List of Women CEOs (January 2019 Edition)


We dedicate today's article to the young women who aim to become leaders in their industries.  We believe that, despite being few and in between, women are able to lead organizations in various industries.  We also believe that women must help each other and create a supportive community.  We provided the list of women CEOs below, and hope that they serve our readers the examples they need.
List of Women CEOs (January 2019 Edition)

Mary Barra
Mary Barra is the current chairman and Chief Executive Officer at the General Motors Company. She has been at the helm of GM since January 2014. Her leadership at General Motors has seen some major corporate improvements as the company has undertaken measures targeting aligning itself with the corporate call for a global reduction in carbon emissions. Other achievements under Marry Barra’s leadership at the GM include the inception of the autonomous vehicle development project.

Mary's career at the General Motors Company has seen her advance from being the executive vice president to serving as a senior vice president in charge of various global operations in product development and supply chain management. She has particularly been instrumental to the global growth of the General Motors Company. She is, therefore, an inspiration to upcoming female corporate leaders who target making a difference in the most challenging workplaces.


Marillyn Hewson

Marilynn Hewson is the current chairman, president, and Chief Executive Officer at the Lockheed Martin Corporation. She has been holding the position since January 2013 after rising through the ranks from Executive Vice President in charge of electronics systems to being the President and Chief Operating Officer in 2010 and 2012 respectively. Her career with Lockheed Martin spans the last 35 years when she joined the company as an industrial engineer, a career that few women dare to venture into. Among her accomplishes at the Lockheed Martin Company so far include overseeing the culture of innovation and problem-solving at the customer, national, and global level.

Safra Catz

Safra Catz currently serves of the Chief Executive Officer of the Oracle Corporation, a position she has been holding since 2014. She also serves in the company's Board of Directors. Safra has held various other high-ranking positions within the company since 1999 when she joined. Safra’s skills in corporate leadership and decision-making has seen her appointed to serve as Director at the Walt Disney Company and had held a similar previous position at the HSBC Holdings Plc.

As the Chief Executive Officer, she has overseen the strategic expansion of the company's partnership in providing technical solutions to businesses, governments, and individuals. Safra is, therefore, a major inspiration to women aspiring to make a difference in leadership and corporate management.

Virginia Ginni Rometty

Virginia Rometty is IBM Company's current President and Chief Executive Officer since January 2012. In her position, she has overseen significant transformation and reinvention of the company to incorporate concepts relating to artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, and cybersecurity. Her visionary leadership has seen IBM become one of the global strategic partners in the development of cutting-edge computer solutions that are making a huge difference today. She has also overseen the ushering in of a new era in data handling and processing. She is a true inspiration to upcoming women with ambitions of changing the world through visionary corporate leadership.


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Patricia Kampling

Patricia Kampling is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Alliant Energy Corporation. She joined the company in 2005 and served in various positions including as the Vice President in charge of Finance before transitioning to other roles including the Vice President in charge of Treasury, Executive Vice President, and Chief Financial Officer. She was promoted to the current CEO position in 2011 before being named as the company’s President in 2012. Her visionary leadership in the Alliant Energy Corporation has seen some major changes in customer service and development of innovative energy solutions. She is, therefore, a true inspiration to women leaders in the energy sector.

Gail K. Boudreaux

Gail Boudreaux is the current president and Chief Executive Officer at Anthem Inc. Anthem is a prominent Fortune 50 corporate in the health benefits service provision industry. Her leadership at Anthem has seen some major improvements in terms of increased revenue and extended reach to more customers. She has also previously served in other prestigious corporations including United Healthcare and Blue Cross in senior positions. She is currently one of the few prominent women in the healthcare benefits industry.

Tricia Griffith

Tricia Griffith was appointed to serve as the President and Chief Executive Officer at the Progressive Corporation in July 2016. She joined the company in 1988 and has risen through the ranks, serving in various managerial positions in the claims division, the human resource department, and the finance sector. Tricia's visionary management in the company has seen significant improvements in terms of claims processing, customer management, and general service provision in the insurance sector.

The company has, under her leadership, grown to become one of the prominent players in the insurance industry in the automobile, property, and health divisions. In her over 30 years of service at the Progressive Corporation, she has served as a major inspiration to many upcoming women targeting making a difference in their workplaces.

Barbara Rentler

Barbara Rentler has served as Ross Stores Inc’s Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors since June 2014. Prior her promotion to the current position, she served as the President and Chief Merchandising Officer and the Executive Vice President for the company. Since joining the company in 1986, Barbara has made significant contributions to the growth of Rose Stores to become one of the trusted textile and cosmetic products companies in the United States. She has, since appointment, steered the company into successful financial operations, leading to increased revenue, operating income, assets, and equity; a growth that few Chief Executive Officers ever achieve. Barbara is, therefore, a role model for many young women eyeing the beauty and cosmetics industry.

Kathy Warden

Kathy Warden is the current Chief Executive Officer and President of the Northrop Grumman Corporation, a major player in the global aerospace and defense technology industry. She joined the Northrop Grumman Corporation in 2008 before which she had served in various managerial and leadership positions in the General Electric Company and the General Dynamics and Viridian Corporation. Her expertise in aerospace management has enabled her to oversee the development of various mission-critical systems and large-scale complex hardware and software items.

She has also forged good working relations and partnerships with government agencies such as NASA and other international bodies in the aerospace industry. Kathy has dared to venture in an industry that very few women dream of. Her successful career in the aerospace industry in senior managerial positions is a major inspiration for upcoming and aspiring women aerospace engineers and managers.

Indra Nooyi

Indra Nooyi is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the PepsiCo Company, a position she has served in since 2007. While at the helm of the second largest beverage company in the world, Indra Nooyi has focused on delivering sustainable growth in helping the company establish a global footprint and delivery of nutritious beverage products. Before becoming the Chief Executive Officer, Indra served in various other senior management capacities such as the Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President in charge of Corporate Strategy and Development. Her prowess in corporate management has seen the PepsiCo Company expand its emphasis on innovation and product development.


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Margaret Keane

Margaret Keane serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Synchrony Financial Company. She is one of the few women in the world today serving the CEO of a major financial services company. Margaret has served in the top position since 2011. Under her leadership, Synchrony Financial has achieved significant growth in national and regional markets in partnership with other strategic industry players in the financial services sector. She has overseen the company's growth to the current position where it is the largest provider of private label credit cards in the US market. Margaret’s contribution to the financial management sector serves as an inspiration to upcoming women interested in the professional financial services industry.

Adena Friedman

Adena Friedman became the President of Nasdaq in January 2017. She also serves in the institution’s Board of Directors. With over 20 years of experience in strategic management, Adena brings on board valuable managerial skills essential to spearhead Nasdaq to become the second largest stock market globally. She joined the company in 1993 and has since served in various junior positions where she has risen through the ranks to senior managerial positions. She has also been instrumental to the growth of Nasdaq through the acquisition of the Boston and Philadelphia stock markets, OMX, and INET. Her role in the expansion of the Nasdaq through proper strategizing is a great motivation to many other women who aspire to venture into the stocks exchange sector.

Conclusion

The above list of prominent women CEOs is derived from virtually every possible industry in the market. From the financial industry to the food, manufacturing, cosmetics, and aerospace industries, these CEOs have proven that women can deliver professional results. The incredible contributions that these women have made in their areas of investment are a testament to the concept of women empowerment. Their successful managerial skills have not only positively steered their companies but also inspired upcoming women with managerial aspirations.   

Written by Dan Escriba.  For more information, please contact us at STRONG FEMALE LEADERS.