GUELPH, ON, April 27, 2018 /CNW/ - Carol Poulsen, executive vice-president and chief information officer (CIO) of The Co-operators has been named one of the 10^th annual Global Breakaway Leadership Award winners as part of Gartner Evanta's Global CIO Executive Summit.

The award recognizes five CIOs who are revolutionizing their organizations' competitive position in the marketplace through visionary leadership and business transformation. The CIO leadership award program is built on peer recognition, with CIOs able to vote for their peers in real time at the event.

"Carol is a business leader who has exemplified our purpose to provide financial security for Canadians and Canadian communities while building an industry-leading technology capability at The Co-operators," said Rob Wesseling, president and CEO of The Co-operators. "Carol's contributions at our most senior management table go far beyond the realm of technology and have substantially influenced our top-level strategies. She has been a champion of diversity and sustainability within our organization. During her tenure she has built a highly engaged high-performance team while substantially maturing our development processes, security infrastructure and innovation capabilities."

Carol joined The Co-operators as CIO in 2011. In this capacity, she oversees information technology planning and implementation, and works with the CEO and her peers on the senior leadership team on business strategy and execution for the organization. Her diverse background includes previous experience in insurance and banking, technology and business, as well as vendor experience including IT delivery, consulting, large account management and sales.

About The Co-operators:
The Co-operators Group Limited is a Canadian co-operative with more than $41 billion in assets under administration. Through its group of companies it offers home, auto, life, group, travel, commercial and farm insurance, as well as investment products. The Co-operators is well known for its community involvement and its commitment to sustainability. The Co-operators is listed among the Best Employers in Canada by Aon Hewitt and Corporate Knights' Best 50 Corporate Citizens in Canada. For more information, visit www.cooperators.ca.

SOURCE The Co-operators