General Motors’ Chair and CEO Mary Barra was revealed to be one of the 100 Most Powerful Women in Business for 2023. She is behind a strong electric vehicle push and navigating the UAW strike, according to Fortune.
In fact, Fortune’s 26th annual list puts her in the top 10 (number three), behind President and CEO of CVS Health Karen S. Lynch and Julie Sweet, Chair and CEO of Accenture. Ruth Porat, President, CIO, and CFO of Alphabet and Google is also on the top 10 list, while 34-year-old Mira Murati, the Chief Technology Officer at OpenAI (the maker of ChatGPT) made the 100 list.
“Congratulations to our Chair and CEO Mary Barra for being ranked as one of Forbes World’s 100 Most Powerful Women,” said GM in a LinkedIn post. “From political leaders and entertainers to human right activists and CEOs, this list is comprised of women who are driving change and fighting the status quo.”
According to Fortune, as male CEOs step down, women are being called to replace them in greater numbers. In a news release, the company said that in this year’s first half, 106 CEOs worldwide left their jobs and 13 per cent of the replacements were women — up from 2.4 per cent in 2018.
“The business world is demanding change, and women leaders are meeting the moment,” said Fortune in a statement. For example, the company notes that Margherita Della Valle stepped into the role of CEO of British telecom Vodafone in April. And Sandy Ran Xu took over Chinese e-commerce titan JD.com in May.
This 100 Most Powerful Women in Business list for 2023 celebrates leading business women around the globe in industries ranging from finance and tech to healthcare, telecom, retail, and energy, among others.