For years, ladies have fought their method to the highest. Those that’ve succeeded have grow to be trailblazers in their very own proper.

Take non-public fairness large Ardian’s CEO Dominique Senequier, who was among the many first ladies to be admitted into her college, École Polytechnique. Allison Kirkby of telecoms firm BT turned the primary feminine CEO within the firm’s 178-year historical past final month.

When investigating Europe’s strongest and influential ladies for Worldwide Girls’s Day, we discovered a typical thread–the wealth of expertise they create.

We found round 35% of Fortune 500 Europe’s feminine CEOs and half of the European ladies on Fortune’s Most Highly effective Girls listing are aged 55 and over. From that group we discovered completed consultants throughout industries—from commodities to monetary providers and prescribed drugs—who’ve spent a number of many years within the company world now. 

To acknowledge their sizable achievements this Worldwide Girls’s Day, Fortune curated a handpicked choice of feminine leaders on the helm of European corporations, aged 55 and above. We drew upon our flagship lists—Fortune 500 Europe and Most Highly effective Girls—whereas additionally holding an eye fixed out for different up-and-coming leaders.

This inaugural listing would be the first of many, highlighting the best feminine enterprise leaders in continental Europe and, arguably, the world. Whereas the listing isn’t exhaustive, it sheds gentle on how feminine leaders are shaking up right now’s world. 

Nonetheless you have a look at it, there’s an unacceptably low variety of feminine CEOs in Europe. When Fortune launched its debut listing of Europe’s prime 500 corporations based mostly on income final yr, we discovered solely 7% had been run by ladies. That’s a tiny fraction, and divulges how far more work we’ve got forward of us.

There’s an apparent enterprise case for doing so—women-led corporations have proven larger revenue margins and are linked to larger climate-related investments, consultancy The Pipeline present in a examine of FTSE 350 corporations. 

For all these on the trail to grow to be future leaders, Netherlands-based Achmea’s government board chair, Bianca Tetteroo, shared the next phrases of knowledge: “Dare to leap into the deep finish. What’s the worst factor if it doesn’t work out?”.

Discover 5 spotlighted executives together with two up-and-coming leaders we’ve got our eyes on, and the total listing under.

Editor’s Be aware: The listing under combines knowledge from each the Fortune Europe 500 and the Most Highly effective Girls lists, as captured in 2023. Income and different knowledge had been captured on the time of the listing creation and should not mirror the newest knowledge obtainable.

The Callouts

Our workforce curated a hand-picked group of European feminine CEOs who’ve blazed the path for the following technology of leaders. Meet them under:

Halvor Molland/Hydro

Hilde Merete Aasheim, CEO of Norsk Hydro

Aasheim is a real jack of all trades. She’s led the Norwegian aluminum and vitality large Norsk Hydro since 2019, steering it by means of the highs and lows of the pandemic-time demand and value volatility. Beginning off as an accountant, she climbed up the ranks over 35 years by working in quite a lot of features from human sources to senior administration. Aasheim, who’s now the CEO and president of Hydro, has been on the firm for shut to twenty years. 

“The perfect factor you are able to do is to take the possibility when you’ve gotten it, say sure reasonably than interested by all of the challenges, and reasonably have a look at it as a possibility,” Aasheim stated in an interview with S&P World final yr.     

Hydro was ranked #173 within the Fortune 500 Europe listing and Aasheim was ranked #60 on the Most Highly effective Girls listing.

Courtesy of Merck KgA

Belén Garijo, CEO of Merck KGaA

Garijo’s journey started as a doctor in Spain. Finally, that landed her in a boardroom. She is now among the many few feminine CEOs within the mammoth-sized chemical substances and life sciences sector, and is the primary one at 355-year-old Merck. She additionally sits on the board of French magnificence large L’Oréal. 

Garijo has been honored for her achievements in furthering gender range. Over a 3rd of Merck’s prime leaders are ladies. 

“Nonetheless right now, many ladies in science will encounter individuals who resist any change to the established order. And that’s when it’s good to be surrounded by individuals who imagine in you—typically greater than you imagine in your self,” Garijo stated in a LinkedIn submit final month. 

Merck was ranked #165 the Fortune 500 Europe listing and Garijo was ranked #30 on the Most Highly effective Girls listing. 

Joel Sagat—AFP/Getty Photos

Dominique Senequier, CEO of Ardian

To steer one in all Europe’s largest non-public fairness companies isn’t any small feat. 

Senequier rose to fame when she based insurance coverage agency AXA’s non-public fairness arm in 1996. That ultimately morphed into Ardian in 2013, and is now a sprawling 1,050-people operation.

However Senequier’s trail-blazing journey started nicely earlier than that, when she was one in all seven to be admitted to Ecole Polytechnique’s first consumption for girls in 1972.  

Ardian, underneath the French non-public fairness veteran, has dedicated itself to bringing extra ladies into this area of interest of finance. The agency’s ratio of latest hires who had been feminine was 42% final yr.  

Senequier was ranked #66 in Fortune’s Most Highly effective Girls listing in 2023.

