Reading Time: 11 minutes

25 Top Women CEOs Whose Career Journeys Offer Lessons in Leadership

Explore the top women CEOs, their business strategies, and leadership lessons to learn practical ideas for your own career or business growth.

Only 55 women lead Fortune 500 companies in 2026, a record high that still represents just 11% of the list. If you’re looking for who these executives are and what sets them apart, you’re in the right place. This guide profiles 25 leaders, from AMD’s Lisa Su to Citigroup’s Jane Fraser, covering their business impact, leadership approaches, and the industry challenges they navigate.

The top women CEOs steer technology, banking, healthcare, energy, retail, and manufacturing companies, influencing billions in revenue and investment. Their strategies offer practical lessons in decision-making, operational discipline, and leading through change.

Business Performance Comparison Table

25 Top Women CEOs Whose Career Journeys Offer Lessons in Leadership | The Enterprise World

CEO	Company	Industry	CEO Since
Jane Fraser	Citigroup	Banking	2021
Mary Barra	General Motors	Automotive	2014
Lisa Su	AMD	Semiconductors	2014
Julie Sweet	Accenture	Consulting and technology	2019
Gail Boudreaux	Elevance Health	Healthcare	2017
Sarah London	Centene	Healthcare	2022
Tan Su Shan	DBS Group	Banking	2025
Thasunda Brown Duckett	TIAA	Financial services	2021
Reshma Kewalramani	Vertex Pharmaceuticals	Biotechnology	2020
Abigail Johnson	Fidelity Investments	Financial services	2014
Beth Ford	Land O’Lakes	Agriculture	2018
Gunjan Kedia	U.S. Bancorp	Banking	2025
Phebe Novakovic	General Dynamics	Aerospace and defense	2013
Corie Barry	Best Buy	Consumer electronics	2019
Kecia Steelman	Ulta Beauty	Beauty retail	2025
Joi Harris	DTE Energy	Energy and utilities	2025
Susan Morris	Albertsons	Grocery retail	2025
Karen S. Carter	Dow	Chemicals	2026
Heidi O’Neill	Lululemon	Apparel	2026
Meg O’Neill	BP	Energy	2026
Catherine MacGregor	Engie	Energy	2021
Estelle Brachlianoff	Veolia	Environmental services	2022
Joey Wat	Yum China	Restaurants	2018
Vicki Hollub	Occidental Petroleum	Oil and gas	2016
Lynn Good	Duke Energy	Utilities	2013

25 Top Women CEOs Who Taught Unforgettable Business Lessons:

1. Jane Fraser (Citigroup)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Achieved FY2025 net income of $14.3 billion.

Execution & Restructuring: Executed Citi’s largest multi-year organizational overhaul in decades, simplifying operations from 18 management layers down to 8 and shedding non-core international consumer banking franchises in 14 markets to refocus capital on core Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS) and Wealth Management.

2. Mary Barra (General Motors)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Delivered a 6% increase in U.S. vehicle sales in 2025 alongside $10+ billion in annual adjusted EBIT.

Innovation & Expansion: Oversees Cruise autonomous driving initiatives and scaled GM’s Ultium EV battery platform, achieving profitability across both core internal combustion engine (ICE) trucks/SUVs and high-volume electric vehicle models.

3. Lisa Su (AMD)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Generated $34.6 billion in FY2025 revenue, representing a 34% year-over-year increase.

Market Expansion: Expanded data-center and AI product lines with the Instinct MI300/MI350 series accelerators, securing multi-billion-dollar enterprise and hyperscaler cloud commitments to rival Nvidia in AI infrastructure.

4. Julie Sweet (Accenture)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Reported $69.7 billion in FY2025 revenue, up 7% in local currency.

Innovation & Acquisitive Growth: Scaled generative AI services to exceed $3 billion in new bookings, supported by a targeted acquisition strategy (completing 30+ strategic acquisitions annually) to deepen cloud and industrial automation capabilities.

5. Gail Boudreaux (Elevance Health)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Reached approximately $199 billion in FY2025 revenue.

Market Expansion: Among the top women CEOs in healthcare, she expanded the Carelon health services arm to drive high-margin growth beyond traditional health benefits, managing total medical and pharmacy coverage for over 47 million members.

6. Sarah London (Centene)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Generated approximately $194.78 billion in FY2025 revenue.

Strategic Turnaround: Executed the “Value Creation Plan,” streamlining operations, divesting non-core international assets, and consolidating marketplace coverage to maintain Centene’s position as the #1 insurer on the Ambetter ACA Health Insurance Marketplace with over 4 million members.

