Cultural Relevance Is Authenticity in Action with Koley Corte

What does it take for a 150+ year-old global brand to stay culturally relevant in an AI-
driven world without losing its authenticity?

In this episode of Cultural Fluency Makers, Koley Corte, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, MetLife Investment Management and Retirement Income Solutions at MetLife, shares how authenticity, curiosity, and deep customer understanding continue to drive meaningful growth in an increasingly complex landscape. A marketing and growth leader shaping the future of financial services, Koley brings strategic depth across investments, retirement, insurance, data, and digital transformation, along with a reputation for building trust quickly and leading teams through change with clarity and confidence.

Throughout the conversation, she explores how MetLife balances global consistency with local relevance, why cultural intelligence starts with listening, and how AI is transforming personalization, insights, and customer engagement — while reinforcing the importance of keeping humans at the center of every decision.

Takeaways:

• Cultural relevance is authenticity in action, not just in words. Cultural relevance isn’t about saying the right things. It’s about building authentic relationships rooted in a clear purpose.
• Understanding customers means going beyond what they say. Koley’s team uses neuropsychology-based research to uncover intrinsic motivations, what actually drives behavior, not just what people report. By combining first-party data, behavioral observation, and third-party data, they build a fuller, more honest picture of the customer and what is driving decision making.
• AI’s real power is accelerating the journey from insight to action. AI’s biggest opportunity is in personalization that adds value, rapidly converting customer signals into relevant, customized outreach and solutions.
• Curiosity is the engine of impact. Whether in business or personal life, staying curious is the foundation for adding value and driving growth. She uses AI tools to build accountability systems and explore what’s possible and advocates for putting these tools in her team’s hands to experiment.
• Legacy brands stay relevant by evolving through innovation, not chasing trends. MetLife’s longevity comes from continuously finding new ways to help customers build more confident futures while staying anchored in a consistent purpose.
• Personalization only matters when it creates genuine value. The goal isn’t personalization for the sake of looking innovative, but delivering the right support, insight, or solution at the moments that matter most.
• Human judgment still matters in an AI-driven world. While AI can accelerate research, synthesis, and engagement, these tools can introduce bias. Therefore, it’s important to keep “humans in the loop” to validate insights, reduce bias, and maintain authentic customer relationships.