5 Wharton Grads Make Forbes’ Most Powerful Women List
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Philadelphians likely forget that some of the most powerful and influential business people in the world are educated in our backyard. In fact, five graduates from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School made Forbes magazine’s new World’s Most Powerful Women list.
Also, there were two graduates of Bryn Mawr College, one fashion icon and two Comcast execs. See the full list here.
The Wharton Grads:
24. Safra Catz, co-CEO of Oracle
Forbes called her “one of Larry Ellison‘s closest confidants” said she “played a role in closing over 85 acquisitions” and earned nearly $38 million in 2014.
32. Ruth Porat, CFO Google
She’s a “longtime power woman on Wall Street,” and “kept a cool head” during the bailouts of 2008 helping to “advise the U.S. Treasury and NY Fed on Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and AIG,” said Forbes.
44. Laurene Powell Jobs, Founder and Chair, Emerson Collective
The widow of Apple‘s Steve Jobs, is “making a name for herself as a political and social influencer” and is “the largest individual shareholder in Disney, with a 7.7% slice of the company.”
56. Phebe Novakovic, CEO, General Dynamics
Novakovic banked “$30.9 billion in revenue for General Dynamics last year with profits of $2.5 billion,” said Forbes. Amid shrinking defense budgets, “the company’s aerospace business group grew 6.5 percent in 2014.”
92. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, President-CEO, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Lavizzo-Mourey “oversaw more than 1,400 grants worth $1.1 billion last year alone,” said Forbes.
Bryn Mawr Grads:
18. Ana Patricia Botín, Chair, Santander Group, Banco Santander
Botín went from Bryn Mawr to Harvard Business School to being “one of the most powerful banking executives in the world,” said Forbes. She’s “the first woman to head a major European lender.”
46. Drew Gilpin Faust, President, Harvard University
Forbes explains the gravity of being Harvard’s president: “With an endowment of $36.4 billion (comparative to GDP of Jordan), Harvard has been increasingly involved in conversations around sustainability (reduction of greenhouse gas, fossil fuel divestment).”
The Comcast-ers:
52. Bonnie Hammer, Chair, Cable Entertainment Group, NBCUniversal, Comcast
Forbes calls Hammer “the most powerful woman in television” because she has USA Network, E!, Bravo and SyFy in her Cable Entertainment Group. “In 2014, her ever-expanding portfolio made up more than half of NBCUniversal’s total profit, and revenue continues to increase year-over-year.”
58. Donna Langley, Chair, Universal Pictures, Comcast
“Langley led the studio to its most profitable year in history ($5.5 billion) in 2014, with releases such as Neighbors and Lucy,” said Forbes. She’s expected to have a huge 2015 with “Pitch Perfect 2, Ted 2, Minions, and Jurassic World to premiere this summer.”
The Fashion Icon:
73. Tory Burch, CEO, Tory Burch
Forbes calls Burch “the queen of preppy bohemian chic.” Not bad for a Penn grad. “What was at the time one store in Manhattan’s Nolita district is now a retail empire worth upwards of $3 billion,” said Forbes.
The Top 5
4. Janet Yellen
5. Mary Barra