7. Tan Su Shan (DBS Group)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Delivered record FY2025 net profit of $11 billion.

Digital Transformation: Sustained industry-leading returns on equity (ROE > 18%) by driving digital transaction migration across Southeast Asia and scaling AI-powered wealth advisory solutions.

8. Thasunda Brown Duckett (TIAA)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Manages over $1.3–$1.4 trillion in assets under management (AUM) and distributed $4.6+ billion in lifetime income payments to retired educators and healthcare workers.

Innovation & Access: Spearheaded the Retirement Bill of Rights initiative and integrated TIAA Secure Income Account options into mainstream 401(k) target-date funds.

9. Reshma Kewalramani (Vertex Pharmaceuticals)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Achieved $12 billion in FY2025 revenue, up 9% year-over-year.

Innovation Milestones: Approved and launched CASGEVY™ (first-ever CRISPR-based gene therapy for Sickle Cell Disease and Transfusion-Dependent Beta-Thalassemia) and advanced Journay™ (non-opioid pain treatment) into commercial phase.

10. Abigail Johnson (Fidelity Investments)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Reached $37.7 billion in FY2025 revenue (up 15% YoY) and $18.0 trillion in total Assets Under Administration (AUA).

Market Innovation: As one of the top women CEOs in finance, she spearheaded early institutional crypto infrastructure, launching the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), which rapidly grew into one of the largest spot Bitcoin ETFs in the world.

11. Beth Ford (Land O’Lakes)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Oversees a cooperative generating $15+ billion in annual revenue across agricultural inputs, dairy, and animal nutrition.

Advocacy & Technology: Launched the Truterra sustainability platform (paying farmers millions for carbon sequestration) and spearheaded the American Broadband Initiative, securing public-private infrastructure investments across rural America.

12. Gunjan Kedia (U.S. Bancorp)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Manages $660+ billion in total assets across payment services, commercial banking, and retail network operations.

Integration & Digital Growth: Led the post-merger integration of Union Bank, expanding customer reach across California and driving digital adoption through integrated merchant processing and corporate treasury tools.

13. Phebe Novakovic (General Dynamics)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Reached $52.6 billion in FY2025 revenue, driven by strong demand across Defense and Aerospace segments.

Operational Execution: Among the top women CEOs, Phebe Novakovic expanded order backlogs beyond $90 billion across Columbia-class submarine production, M1 Abrams modernization, and high-margin Gulfstream G700/G800 business jet deliveries.

14. Corie Barry (Best Buy)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Sustains $43+ billion in annual revenue across e-commerce and retail footprints.

Service Innovation: Expanded Best Buy Totaltech paid membership ecosystem and scaled Best Buy Health (remote patient monitoring and technology services) into a key growth segment.

15. Kecia Steelman (Ulta Beauty)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Oversees operations generating $11+ billion in annual sales across 1,350+ stores.

Omnichannel Expansion: Scaled the Ulta Beauty at Target store-in-store shop concept to 800+ locations and grew the Ultamate Rewards loyalty program past 43 million active members.

16. Joi Harris (DTE Energy)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Oversees a capital investment plan exceeding $36.5 billion dedicated to grid reliability and renewable power.

Clean Energy Transition: Leading the retirement of coal-fired generation plants to achieve 3,000+ MW of wind and solar capacity, reducing carbon emissions while serving 2.3 million electric customers.

17. Susan Morris (Albertsons)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Manages $79+ billion in annual sales across 2,200+ grocery stores.

Retail Execution: Expanded DriveUp & Go™ e-commerce fulfillment and private label offerings (O Organics®, Signature SELECT®), driving digital sales growth above 15% annually.

18. Karen S. Carter (Dow)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Directs a global materials science leader generating $40+ billion in annual revenue.

Sustainability & Restructuring: Oversees the construction of the world’s first net-zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions ethylene cracker in Alberta, Canada, while executing operational cost-discipline programs.

19. Heidi O’Neill (Lululemon)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Directs strategic expansion for a brand targeting $11.5 billion in annual revenue under its “Power of Three ×2” growth strategy.

Market Expansion: Accelerating international store growth across China and Europe while scaling men’s apparel and footwear product categories.

20. Meg O’Neill (BP)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Manages a global energy portfolio producing 10 million barrels of oil equivalent per day with $200+ billion in annual revenues.

Capital Allocation: As one of the top women CEOs, she is balancing deepwater, high-margin oil production in the Gulf of Mexico and North Sea with disciplined investments in bioenergy, hydrogen, and EV charging infrastructure.

21. Catherine MacGregor (Engie)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Directs operations generating €80+ billion in annual revenue with operating profits exceeding €8 billion.

