Fortune magazine's annual list of the most powerful women in business came with a few surprises this year, most notably Oprah Winfrey’s dive out of the top 10.
The omnipresent media queen dropped a full 10 slots from last year, falling to No. 16. The end of her syndicated daytime show coupled with the lackluster performance of her TV network, OWN, is likely the cause for her slide from the top.
"There’s been plenty of turmoil atop Fortune’s annual Most Powerful Women list," a statement by Fortune magazine said. "Carol Bartz lost her job as CEO of Yahoo — and her place on the list — while Oprah Winfrey fell 10 spots to No. 16, her power and influence in flux without the platform of her eponymous syndicated talk show."
But perhaps the most shocking shift in this year's list is the dethroning of PepsiCo chief Indra Nooyi, who has held the top spot for five years and is now at No. 2. Kraft CEO Irene Rosenfeld took the No. 1 rank this time out.
"This ranking is all about power, and while Nooyi runs the bigger company, Rosenfeld’s decision to split Kraft into two entities shows she has it and knows how to use it," Fortune said.
Here is the top 10:
1. Irene Rosenfeld, 58, Chairwoman and CEO Kraft Foods
2. Indra Nooyi, 55, CEO and chairwoman, PepsiCo.
3. Patricia Woerz, 58, Chairwoman, CEO, and president, Archer Daniels Midland
4. Ellen Kullman, 55, Chairwoman and CEO, DuPont
5. Angela Braly, 50, Chairwoman, president, and CEO, Wellpoint
6. Andrea Jung, 53, Chairwoman and CEO, Avon Products
7. Ginni Rometty, 54, SVP, IBM
8. Ursula Burns, 53, Chairwoman and CEO, Xerox
9. Meg Whitman, 55, CEO and president, Hewlett-Packard
10. Sherilyn McCoy, Vice Chairwoman, 52, Johnson & Johnson
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 25: Wrestling and hockey state championships On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Gregg Sarra and Matt Lindsay recap all the state wrestling action from Albany this past weekend, plus Jared Valluzzi has the ice hockey championship results from Binghamton.
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 25: Wrestling and hockey state championships On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Gregg Sarra and Matt Lindsay recap all the state wrestling action from Albany this past weekend, plus Jared Valluzzi has the ice hockey championship results from Binghamton.
