Summary
Gwendelyn Daniels is a seasoned product and technology leader with over 20 years driving digital transformation and user-centered legal services at Illinois Legal Aid Online. As Deputy Director she shapes product strategy, operationalizes strategic plans, and oversees cross-functional teams including legal content, intake, product support, and technical vendors to serve millions of users. Her unique blend of JD, accounting background, and hands-on engineering experience lets her translate complex legal needs into scalable technical solutions—from platform rewrites and multilingual support to integrations with Twilio, Mailchimp, and mobile apps. She has led R&D and product roadmaps that grew annual site usage from under 250,000 to over 2 million and launched enduring tools like an intake/triage system adopted by multiple organizations. Known for moving from code to leadership without losing technical rigor, she balances vendor management, product integrity, and measurable impact evaluation. Based in Chicago, she combines nonprofit mission focus with rigorous product discipline to improve access to justice at scale.
10 years of coding experience
23 years of employment as a software developer
Doctor of Law - JD, Doctor of Law - JD at DePaul University College of Law
Bachelor of Business Administration - BBA Accounting; minor in Computer Science, Bachelor of Business Administration - BBA Accounting; minor in Computer Science at Angelo State University