Courtesy of Vodafone

Margherita Della Valle, CEO of Vodafone

Della Valle has spent the higher a part of her life—over 30 years—at British telecoms behemoth Vodafone. In that point, she has labored in numerous roles from advertising to finance. 

She was the group’s CFO for a number of years earlier than turning into CEO in 2023. 

The Italian-born economics graduate is among the many 9 FTSE 100 corporations which can be led by ladies.

Since taking up the helm of Vodafone, she has undertaken a large restructuring effort, chopping down the variety of markets it operates in, and pull again up its slumping share costs. 

“Being a girl in enterprise right now is a little bit of a superpower since you deliver a unique voice,” she instructed That is Cash. “It is vitally tough to get across the desk. However as soon as you’re there, your voice can actually be heard as a result of you’ve gotten a unique perspective.”

Della Valle was ranked #36 in Fortune’s Most Highly effective Girls listing in 2023. 

Hollie Adams—Bloomberg/Getty Photos

Ana Botín, Govt Chairman of Santander

Banking runs in Botín’s blood. 

She took over from her father Emilio as the manager chair of Banco Santander, one in all Europe’s greatest banks, in 2014. Botín is the fourth-generation within the household to guide the corporate.

Botín is, in each sense, a banking professional as she spent her whole profession working within the trade since beginning at JPMorgan in New York in 1980. 

She has scaled the financial institution to new heights, establishing it as an multinational juggernaut whereas increasing ladies’s presence on the board and senior management ranges. Botín additionally serves on the board of The Coca-Cola Firm. 

In Botín’s view, rotating ladies inside completely different banking roles could be a helpful method to uplift them and supply them alternatives to climb the company ladder quicker, she instructed CNBC final yr.  

Botín was ranked #19 in Fortune’s Most Highly effective Girls listing in 2023.

Ones to observe

Listed below are two leaders who we imagine are tipped for future success:

Barbara Martin Coppola, CEO of Decathlon

Martin Coppola is a real international citizen—she’s lived and labored in 9 international locations. Her company pedigree consists of Google and Ikea, earlier than she took over the top-job at French sports activities retailer Decathlon in 2022. She is the family-owned firm’s first feminine CEO and first chief employed externally. 

She is an professional at enterprise improvement and digital growth—two parts she hopes will propel Decathlon to new heights. The retailer is likely to be comparatively younger (at 47 years) in comparison with the opposite corporations highlighted above, however Decathlon is already current in 70 international locations and has established itself as one of many greatest sporting corporations globally. 

In Martin Coppola’s first yr as CEO, Decathlon’s gross sales grew 12% yearly—however that’s not all, the variety of ladies in senior management roles doubled. 

The Decathlon CEO was ranked #61 in Fortune’s Most Highly effective Girls’s Listing in 2023.

Debra Crew, CEO of Diageo

Crew had massive sneakers to fill when she took over from Ivan Menezes, who was among the many FTSE 100’s longest-serving CEOs. In turning into Diageo’s chief, Crew, 53, joined the small however mighty group of ladies main FTSE 100 corporations.  

Crew is a veteran within the food-and-beverage house, having labored at Pepsi, Nestlé and others previous to becoming a member of the Guinness-maker. She has a tall activity because the world’s largest spirits maker faces a cocktail of issues from a listing glut to a hunch in demand. 

Earlier than Crew entered the company world, she served as a U.S. navy officer.

Diageo ranked #166 within the Fortune 500 Europe listing. 

View our full listing of feminine European CEOs, in no specific order, under. 

Ana Botín

Firm: SantanderCountry: SpainDirector and Govt Chairman tenure (years): 20+

Margherita Della Valle

Firm: Vodafone GroupCountry: ItalyCEO tenure (years): 1+

Dominique Senequier

Firm: ArdianCountry: FranceFounder and President tenure (years): 20+

Allison Kirkby

Firm: BTCountry: U.Okay.CEO tenure (years): Two months. (Beforehand President and CEO of Telia Firm).

Isabelle Ferrand

Firm: Crédit Mutuel GroupCountry: France CEO tenure (years): 1+

Christel Bories

Firm: ErametCountry: FranceChairman and CEO tenure (years): 6+

Annie J. Krist

Firm: GasTerraCountry: NetherlandsCEO tenure (years): 6+

Nancy McKinstry

Firm: Wolters KluwerCountry: US (Netherlands-based) Chairman and CEO tenure (years): 20+

Hilde Merete Aasheim

Firm: Norsk Hydro Nation: Norway President and CEO tenure (years): 4+

Nina Jönsson

Firm: ICA GruppenCountry: SwedenCEO tenure (years): 1+

Michelle M. MacKay

Firm: Cushman & WakefieldCountry: USCEO tenure (years): Eight months.

Belén Garijo

Firm: Merck GroupCountry: Spain Chair of Govt Board and CEO tenure (years): 2+

Sophie Bellon

Firm: SodexoCountry: France Chairwoman and CEO tenure (years): 2+

Bianca E.M. Tetteroo

Firm: AchmeaCountry: NetherlandsChair of the Govt Board tenure (years): 2+

Credit: This yr’s listing was ready underneath the route of Fortune Europe’s Listing Director, Grethe Schepers.