Renewable Scaling: Accelerated green capacity growth to add 4 GW of wind and solar power annually, targeting 80 GW of total renewable capacity.

22. Estelle Brachlianoff (Veolia)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Generated €45+ billion in annual revenue following the integration of Suez assets.

Environmental Impact: Scaled circular economy operations to produce 1.5 million MWh of energy from waste and treat drinking water for over 110 million people globally.

23. Joey Wat (Yum China)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Generated $11+ billion in annual revenue while operating over 15,000 stores across China.

Digital & Operational Scale: Expanded the digital loyalty program to 500+ million members, with digital ordering accounting for over 85% of total company sales.

24. Vicki Hollub (Occidental Petroleum)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Directs oil & gas operations generating $28+ billion in annual revenue following the $12 billion acquisition of CrownRock.

Carbon Innovation: Leading commercialization of Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology through the construction of STRATOS, the world’s largest commercial DAC facility.

25. Lynn Good (Duke Energy)

Financial Impact & Milestones: Oversees a utility holding company with $29+ billion in annual revenue and a $73 billion five-year capital plan.

Infrastructure Modernization: Successfully repositioned Duke Energy as a fully regulated utility, transitioning power generation toward solar, nuclear, and modernized grid storage to serve 8.4 million customers.

These Are Some Leadership Trends Among Women CEOs

Several patterns stand out across these executives:

Digital and AI transformation: Leaders in technology, consulting, banking, and retail are investing in AI, data, and automation to improve products and operations.
Operational discipline: Strong leadership increasingly means balancing innovation with profitability, risk controls, and reliable execution.
Long-term investment: Energy, healthcare, and industrial companies require decisions that may take years to produce measurable returns.
Customer-focused growth: Personalization, digital access, service quality, and loyalty are important competitive advantages across sectors.
Internal leadership development: Many executives advanced through operational or specialist roles, showing the value of succession planning and deep industry experience.

Where Women Leaders Meet, and Move the Conversation

The boardroom is only part of the story. Women’s leadership events are where achievements get recognized, ideas get tested, and mentors and sponsors are found. Here are four worth knowing:

Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit: Top executives swap notes on strategy, innovation, and the realities of leading at scale.

Forbes Power Women’s Summit: Founders and industry shapers discuss influence, entrepreneurship, and the leadership playbook.

Fortune India Most Powerful Women: Puts the spotlight on women driving Indian business and tells their leadership journeys.

Bharat 2.0 Conclave: Shakti Edition: This Mumbai gathering brought together women leaders, entrepreneurs, and changemakers for keynotes, recognition, and networking, celebrating their role in India’s growth.

These gatherings do more than applaud success. They show rising leaders that careers are built on talent plus access: the right mentors, the right connections, and a stage where their ideas are heard.

Conclusion:

The Top Women CEOs on this list prove there’s no single path to the corner office. Some rebuilt struggling giants, some scaled global brands, and others steered legacy industries through technology and energy shifts. Yet their playbooks overlap: disciplined execution, bold long-term bets, and strong teams behind them. With women still holding only about 11% of Fortune 500 CEO roles, their stories matter beyond the boardroom.

Which of these leaders’ lessons could you apply to your own career or business this year? Pick one idea, act on it, and share the story of the woman who inspires you with your network.

FAQ:

1. Who are the top women CEOs in 2026?

Leading women CEOs in 2026 include Jane Fraser of Citigroup, Mary Barra of General Motors, Lisa Su of AMD, Julie Sweet of Accenture, and Reshma Kewalramani of Vertex Pharmaceuticals.

2. What makes a woman CEO successful?

Successful women CEOs combine strategic decision-making, financial discipline, innovation, team leadership, and the ability to adapt to changing markets.

3. How are the top women CEOs selected?

They are typically evaluated by their leadership roles, company performance, industry influence, strategic decisions, and measurable business outcomes.

4. Which industries have the most influential women CEOs?

Women CEOs lead major organizations in technology, finance, healthcare, retail, energy, manufacturing, and professional services.

5. What leadership lessons can aspiring entrepreneurs learn from women CEOs?

Aspiring entrepreneurs can learn to make data-driven decisions, build resilient teams, embrace innovation, and pursue sustainable growth.

Links and Sources:

Dhruv Apte

Dhruv Apte is a seasoned business strategist and leadership storyteller with expertise in executive branding, media communication, and content strategy. With over six years of experience in business journalism and market research, he helps C-suite leaders amplify their thought leadership and digital presence through compelling narratives and strategic visibility. Dhruv blends sharp business insight with a deep understanding of storytelling to highlight what drives successful leadership.

All Posts