This is a profile image of Kweilin Ellingrud

Kweilin Ellingrud

McKinsey Global Institute Director and Senior PartnerMineápolis

Leads insights and discussions on future of work, gender equality, racial equity, and productivity. Serves clients across strategy and operational transformations in financial services and beyond

Kweilin is a director of the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI). She has led McKinsey's life insurance work in North America and is a member of the North American Operations leadership team. She has broad experience redesigning operating models to increase operational efficiency and effectiveness through process redesign, digital, and analytics.

At MGI, Kweilin has led and is most active on topics such as gender equality (Power of Parity), racial equity, generative AI, the future of work, and global competitiveness. She is a frequent speaker at global conferences and also works directly with global philanthropies, multilateral organizations, and companies on how to move towards gender and racial equality.

Kweilin is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on the Board of the Greater Twin Cities United Way. She previously worked full-time for two years at a Boston nonprofit helping women entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses through microfinance.

Growing up, Kweilin spent a number of years in China, Ecuador, France, and Japan, living with local families and learning the local languages.

Published work

Are women’s prime working years in peril?,” McKinsey & Company, March 2024

"Closing the women’s health gap: A $1 trillion opportunity to improve lives and economies," McKinsey Health Institute, January 2024

Asia on the cusp of a new era,” McKinsey Global Institute, September 2023

Generative AI: How will it affect future jobs and workflows?,” McKinsey Global Institute, September 2023

From poverty to empowerment: Raising the bar for sustainable and inclusive growth,” McKinsey Global Institute, August 2023

Generative AI and the future of work in America, McKinsey Global Institute, July 2023

Rekindling US productivity for a new era,” McKinsey Global Institute, February 2023

The China imperative for multinational companies,” McKinsey Global Institute, January 2023

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Lighthouses 2023,” McKinsey & Company, January 2023

Inflation-weary Americans are increasingly pessimistic about the economy,” McKinsey & Company, December 2022

How does Gen Z see its place in the working world? With trepidation,” McKinsey & Company, October 2022

The overlooked contributions and hidden challenges of Asian Americans,” McKinsey & Company, October 2022

Empowering economic growth in the Latino community,” McKinsey & Company, September 2022

Asian American workers: Diverse outcomes and hidden challenges,” McKinsey & Company, September 2022

Freelance, side hustles, and gigs: Many more Americans have become independent workers,” McKinsey & Company, August 2022

The strong job market isn’t benefiting all Americans,” McKinsey & Company, August 2022

Americans are embracing flexible work—and they want more of it,” McKinsey & Company, June 2022

Addressing unequal opportunity in an American city,” McKinsey & Company, May 2022

For many Americans, economic opportunity seems increasingly out of reach,” McKinsey & Company, May 2022

Meeting the challenge of moms’ ‘double double shift’ at home and work,” McKinsey & Company, May 2022

Closing the racial wealth gap by investing in Black consumers,” McKinsey & Company, April 2022

Why the post-COVID-19 economic recovery can’t be about ‘growth at all costs’,” McKinsey & Company, April 2022

Accelerating diversity in insurance,” McKinsey & Company, March 2022

Five steps to improve innovation in the insurance industry,” McKinsey & Company, March 2022

Creating value, finding focus: Global Insurance Report 2022,” McKinsey & Company, February 2022

America 2022 in charts: An economic opportunity snapshot,” McKinsey & Company, December 2021

Toward an equitable economic recovery in Minneapolis–St. Paul,” McKinsey & Company, November 2021

Closing the gender and race gaps in North American financial services,” McKinsey & Company, October 2021

What we lose when we lose women in the workforce,” McKinsey & Company, May 2021

Unequal America: Ten insights on the state of economic opportunity,” McKinsey & Company, May 2021

The productivity imperative for US life and annuities carriers,” McKinsey & Company, March 2021

The future of work after COVID-19,” McKinsey Global Institute, February 2021

The future of life insurance: Reimagining the industry for the decade ahead,” McKinsey & Company, September 2020

Ten things to know about gender equality,” McKinsey Global Institute, September 2020

Reimagining supply chain resilience,” Forbes, August 2020

Building the vital skills for the future of work in operations,” McKinsey & Company, August 2020

Which small businesses are most vulnerable to COVID-19—and when,” McKinsey & Company, June 2020

COVID-19 and jobs: Monitoring the US impact on people and places,” McKinsey Global Institute, April 2020

Lives and livelihoods: Assessing the near-term impact of COVID-19 on US workers,” McKinsey & Company, April 2020

The future of women at work: Transitions in the age of automation,” McKinsey Global Institute, June 2019

Life insurance product innovation: What insurers can learn from leading tech and consumer companies,” McKinsey & Company, January 2019

Closing the tech gender gap through philanthropy and corporate social responsibility,” McKinsey & Company, September 2018

The power of parity: Advancing women’s equality in Asia Pacific,” McKinsey Global Institute, April 2018

Partnering for parity: Strengthening collaborations for gender equality,” McKinsey & Company, October 2017

Education

Harvard University
MBA; BA, economics and political science