Most Admired Business Women
Several of today’s businesswomen have shown that, whether or not the glass barrier for women still exist, they have the capabilities, knowledge, and tenacity to face adversaries and rise to the top of their industries.
Women in Business
Indra Nooyi
Nooyi is the Chairman and CEO of PepsiCo, the world’s fourth biggest food and beverage company, since August 2006. She first joined the company in 1994 as CFO, and it was under her financial guardianship when PepsiCo revenues rose by seventy two percent (72%) while net profits grew by more than half.
Nooyi played a vital role in the creation of Tricon (publicly known as the Yum! Brands), the spinning off of Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut, as well as the acquisition of Tropicana and Quaker Oats Co.
Nooyi has come a long way since earning a degree in Chemistry at the Madras Christian College in India in 1974. she followed this up with several post graduate management degrees, culminating in a master’s degree in Management at Yale University.
Nooyi is listed in Wall Street Journal’s top 50 women in business in 2005, and in Time’s 100 Most Influential People in the World in 2007 and 2008.
Meg Whitman
Whitman was President and CEO of eBay till March 2008; she remains the company’s director. Whitman is credited for building up the 30 employee company into the e-corporate giant that it is now.
Whitman has a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Princeton University and an MBA from Harvard. She is one of seven women who is repeatedly listed as the world’s most influential by Time magazine. Whitman currently serves on the boards of eBay Foundation, DreamWorks Animation, and Procter & Gamble.
Oprah Winfrey
Winfrey is Chairman of Harpo and a well-known and highly influential media mogul. Winfrey worked from the bottom up, surviving a tumultuous adolescent life. She entered the broadcasting industry through a radio show job while she was in high school. By 19, she was already co-anchoring a local evening news. Her ad-lib skills got her into daytime television talk shows, which saw her rise to fame. Winfrey has since launched her own production company, and eventually her media empire.
Winfrey’s influence extends beyond business. She is a book critic and magazine publisher. She is also an active philanthropist and political endorser. Winfrey leads Oprah’s Angel Network, which helps the underprivileged through charity projects and grants. She personally covers administrative costs so all donations go to the beneficiaries.
Sources:
Fortune Magazine 2007