Forbes has recently released its annual list of the world's most powerful women for 2023, and it features four?Indians. To determine the rank, Forbes had four metrics: money, media, impact, and spheres of influence. Let's find out who all made it to this year's list.
64-year-old Nirmala?Sitharaman?has been India's Minister of Finance and Minister of Corporate Affairs since 2019. She is India's first full-time female finance minister. FM Sitharaman served as the 28th Defence Minister from 2017 to 2019, making her India's second female Defence Minister and Finance Minister after Indira Gandhi. Earlier, Forbes had ranked her 36th in the 2022 list of the world's most powerful women, and this year she has climbed to 32nd rank.
42-year-old Roshni Nadar Malhotra is an Indian billionaire and philanthropist. She is the chairperson of HCL Technologies, which made her the first woman to lead a listed IT company in India. She is the only child of HCL founder Shiv Nadar. Malhotra has consistently been ranked among the world's most powerful women?by Forbes, holding the 54th position in 2019, the 55th in 2020, and the 60th in 2023.
60-year-old Soma Mondal is the current Chairperson of the Steel Authority of India, making history as the first woman in this role. Born in Bhubaneswar, she graduated in electrical engineering in 1984.?With over 35 years of experience in the metal industry, Mondal started at NALCO and rose to become Director (Commercial) before joining SAIL in 2017.?
Mondal's career milestones include being the first woman Functional Director and Chairman at SAIL, as per an NDTV report. Beyond her corporate achievements, she holds the position of Chairperson of SCOPE and was honoured as 'CEO of the Year' at the ETPrime Women Leadership Awards in 2023. She ranks 70th on the list.
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70-year-old Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw is a prominent Indian billionaire entrepreneur. She founded and led Biocon Limited and Biocon Biologics Limited in Bangalore, India. Besides her role in the biotechnology companies, she was the former chairperson of the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. Mazumdar-Shaw has received numerous accolades, including the Othmer Gold Medal in 2014, for her contributions to science and chemistry.?
She was featured on the Financial Times' Top 50 Women in Business list in 2011. Forbes recognised her as the 68th most powerful woman globally in 2019, and in 2020, she was honoured as the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year. She ranks 76th in the 2023 Forbes List of Powerful Women.
Click here to check out the full Forbes list of the world's most powerful women in 2023.
The European Commission¡¯s President, Ursula von der Leyen, has retained her position as the world's most powerful woman this year after topping last year's list.?Born on October 8, 1958, in Belgium, Ursula von der Leyen was appointed president of the European Commission in July 2019. She is the first woman to serve in the role, which is responsible for legislation affecting more than 450 million Europeans.?
For the uninitiated, the European Commission is the executive branch of the European Union and helps to shape the EU's overall strategy, propose new EU laws and policies, monitor their implementation, and manage the EU budget. It also plays a significant role in supporting international development and delivering aid.
As per Forbes, from 2005 until 2019, von der Leyen served in Angela Merkel's cabinet¡ªthe longest tenure of any cabinet member. For the last six years of her time in the cabinet, she was Germany's Defence Minister. She also spearheaded a 750 million Euro COVID relief bill in 2020 and, in 2022, became one of the West's staunchest supporters of Ukraine amid Russia's unprovoked invasion.
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