Cali Wood is Head of Data and AI Strategy and Transformation at AXA UK and Ireland, where she leads the enterprise-wide strategy, culture and capability agenda for data and artificial intelligence. With more than a decade of experience advising senior leaders, she is recognised for translating ambitious data strategies into tangible business value while embedding the cultural change required to sustain them.
Promoted into a newly created transversal role, Cali is responsible for refreshing AXA UK&I’s four-year AI strategy and roadmap, aligning business units and support functions around a shared vision for an AI-enabled organisation. She oversees the Chief Data and Analytics Officer investment portfolio and ensures that data and AI initiatives are directly linked to measurable commercial outcomes.
A central pillar of her work is capability building. Cali launched the UK&I Data and AI Academy to accelerate AI literacy and technical expertise at scale, upskilling more than half of colleagues and a significant majority of senior leaders. Under her leadership, over half of the organisation now actively uses GenAI solutions, supported by a responsible AI framework designed to ensure ethical and sustainable deployment. She also introduced an industry-leading GenAI apprenticeship programme and sponsors diversity and inclusion initiatives across data teams.
Previously, Cali led AXA’s data strategy, operating model redesign and the creation of a Data and AI Innovation Lab, increasing delivery capacity and pace. Her career began in digital performance and customer experience roles, grounding her strategic leadership in practical execution and measurable impact.