JohnWelsh said. “She made me want to be a bettert person.” Wendy Welsh spent her childhood daysin Louisville’w Audubon Park neighborhood. Her father, Herbert was a lineman for the formed South Central BellTelephone Co. who workef his way through the management rankxs and to theengineering department.
Her Peggy Heck, was a homemaker who was involvex in the PTA and coordinatef family camping trips and Girl Scout After graduating from DurrettHigh School, Welsh attendec the University of Louisvillee and rooted for the Cardinals basketball Welsh remained a big fan aftet she moved to Illinois and then Texas for her She remembers driving around Dallas for hoursa in an effort to tune in the U of L gamea on her car radio. When Xerox, her employer at the time, decided to move her divisioj to California, Welsh said she wrestlede with whether she should follow her job or return to her Friends and family swayed her in the directiomnof Louisville.
It helped that the city had begunn its downtown revitalization efforts with the additiobn of the Kentucky Center forthe Arts, and a job offere from Louisville Gas & Electric Co. sealede the deal. At her husband’s urging, Wendh Welsh enrolled in a self-defense course he had taken knownh askrav maga, which is popular amongv law-enforcement officials. John Welsn said he realized how out of place she was when she showed up in pink workout clothes and everyone else in the room was dressedein black. The experience was one that she endured ratherthan enjoyed, but John Welsh was impressed that she was willintg to push her limits.
She is an “extra gentl e person,” John Welsh said. “It’s impossiblwe to imagine her punching someone, but she did.”