Kelly® Announces Appointment of New General Counsel

Kelly, a global leader in providing workforce solutions, today announced the appointment of Vanessa Williams as Senior Vice President and General Counsel. In this position, Vanessa has responsibility for leading the strategic direction of Kelly’s legal and corporate security organizations which includes managing regulatory and legal compliance for the company, directing Kelly’s strategic legal initiatives and providing senior management with actionable counsel regarding company objectives. She will also oversee Kelly’s global in-house legal team and be responsible for managing outside counsel relationships. Vanessa reports directly to President and Chief Executive Officer Peter Quigley.

With more than 24 years of senior legal experience behind her, Vanessa has represented companies in the data science and information industries. Most recently, she served as a Senior Vice President in Legal, Risk and Compliance at IHS Markit, a renowned, London-based global information provider. Prior to joining its acquisition by IHS, she spent seven years at R.L. Polk. Her legal background includes experience with commercial transactions, litigation management, data privacy, international law, and contract management. Vanessa began her law career at Plunkett & Cooney, PC in Detroit where she litigated employment law, insurance contract and other general liability actions. She earned her Juris Doctorate degree from William & Mary Law School in Virginia and holds a Master of Business Administration from Wayne State University in Detroit.

“Vanessa has a strong background and proven success in providing counsel to high-growth private as well as public technology companies that will be instrumental as Kelly continues to execute on its specialty growth strategy,” Quigley said. “She will be a valued member of Kelly’s leadership team.”

Vanessa is a fellow of the American Bar Foundation and the State Bar of Michigan Foundation. She is former chair of the State Bar of Michigan Representative Assembly and past editor-in-chief of “The Brief” Magazine of the Tort Insurance and Trial Practice Section of the American Bar Association (ABA). She is also past president of the Association of Defense Trial Counsel. In 2013, Crain’s Detroit Business presented Vanessa its General and In-house Counsel Award for large private companies.

About Kelly®Kelly connects talented people to companies in need of their skills in areas including Science, Engineering, Education, Office, Contact Center, Light Industrial, and more. We’re always thinking about what’s next in the evolving world of work, and we help people ditch the script on old ways of thinking and embrace the value of all workstyles in the workplace. We directly employ nearly 440,000 people around the world, and we connect thousands more with work through our global network of talent suppliers and partners in our outsourcing and consulting practice. Visit kellyservices.com and let us help with what’s next for you.