Wisconsin 275
Wisconsin 275
BizTimes Media

Terrance Williams

President and CEO
TruStage  |  Madison

Terrance Williams is president and chief executive officer of TruStage, the Madison-based insurance and financial services firm formerly known as CUNA Mutual. With more than 4,200 employees, the company has operations across the U.S. and operates international businesses in Canada and the Caribbean. It reports $5.4 billion in annual revenue. Previously, Williams was president of protection products and services for Allstate. Earlier in his career, he spent more than 20 years at Nationwide.

Education: Bachelor’s, University of South Carolina

What would you do if you could choose another career: “You may not believe it, but I knew from a very young age that I wanted to build a career in this profession. My aunt, who was one of the first women of color to become an officer at a major insurance company, inspired me as a teenager to explore insurance as a career and help lead the charge toward making a brighter financial future accessible to everyone.”

Favorite Wisconsin destination: “I am a big motorsports aficionado. Road America, one of the fastest permanent road racing tracks in Wisconsin, is a place I have actually been to a couple of times before joining TruStage.”

Advice for first-time leaders: “Leadership is about followership. I am a huge proponent of getting good people together and then getting out of their way.”

If you could time travel: “My dad was born in 1938. At the time when he finished high school, Black men in the South were not allowed to attend the university that I went to (University of South Carolina). I would like to go back and meet that young 18- or 19-year-old Terry Williams, learn what he was like and better understand the experiences that shaped the man he is today.”