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Posted: Jun 30, 2025 1:52 PMUpdated: Jun 30, 2025 1:59 PM
Former Phillips 66 Executive Dies After Cancer Battle
Nathan Thompson
A former Phillips 66 executive has died after a battle with cancer.
Kay Sallee passed away on Wednesday, June 25 at the age of 66. She retired in 2019 as Chief Information Officer for Phillips 66 after a 38-year career.
Kay was born in Arkansas City, Kan. on Aug. 22, 1958. The family moved to Ft. Smith, Ark. in 1964 where she graduated high school. She attended Oklahoma Baptist University and graduated in 1980.
Kay began her career with Phillips Petroleum Company in 1981 after a move to Bartlesville. Her first role was an entry-level position as a marketer in the credit card department. While in that role, she was asked if she had an interest in moving into the new field of Information Technology.
With no background in that field, she fearlessly made the leap and proceeded to progress through various roles and leadership levels, landing at the top as the Chief Information Officer, with responsibility for all information services worldwide.
Kay was recognized by CIO magazine in 2005 as one of their global 33 Rising Stars of the year. She was recognized again in 2016 by IBM as a result of the employee opinion survey they conducted on the Phillips 66 IT division.
During her years in Bartlesville, Kay was a community leader, serving on several nonprofit boards, among them Elder Care, the Frank Phillips Foundation — Woolaroc, Truity Credit Union and the Salvation Army.
A visitation for Kay and her family begins at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, July 1 at Terrace Park Funeral Home and Cemetery in Kansas City, Mo., with a funeral to follow at 11 a.m.
A memorial service for Kay will also be held at City Church in Bartlesville at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 2.
Kay's family is requesting any gifts in her memory to be made to Woolaroc.
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