Alexis Crowell is the vice president and general manager of Intel’s Sales, Marketing, and Communications Group (SMG) in Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ). Read on as we uncover an extraordinary professional journey, which saw Alexis leading Finance and Operations in Argentina, spearheading integral programs with the executive leadership team, serving as a Chief of Staff in the U.S., opening software research and development centers in Europe, heading a technical sales team in Singapore and delving into the realm of machine learning and artificial intelligence where she continues to thrive today.
“Yes, sure. Let’s give it a shot!” Alexis Crowell has followed this motto throughout her career, which she believes has propelled her growth trajectory. During her internship days in 2004, Alexis admitted that she may not have fully comprehended the breadth of influence Intel had in the industry. She was thoroughly intrigued by the company’s honesty, transparency, and willingness to take risks on its employees. This continues to reflect in Intel’s culture even today and has kept her invested in building her career with Intel.
Shaping a legacy through different roles and across global frontiers
A year after her initial days in Finance, Alexis’ trajectory took a remarkable turn when she flew across the world to Argentina, where she ran finance and operations. She was also responsible for site development and collaborated with government dignitaries to set up hiring programs at local universities. Alexis then steered towards running an internal program, directly collaborating with executive leadership for product launches. This paved the path for her next role as Chief of Staff to the Senior Vice President responsible for Global Software and Services businesses. “That was a role I had set as a goal for 5-7 years later in my career. In my opinion, I was too young, too naïve and not ready. Thankfully, my executive had faith in me; she took a risk, and I said, ‘Ok, sure, let’s give it a shot.’ Without question, that was the hardest job of my career. I learned more about our industry, company, and how to lead during those 3.5 years than any training program could have ever taught me. I will forever be grateful for that.”
This role became the conduit through which Alexis established networks that were instrumental in discovering her potential. One of the leaders recognized her capabilities and encouraged Alexis to change her trajectory yet again. She transitioned into the realm of engineering management, which led her to assume leadership of the Cloud software team, specializing in Kubernetes, long before it became a part of the common vocabulary. Under the mentorship of her senior, she successfully led the team and ventured into machine learning. She has been a part of multiple things, from contributing to the formation of Intel’s practices, bringing products to market, and supporting customers and partners to think through their own machine-learning strategies.
As she puts it, “My career has been an amazing, winding road that I am forever grateful for. I’ve seen the world, worked with the smartest people on the planet, and continue to help make the world a better place through technology.”
Championing Intel’s ascent in the APJ region, accelerated by AI
Fueled by her passion for AI and ML, Alexis is excited to advance APJ nations into the vanguard of technological excellence in her current role. She oversees a team dedicated to increasing the accessibility of incredible solutions for Intel’s partners and customers in the Asia Pacific region.
“Intel has a little-known secret; we have a very large group of software engineers whose sole focus is to help make software and applications work the very best on Intel products. They do this through open-source contributions, working with software companies around the globe to optimize their software, and helping to take advantage of the latest technology within the chips we create. We also have a team of people that have taken the hardware and the software and built amazing solutions that solve real-world problems for many companies.”
About Intel’s market potential in the APJ region, Alexis believes, “The Asia Pacific region is one of the most influential regions in the world right now because we are adopting technology and digitization so rapidly. Because we are catching up to more mature markets, we can leapfrog some of the solutions that other countries and regions had to adopt first. This gives our region an opportunity to experiment with automation, machine learning, and any other innovation our industry can imagine.”
Asked about how Intel is accelerating AI adoption in the APJ region, Alexis confirms, “In a number of ways. Absolutely on the technology side—our strategy is to ensure everyone has access to AI capabilities within their hardware, and we have put special features and instructions into our chips to ensure they can handle the complex math required to deliver on the promise of machine learning. We also spend a lot of time on software optimizing AI frameworks like TensorFlow and PyTorch, which makes it easier for data scientists to leverage the new hardware features. We partner with customers to help optimize their own AI work too—many companies in our region have their own in-house developers, so we work with them to help make their systems work as well as possible.”
Finding balance in career and community and paying it forward
With evident pride, Alexis discusses Intel employees’ unwavering dedication to giving back to the community through volunteer hours and donations. “Our employees are passionate about their communities and donate their time and expertise, which Intel then supports through our foundation. In all my years here, I have had the honor of working with countries across the world, and I can say with certainty that Intel is one of the best when it comes to supporting the communities in which we live and operate and ensuring we are constantly looking to the future so we make decisions today that make this world a better place for everyone. I’m really proud of that!”
An example is Intel’s “AI for Youth” program, which is helping teenagers learn how to utilize machine learning and artificial intelligence to solve problems like early cancer detection. “I had the opportunity to meet some of these students late last year and am absolutely in awe of what they are doing—at 14 to 17 years of age!” Alexis has been fortunate to have amazing mentors and sponsors throughout her career and is dedicated to “paying it forward” to advance the next generation of leadership.
When she is not busy disrupting the tech game, Alexis enjoys a round of golf or a bike ride with her family of 6, including the furry companions: a pet bunny and a dog. Anchored in its commitment to enriching employees’ work-life balance, Intel offers many benefits. Leveraging on one of the coveted benefits of Intel, Alexis and her family plan to enjoy their next chapter—a sabbatical that promises an uninterrupted break. She is excited for her kids to experience the wonders of Australia firsthand, from petting a koala to watching kangaroos roaming free in the wild.
Two decades of Intel excellence, two values of commitment
With a remarkable journey, Alexis is an inspiration for women in tech. When asked about the enduring force behind the commitment that led her from an intern to a tech leader today, she says, “Two things: we build technology that makes people’s lives better, and the management is really transparent and open. At Intel, employees are the MOST important asset—that is what has kept me at Intel for nearly two decades as I look forward to my next.”
As Alexis and her team lead the charge in accelerating technology advancement across APJ countries, the region invites talented individuals to help shape strategic plans and drive success at Intel. To learn more about career opportunities and life at Intel, click here.